Published on 12, July, 2020
I don't expect an answer to that question. It's not a real question: just one that I ask myself. I can probably answer it myself, so don't particularly want advice.My last period of employment was so horrible that I retired early (i.e. left without a job to go to) having been on long-term sick leave. Since then I've not been able to contemplate going back into the lions' den (paid employment). The thought of having to show up for work every day and deal with people (well-meaning or not) is something I can't face. Working from home wasn't great either, because it fostered my natural tendency to isolate myself from others. Ugh!
If organisations made genuine efforts to adapt to people with autism I might contemplate it, but which organisation genuinely does this? I had SO many issues, in my last employment.
Open plan noisy offices were the worst. Generally I couldn't focus so couldn't get on with any work. On the rare occasions I could focus on my work, I'd be dragged away by office chat and then find it hard to get back in the zone. I'm either in it or out of it. My most productive job: in an office as one of four computer programmers who rarely spoke to each other.Hot desking! Turning up at work, never knowing if you were going to find a suitable working environment. Bleurgh!
Then there were the unhelpful employment practices that I experienced, particularly in the last few years. The last organisation I worked for got rid of fixed job descriptions as they are normally understood. There was a generic fixed "job description" which didn't say very much at all, as it was couched in such broad terms, and was applied to many different people in very different roles. Then, on top of that, there was a description of your particular role, which was more like a traditional job description but didn't form part of the contract of employment, so could be changed at the employer's whim. The result of this: never ending changes which were beyond my control. Utterly traumatic! I found myself forced into roles that weren't suitable, eventually manage to manoeuvre myself into something less unmanageable, only to find the rug pulled out from under me again. Personally I find it hard to think of a worse arrangement for autistic people. I hadn't considered that I might be autistic then; now that I suspect I am, it's no wonder I had such difficulties.Oh well. I'm not sure how I'm going to fill the rest of my life, because it's not worked out so well up till now. End of rant.
Inactive account said: I'm not sure how I'm going to fill the rest of my life
What was your core skill set at the last place or two?
Also, what are your special interest areas - could any of these be developed into a viable career?
Lastly, what are your passions that are not quite special interests? Gardening, driving, teaching etc? Some of these could shape into something to make money that you actually enjoy.
Share as much or as little as you want and we can see what we can come up with for you to consider.
PS if you end up being a baker I hope NAS people get a special discount
Iain said:What was your core skill set at the last place or two?
I'm jiggered (my favourite word would be censored) if I know.
Iain said:what are your special interest areas
Not a lot these days. IT/tech probably at one time, but I'm not proficient these days, and haven't had a useful outlet for any skills I once had for a very long time now. Skill set is depleted to the point of being useless.
Iain said:Lastly, what are your passions that are not quite special interests?
Haha! I'm a passionate pedant. Quite passionate about language and languages. I was passionate about gardening for a while, but failed to make a go of that or anything else that I once enjoyed.
Seriously, don't try to solve my problem. I appreciate the good intent, but I'm not in a place to do anything with any advice at this point. I'm about to apply for voluntary work, that could be a step in the right direction as it might help rebuild confidence (in truth I never had much confidence, so "rebuild" is a stretch)
Thanks for the support.
Thanks. It's not my first foray. The first one was not a great success - not a good fit with my skill set (or lack of it). Having to see loads of people face to face some of them likely to be objectionable or aggressive. No thanks. I gave it a few goes and decided that wasn't for me.This is just a charity that I want to help out. I'll tell you one thing it's not: being a moderator here! I can't navigate disagreement very well.
I would be interested to hear how you find the experience of your foray into the world of volunteering.
I used to be involved in a voluntary organisation as a young adult (not something I have attempted as a more mature adult).
Recently, the modes of volunteering opportunities have really extended - it no longer needs to mean in-person / on the telephone role performance.
Post-COVID era; so many organisations have adapted to / adopted hybrid / remote working options that now volunteering from home is also sometimes a realistic and flexible option (I had not really considered that before thinking about your post).
All being well, I wouldn't have thought you would necessarily need to think too much about the confidence aspect ahead of embarking upon the voluntary role. I say that as, when I was last involved in voluntary activities; I used to try and concentrate on questions such as:
- do I want to learn how to do this?,
- do I think I might meet some interesting people?,
- might I be able to refresh some old skills or be exposed to some new skills within a safetynet of people keen for me to learn (other people want me to get good at doing this)?,
- would the role give me access to places, experiences or people otherwise unavailable to me?
- could I imagine some aspects of the voluntary role actually might be fun / enjoyable?
- can I envisage how I might gain satisfaction from feeling I have contributed to the tasks and outcomes?
- do the tasks potentially sound like portable / translatable skills which I would be happy to summarise on my CV / Linkedin even though it was a voluntary role (would it build on or compliment my "story" to date)?
- will I potentially enjoy telling people I already know about my new experiences (i.e. give me some fresh topics of conversation to share with others?
...if that all sounds way too "happy-clappy" for your taste / style / comfort / point in your surfacing - my apology in advance: it was just some thoughts about how I would approach de-stressing the unfamiliar challenge.
Hope you find some promising early voluntary role experiences (whether that is on your first attempt, or one further along the way).