I didn’t know I was autistic until my 50s. But I always knew I had a different way of seeing the world, which caused frustration. I knew I irritated people – including my bosses when I worked at a bank, because I would see things that they didn’t, and place importance on different things to them. I always had an obsession with numbers and creating numerical sequences around everything. I didn’t perceive this to be a talent, like I do now. Nor did my employers.
It was only when I received a diagnosis five years ago – on the suggestion of my second wife, that everything made sense. My diagnosis freed me to embrace my maths obsession as a super-power, and I’ve now built a career as a ‘human futurist’. Had I known my neurodiversity, and had my employer been educated about it, I may never have left. Many autistic employees can be gems to an organization. Below I share four insights so employers can understand and realise the potential of autistic employees.
Depth, not breadth, of knowledge. Of course, not all autistic people share my traits, but I describe my autism as making me ‘like a mole’. Once I am engaged by something, I will dig and dig until I become the world expert. But I won’t branch wide. I am not good at seeing the bigger picture. To me this is irrelevant, and overwhelming. This depth of knowledge can be used by employers to get the edge on competitors. But a leader needs to understand that the strength of an autistic employee is likely to be depth of knowledge, and guide accordingly. They should not expect me to contribute, nor even understand, the overall project goal.
Extreme enthusiasm, provided they are engaged. I describe being autistic as walking on a beach of a million pebbles, totally indifferent to them all except one. When that one pebble ignites my attention, it becomes my raison d’etre. I will find out everything about that pebble. Therefore, as an employer you need to find what drives your autistic team mates. If you have a neurotypical management team, it is a good idea to have a neurodiverse consultant to your HR faculty, so they can advise on how to uncover this. Whether that is at the job interview, or, if they are an existing employee, in an appraisal. It is common that when you put two neurodivergent people together they connect easily.
Be aware of excessive noise and movement. A busy environment can really distract and irritate me. Because I have such extreme concentration, and want to be the most productive that I can be, I find the bustle of activity an impediment. Open plan environments are the worst type for many autistic employees!
Be sympathetic if we seem uncomfortable. From an early age, many autistic people learn to mask who they truly are. They do this because they are trying so hard to fit in with their surroundings and to be liked or approved of. This means that often, they are not their true selves in the workplace, which is both mentally and physically exhausting for them.
Don’t give hard deadlines – I don’t perform well with a hard deadline. This is because if you give me a task, I want to do it to the utmost perfection. I want to choose my own tools, and the appropriate amount of time. When I get pestered to meet a deadline, I am stifled and I fall to pieces. Of course, a business has deadlines and my approach may not be practical. But with specialism comes speed. The first time I do a new task it may take me a week. But if I am enthused, and I have become a specialist, I become quicker than anyone else.
An employer should be clear on the potential advantages and possible challenges of employing a neurodivergent person. If quick turnaround deadlines are integral to the job – like they were in banking for me, then they may be the wrong employee for the role. But if there is something to gain from having a deep specialist on your team, and there are others who can manage the deadlines, you will get a huge ROI on your neurodiverse employee.
