I love flying! All my life I have been interested in anything aviation-related: airports, travel, planes.
All of us have things we are passionate about, but for a young autistic person, a special interest can be a great motivation tool for learning new skills and finding a job.
Researcher Tony Attwood has found that special interests are an extremely common characteristic for autistic children and adults: over 90% of autistic children and adults have strong interests in specific areas. Research in 2007 by Winter-Messiers demonstrated that special interests should be treated seriously because they may be beneficial in building up skills that would be hard to obtain otherwise.
Our passions teach us about ourselves, and if we listen carefully we can match these passions to a fulfilling career. For the young person infatuated with aviation there are many jobs related to airplanes – from working in an airport to building aircraft to being a flight controller – finding the right fit between your skills and what is needed for specific jobs is key to building a successful career strategy.
Temple Grandin advises that to find employment for autistic adults one should:
“Expand Obsessive Interests Into Skills and Service Other People’s Needs”
In her case, Temple notes that:
“Ranchers want custom-designed cattle handling facilities, but they are not interested in constant obsessive talking about them.
If an individual likes airplanes, then use the motivation of that fixation to teach other skills. Learning how to read and improving writing skills can be motivated by using books about airplanes. Airplanes can also be used to motivate learning math and science.
Mr. Carlock, my science teacher channeled my obsessions into learning science. I started to study because I had the goal of becoming a scientist. There were many interesting science projects in Mr. Carlock’s lab.”
Try to list at least 3 special interests or things that you are excited about.
For example:
What comes easily to you? What are your strengths? Are you good at math and science or are those areas you try to avoid at all costs? Are you gifted in certain areas? Autistic people have many strengths. Rudy Simone, who wrote “Aspergers on the Job” points out that more than neuro-typical people, autistic people tend to be more focused and diligent, they tend to take a huge amount of pride in a job well done, they want to please, and they bring both independence and unique thinking into the workplace.
“I was really good at drawing and things where I could use my visual thinking skills and was terrible at algebra.
One of the things that made me successful in my design business was developing my ability to draw. Too often there is too much emphasis on the person’s deficit and not enough emphasis on building on the strengths. People on the spectrum often have uneven skills and are good at one thing and bad at something else. I have observed that there are three basic types of specialized minds on the Autism/Asperger Spectrum. Some people are combinations of these three types.
A photo-realistic visual thinker is good at drawing and poor at algebra. Some visual thinkers are good at geometry and trigonometry. My parents worked hard to encourage and nurture my art ability. Talents are like fragile flowers, they must be nurtured and cultivated.
A music and math mind thinks in patterns instead of photo-realistic pictures, They often excel in engineering and computer programming. English may be their weak subject.
A verbal facts mind knows all the sports statistics and often likes history. These individuals are not visual thinkers. Some of these people make excellent journalists.”
The work itself is often not a problem for autistic people, it is more often the social aspects of the job, making “small talk,” or accidentally making a social blunder that can interfere with success on the job for autistic people.
Rudy Simone, who is autistic, wrote a book called Aspergers on the Job, in which he shares stories, both positive and negative, from autistic people and their experiences at work. One person wrote that he was considered “the brains” of his department working for the government, but that he almost lost his job because one of his co-workers found him “odd.” Luckily, their supervisor stepped in and paired the person with someone with a higher tolerance for odd behavior and the job has worked out perfectly for him. If you know you rub some people the wrong way, it’s good to acknowledge that and figure out the appropriate adaptations to it, rather than pretend it is not an issue.
Try to list at least 3 that might be difficult for you in a workplace.
For example:
First, pick one of your passions and brainstorm a list of jobs that are related to that passion. For example, if you were passionate about airplanes it might look like this: (Note: a brainstorm is a list of everything you can think of or find—many of these jobs will not be ones that you want to pursue, but it helps to start by making a list and then going back and looking at what seems possible.)
Do some research here: Occupational Outlook Handbook (OOH)
If you type “airplanes” in the search box you get:
For each of these jobs, the OOH lists salaries, education needed, job outlook, and skills and traits that are best suited for each job.
Then, after you do your research, pick a few possibilities, and make a list of what you need to do to have the right amount of training and education to pursue one of these choices.
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Think about how your strengths and weaknesses might help or prevent you from succeeding in a particular job. For example, flight attendants have to deal with a lot of difficult social interactions, but an aeronautical drafter makes technical drawings and this type of job might be better suited to someone who is autistic. Ask a trusted friend to also evaluate which careers might be good choices for your strengths and weaknesses.
Based on your research choose one or two jobs that match your skill set and then plan out the following:
Think of the strengths that you can continue to develop that will match well with the needs of the job you are interested in. If you want to be an aeronautical drafter then start working on your drawing skills! List concrete ways you can improve your drawing skills:
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Research the type of education needed and think about how you can get this education. Junior computer-aided drafting certificates are available at community colleges, for example. Find out how to apply and think about whether you can go part-time or full-time and how you will fund your education.
Write a sentence that describes where you hope to be in five years, this will help you stay motivated and pursue the training and education you need to pursue this career.
In five years I will be working full-time as an aeronautical drafter or junior aeronautical drafter.
Temple Grandin’s Employment and Autism Tips