Understanding why I can’t function in an office
After
losing my last job in 2008, I realized I could not cope in the office world
anymore. I stopped trying to function in
an office setting. I did not know why I
had this problem but I understood that office jobs were not for me. Now that I have the Asperger diagnosis, I
have a viable and reasonable explanation for the fact that I cannot work in an
office. I know that I have a severe
social skills deficit which renders working in an office very difficult if not
impossible for me. I stopped blaming
myself for the fact that I often failed in the interview process and had a
great deal of difficulty both getting and keeping a job. I felt an enormous amount of relief from the
diagnosis. I felt that I understood a
great deal more about myself since receiving the diagnosis.
Discovering
new talents and skills I didn’t know that I have
Photography
– I never would have taken up photography as a hobby and tried to turn it into
a career choice – if I had not known I have Aspergers.
Re-orienting
my career in a more positive direction
I am choosing a new
career path in writing and photography which is far better for me than the
office jobs that I tried to pursue in the past.
I gave up on trying to pursue office jobs which play to my weaknesses in
social skills instead of my intellectual strengths. Working on a freelance basis in writing and
photography is a much better match for my skills and abilities than trying to
function in an office.
