Good jobs for autistic people???

[clg114]

I agree. I served a hitch in the Army and found the discipline and routine conducive to my AS, though they didn't know what it was back then.

I was an MP Customs Investigator. They quickly learned that I wasn't suitable for field work like you see on NCIS, but I could sit for hours in a room with stacks of sales receipts and figure out who was black-marketing. My immediate supervisor and detachment supervisor would go out and do the dirty work and I'd build the case by digging up all the needed info; that was years before the advent of the computer, internet, or cell phones. People today ought to try typing a report on an old typewriter without making and errors. It's nearly impossible.

I guess this is just something else that shows how different we all are. I was in the Army because I had to, there was a military obligation in those days. I did not want to be there and my attitude showed it. I have a very independent nature and I really need my alone time. Everybody thought I was weird and they treated me badly. I got in fights and got in trouble. Nobody would leave me alone, my only saving grace was that I am a very large person. I can honestly say that my time in the service was the worst time of my life.

 

[UniqueChic]

The military is great for Aspies because it takes a lot of the guesswork out of things: they tell you what to wear, what to say, how to behave, even where to keep your eyes... (usually not on your drill sergeant's). If you work in, say, intelligence, the advantage is that either you're a technology geek or look for patterns or talk to potential enemies, where our natural suspiciousness and detachment come in handy. If you're a mechanic, there is less interaction with people. If you outrank someone, it is easier to not "get personal" and give them an accurate performance review or the talking to they need after getting drunk and stupid. The only source of confusion for me has been the cafeteria, it's hard to choose and even to know where the line starts and ends in a sea of moving people in camouflage.

No way could I serve in the military. I'm pro-peace. Nation shall not lift sword against nation and neither shall they learn war anymore!

 

[UniqueChic]

I wouldn't make a good soldier. I'm a peacemaker.

 

[clg114]

I joined not long after they ended the draft. Everybody in my family had served in one of the branches, so I figured I would. However, in my case, my enlistment came a little quicker than anticipated since I was on the run from the law at the time. Rather than convince me that my infraction wasn't that serious, my mother figured it was an excellent way to get rid of me.

It wasn't that bad, but I was good at following the basic rule, "Keep your mouth shut and do what you're told." I sometimes wonder if I should have stayed and retired, but hen hindsight is 20/20. Unlike you, I wasn't that big. I looked like I was 12-years-old. I think I posted an image of me as I was getting ready to ship out overseas. I weighed something like 120 pounds. When I came home, I was solid muscle and weighed 180. My mother didn't even recognize me at the airport.

Well, I was young & dumb, it took me awhile to learn that basic rule. However, I did learn it. That is how I have stayed married all these years.

 

[clg114]

Ah, you took a vow to "love, honor, and obey" and you've been obeying ever since.

Happy wife, happy life.

 

[clg114]

That must a quote from the "Husband's Handbook," as my friend John used to say that all the time. Whenever something came up concerning him and his wife, he always would say, "That's a part of marriage." I think that's why I'm still single, because I could never grasp all the parts of marriage.

I have had excellent instruction from (face goes blank, monotone voice) "She, who must be obeyed".

 

[Odd Duck 1357]

I guess this is just something else that shows how different we all are. I was in the Army because I had to, there was a military obligation in those days. I did not want to be there and my attitude showed it. I have a very independent nature and I really need my alone time. Everybody thought I was weird and they treated me badly. I got in fights and got in trouble. Nobody would leave me alone, my only saving grace was that I am a very large person. I can honestly say that my time in the service was the worst time of my life.

What saved me from being the weird one was my immigrant status. It was easy to blame everything on growing up someplace else. So sorry you were picked on! The military is intolerant of that kind of nonsense nowadays. Seriously, you should have been in medicine or intel, I don't recall meeting many "normal" people in either field

 

[Odd Duck 1357]

That must a quote from the "Husband's Handbook," as my friend John used to say that all the time. Whenever something came up concerning him and his wife, he always would say, "That's a part of marriage." I think that's why I'm still single, because I could never grasp all the parts of marriage.

Nobody does. People just pretend

 

[Julie Gross]

What jobs are good for people with autism? I also feel I need to explain the situations I deal with so I can get a better job that is more suitable for me. I feel customer service isn’t the best kinda job for me anymore. I feel I always get complained about and I don’t know why that is.

I guess that is what I get for working in this kinda job. I get accused of being rude,mean or upset when I don’t feel the way I am being accused and I didn’t mean it and I am trying to find a job where I don’t have to deal with such nonsense at such a high intensity.

Also I want a job where I don’t have to always get bullied by other coworkers and I want to be a t a place with more like minded people. I want a job where I work on the computer and do art but I want to know the best possible job for people with autism.

It is more an issue with being with more like minded people and a balance between a job where I can handle the tasks without getting overwhelmed. I am good at computers and writing mostly. I can do coding. If anyone can help that would be great.

