Dec 1st, 2018
In General
- It's important to understand that I see autism as a strength, not a weakness.
- Autism is a cognitive style. It's a different way of perceiving, thinking, learning, and relating.
- It's not a psychiatric thing. My brain setup, the way it looks if you took it out of my head and measured the pieces, is not the same. I was born this way.
- It's OK to ask me about it.
Hyper-focus
- I can focus intensely for long periods of time.
- When I'm concentrating on something, nothing else gets in.
- This is related to how I can't multitask well.
Attention to Detail
- Sometimes it takes me a little longer to make big decisions because I like to weigh all the pros and cons first.
- When there are "loose strings", those strings burn in my consciousness until I deal with them.
- This attention to detail makes me good at working on complex systems; computer programming, audio engineering, and motorcycle repair and maintenance, to name a few.
- I have a tendency to triple check everything.
Small Talk
- Small talk doesn't come naturally to me because I tend to think about one thing at a time for a long time.
- When people are small talking, they switch from topic to topic without a care for any sort of main theme or topic; they seem to value others who can switch their train of thought quickly.
Facial Recognition
- It's extremely hard for me to remember and recognize faces
- It might take me meeting you ten times before I can confidently recognize you in a crowd.
- If I don't see you for a year, I might completely forget your face.
Monotasking
- Multitasking takes a lot of energy for me.
- I write out plans for complicated things, breaking the big tasks into smaller ones so I can think about one thing at a time.
Eye Contact
- I don't always make eye contact like people expect.
- It's hard for me to look at people in the eyes and talk with them at the same time.
- When I'm talking with people, I visualize quite a lot. When I'm visualizing, I only minimally process the visual stimuli coming in to my eyes.
- Making eye contact while having a conversation is multitasking.
Overload
- Social situations require a lot of energy for me. You'll see me on the fringe, where there are less things to take in, talking to one or a few people at a time or playing a game.
- Work conferences that require multiple days away from home can be very energy draining.
Meditation
- Every day I take a lot of time to be by myself; reflecting on things and working on projects.
- I like to spend around 4 or 5 hours alone in the morning, without talking.
Theory of Mind
- When I put myself in other people's shoes, I don't always get it right.
- It can be hard at times for me to tell what a person is really thinking or feeling.
Taking Time to Answer Questions
- I usually need a little more time to respond to questions, especially if I am concentrating on something else and need to switch my attention.
- When I'm put on the spot, I might stumble on my words a little bit and awkwardly try to recover. It just takes me a little longer to formulate thoughts into sentences.
- Sometimes it takes me a few minutes to reply to questions or to put my thoughts into sentences. Other times I might only need a few seconds.
Office Space
- I like my workspace to be quiet and to have warm light.
- Too much light, sound, or smell is uncomfortable and is distracting.
- I like to work from home so that I can control what is coming in to my senses.
Knowing When to Stop Talking
- Sometimes I talk about things for too long or I repeat things too much.
- It's OK to let me know when I'm doing this.