Book review: Asperger's on the Job
Asperger’s on the Job by Rudy Simone
I finished reading this the other day. It is described as ‘Must-have advice for people with Asperger’s or high functioning autism and their employers, educators, and advocates.’ I wouldn’t agree with the ‘must-have’ part, but the rest is good. It’s a 130 page book that walks a person through how to get or retain employment while dealing with the problems of Asperger’s or autism. I would have liked to have seen a little more clarity given to what those problems were - some people have more or more pronounced problems than others. The ones repeatedly touched on were social difficulties and sensory issues. Both are important and things I’ve been working on managing in my own life.
It wasn’t until the last few years though that I became as aware as I am now that everyone didn’t have the same sensory issues. Obviously other people didn’t become overwhelmed and irate if subjected to raucous music, say, but I didn’t used to understand why that was happening to me. Every time, I would deal with it as a singular, unpredictable occurrence. But anymore, I recognize it as entirely predictable and so I take steps to limit my exposure. I do things like turn to my boyfriend and tell him, ‘I have to leave. This is too much for me,’ and go, which is a better response than having a meltdown and acting out.
The book is about taking that same approach with one’s work life. There are management techniques for sounds, temperatures, odors, small talk, eye contact, handling gossip, observing boundaries, and so on. Some of the author’s answers are more vague than I’d like, but others are useful and applicable. None of them amount to ‘tough it out’, which is an approach which simply doesn’t work.
It’s a good book. I’d give it a moderate recommendation. If you have Asperger’s or autism, or someone you care about or work with has it, then this might be helpful as a starting point to build workarounds so you or they can interact better and get further in life. But it’s not the sort of thing that’s going to fix all your problems.