 

[BrokenBoy]

Depends on the person.

 

[Tom]

Just a few ideas off the top of my head.

Space person

Warrior person

Animal person

 

[paloftoon]

Any job under a full time program for people on the spectrum, especially if you get referred from someone already in the program.

I've bumped into some people who have the chance to get referred, but then all they do is ask for the HR person. This is not the right way to go about it. You should go through the person who can refer you directly because you may have to work with that person.

 

[Aeolienne]

To avoid customer service, you're probably going to need a grunt job like a cattle stockyard, construction, truck driving, heavy machinery, and stuff like that. Manly man jobs.

Construction may not involve customer service but it's not a solitary job either - just look at any building site. I suspect operating machinery also requires teamwork, for H&S reasons if nothing else.

 

[tducey]

It depends on the person, if you're like me then data entry is good for you but it varies with each person.

 

[Aspychata]

l have done extremely well in customer service jobs, volunteer, paralegal, nonprofits, hostess. l enjoy customer service, so l say don't run away from public relations in jobs. They can actually help you get better and deal better with things. l enjoy assisted living jobs because the elderly are very appreciative of good work, and some tell me they are glad when l am back, since l work part-time. This tells me they feel they are being treated with dignity and compassion.

 

[Aeolienne]

Just a few ideas off the top of my head.

Space person

That's not a solitary occupation. From what I've seen in documentaries and news reports, neither the International Space Station nor NASA Ground Control employ lone workers. Yuri Gagarin may have flown solo, but that was over fifty years ago.

Warrior person

Since when did being a soldier not involve teamwork?

Animal person

Depends on the occupation, but it strikes me as unwise to use working with animals as a way of avoiding humans. Bear in mind that it is humans who are ultimately responsible for your earnings, whether as pet owners, farmers or zoo visitors.

I'm reminded of the time I went to a talk by a recruiter for the British Antarctic Survey. In all the years he'd been asking the inevitable question "Why do you want to work in Antarctica?" it never failed to amaze him how many people replied with something along the lines of "I want to get away from it all - I love solitude!" You won't get much of that working on the southernmost continent - they don't encourage it.

 

[Tom]

Oh I forgot one. Eye Surgeon.

 

[luna88]

I will be running my own dog training business and webstore in the near future, but for right now i just need to get enough money to do so. And I don't have my license yet, but I'm working on it.

Nannying is always my go to in between job. It pays well, you usually have time to rest (like when kids watch a show or nap) and there's more freedom to be yourself and let your imagination run wild with games/activities with the kids. Sometimes you just have to pick up the kids from school and drive them to activities which is easy and you can just listen to your music and not have to deal with a lot of high intensity adult human interaction.

Tech and graphic design are excellent well paying fields for aspies but would require more education.

 

[Khendra]

l have done extremely well in customer service jobs, volunteer, paralegal, nonprofits, hostess. l enjoy customer service, so l say don't run away from public relations in jobs. They can actually help you get better and deal better with things. l enjoy assisted living jobs because the elderly are very appreciative of good work, and some tell me they are glad when l am back, since l work part-time. This tells me they feel they are being treated with dignity and compassion.

Oh, how interesting. We've had similar jobs and positions, although my degree of success has been much more variable than yours.

My college internship (English major) was at a nonprofit art center (2007). I mostly enjoyed it. I did a written inventory of their permanent collection, wrote a few press releases, and whatnot.

My first real job (2008) was receptionist--disaster! Lasted less than two weeks. Couldn't multi-task.

My second job was paralegal. That lasted five months (2009-10). I was good at summarizing depositions, but not good at most other legal assistant tasks. I got fired after botching the logistics for a focus group (mock trial); I accidentally allowed a felon on the panel, along with someone who actually knew one of the lawyers in the group (the panelists weren't supposed to have prior association with the legal team).

I once volunteered for a few months at a local animal shelter (2017). There was one person I didn't get along so well with there, but the other staff I worked alongside a lot was pretty nice. The best part of that position was I found an adorable cat that I adopted. BEST CAT EVER!

As for assisted living jobs, I've worked in a very similar field -- direct care -- and have usually done better with those, having done them on and off since 2013 (it's my "go-to" field when I need part or full tine employment to keep productive; that and substitute teaching since 2012). In fact, my current job is direct support professional. I LOVE working the night shift in particular because there's more time to quietly focus on cleaning and paperwork tasks, and much less socialization. I work 40 hours per week on the night shift and have been there since December 2018. The one area where I'm struggling is with MANDT training, which is required in most direct care companies. I did great at the pen-and-paper tests, better than anyone, but also worse than anyone with the physical holds due to my gross motor and visual-spatial deficits. I actually need to take on additional training for that today this afternoon, and I'm dreading it.