“Imagine a career when one’s unique skills are valued and appreciated —where quirky ideas might become money-making advantages.”
Here at Autism Solutions Group we view Autism as an Alternate Ability, and hold an Asset Mindset for and about our clients.
We view autism as characterized by unique skills and ways of looking at life. Though one can argue there are deficits, some of these deficits can actually be assets. Keeping in mind that the variability within an autism diagnosis is tremendous, there are some key features that are particularly useful. Some of our clients have extremely high intellectual ability. Many of our clients have broad interests and, due to their propensity to deep-dive into a particular area of interest, they have made themselves experts in that subject. Who are we to discount their knowledge simply because they have obtained this outside of a university or school.
Early in the practice I was delighted and amazed to see that my clients had a deep desire to make the world a better place. Several told me of the injustices they had endured as children, and the continued injustice they see in how people treat each other as individuals, in communities, and in states and countries. They noted with sadness that too often teachers continue to treat their students with disrespect and make assumptions about the apparent cause of misbehavior. It appears every day that employers and academic personnel misjudge the capabilities of individuals on the Spectrum and miss out on their potential insights and creativity. Too often the method of communication is focused upon before the message is heard. “She’s rude,” they say. “He goes on and on,” they complain. Yet, if the delivery style was ignored, and the message was heard, one may see the unique autistic perspective and how this becomes a significant ability to see things how they might be.
It becomes an asset to “think outside the box,” and, indeed, this method of problem solving sometimes is the WAY outside the box. Isn’t this where invention comes from? Isn’t this what Leonardo Da Vinci, Benjamin Franklin and Albert Einstein did? This Asset Mindset allows never before ideas, and processes to occur and come to fruition through a highly creative process unconcerned with what the outside world thought or said couldn’t be done.
I believe high intellect autists are an untapped resource. I believe that many of our greatest inventors were on the Spectrum. Before the diagnosis became known there were always the tinkerers, the “mad scientists” working away in their basements unaware and uncaring of what society thought could be done. One of the characteristics of autism is “highly restricted, fixated interests that are abnormal in intensity or focus. “1 How else could Benjamin Franklin have had the stamina to keep trying after thousands of failures? “He dropped out of school at a very young age, and he was seriously electrocuted during one of his famous experiments.”2 Many, in his early life, considered him a failure. Clearly his failures benefited all of humanity.
Another client was a solid C student, considered ditzy, and uncommitted to her education. She was told by a teacher, if she didn’t get focused on school, she’d never amount to anything. While her academic performance was unremarkable in high school, her math scores were in the top 5 percentile. Obviously school performance what not a measure of her capabilities. The intellect was there, but the “school skills” were not. That these are separate factors is not often acknowledged by school personnel. (But that’s for another blog.)
Later she enrolled herself in a top-notch engineering school and earned a Bachelor’s of Mechanical Engineering. By her own desire and commitment she was following her interests into what has become a lucrative and satisfying career. The key feature here is that, despite what educators said, she found her niche, and she decided to pursue her own desires, in her own timeframe. As an engineer she found many others like herself and reports a great deal of interpersonal satisfaction in developing friendships with like-minded folks at her workplace.
When getting to know a new client, I often ask: What do you like to do in your free time. Very often the answer is on-line gaming. This population is famous for being obsessed with video games. Some label it a video game addiction. Regardless of the label, I look for real world connections. I soon discovered the style of game this man enjoyed was similar to a logistics analyst. He is enrolled in a certification program for Supply Chain Management and Logistics and will finish soon. While he does not yet have a job in the field, he became Microsoft Certified in several softwares, and is currently seeking a position in this field. He has exceptional analytical skills and an uncanny ability to predict next steps in a process.
Clearly these are all Assets! If one only focuses on the deficits these individuals look compromised and even hopeless to be fully employed. When one focuses on the Assets, one can see the possibilities to be gainfully employed in a way they can make their contribution to the world around them.
With each client we seek to discover and focus upon the unique characteristics of the individual that will enhance their life. We look to find ways to connect this talent with real-world needs.