I think they are on to me at work

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I hope I don't bug everyone posting all the time. Its just so nice to be able to talk about things that no one else understood. I'm wondering whether I should try to explain to my co-workers why I seem odd to them. I don't feel ready to do so, because when I have done this at other jobs, they treat me like I'm ret*d. ret*d people aren't bad-I have known some nice ones. But I can't handle being treated like one. At this new job I have, I do alright except I make the same small errors on things no one else has a problem with. It is usually with paperwork. My mind goes absolutely blank when there are people milling around me while I have to hurry and fill it out. We are not allowed to take it somewhere quiet. And there seems to be so little time to read over what the instructions are. They are up on a wall and everyone is in a hurry. I absolutely have to keep this job. Its only minimum wage, but jobs are very scarce here. Can someone tell me if they think the others at work will think I'm nuts if I ask them to let me photocopy the lists of duties that hang on the wall about a foot and a half over my head so that I can actually read them? I am dyslexic but I'll be d---ed if I'm going to spend anymore time explaining to people why that doesn't mean I'm ret*d. Imagine what they would make of my Asperger's. They would probably think it's a contagious disease. I'm not going to go to the boss, she tries to be nice I suppose, but she is terribly disorganized and doesn't seem to have very sensible ideas, but she sure thinks does. We sort of work AROUND her. At any rate, I will probably have to tell somebody something by the end of the week, and any advice would be appreciated. It really isn't a huge problem as problems go, but I'm getting so tired of people always noticing that I'm different. I just want to work. Sorry this is so long.

hi i do feel for you when it seems like such a simple thing to be able to do.
Aspies do find it difficult to ask for help. even when in pain it is hard to ask for pain relief.
i think the confrontation of having to ask someone is difficult for us.......i would just photocopy the list and stick it to your desk...if your dyslxic or a bit wierd then people will avoid you at work, you can accpet this but you will keep your job, if you keep fu$%ing up because you cant have the list in front of you then you will lose your job..do the aspie thing and approach the list photocopying task as a practical and functional task that will help you to keep your job.
also if your an aspie that loses his temper then you may lose your job but if your a quiet aspie (which you sound like) then i would tell your boss..if it is a government job you cant be sacked for having a disability and depending on which country your in you cant be sacked for having a disability in a private firm either...geez if your a govt employee you can sk for a private room away from noise and distraction.
hope this helps

Thank you! I think if I stop making small mistakes I won't hear one of the customary excuses they use around here to fire you if they simply don't like you. There are laws in the US, but in this little area, the only way to get and keep a job is if they like you, or if you are a relative. I'm going to make those copies when I go in today. Thanks for making me feel much better about it.

I didn't read your whole post, but no I would not do this. How would it help you? You don't have to justify appearing odd to your coworkers. If you aren't doing anything wrong, then what's to explain? It's better to be cautious and keep your mouth shut, then to open your yap and regret it.

Not to worry. I took the cautious approach and just politely asked to photocopy the necessary paperwork and hinted that it was because of my nearsightedness. Seemed to go over okay. Now I will just memorize it at home. This bunch seems more polite than at my last job. At the last one everyone wanted to know everyone else's deepest, darkest secrets. Seemed nosy to me. Thanks very much for the advice. It helped me feel better about approaching them.

lae no worries. im glad i could help........you mentioned somethng about deepest darkest secrets.....it struck a chord with me casue as an aspie i am a very very private individual and never ever wanted anyone to know anything about me........i have grown up a little to realise that i was slightly paranoid and very anxious and this is picked up by people wether you realsie it or not.......i dont know if you can do anything about it, but do be aware of it. if it does apply to you...im glad you got the thing photocopied, you sound like such a nice kid...good luck

I'm rather an old "kid" but I have always found you can learn something from people of all ages. I have been thinking about the paranoia thing and it is certainly possible I do that when people pry. That last group did seem more interested finding out about eachother's personal lives and then gossiping about it than getting the job done, and my unwillingness to participate may have seemed unfriendly to them. Maybe it was an NT type of socializing.

It is a form of socialization. If you don't participate, they'll treat you like an outsider, which from some POV's, this is what you appear to want. The downside is that they may be less helpful in the future; but that depends if they respect other qualities that you have.

If you do participate, realize that they do pick up gullibility. Don't answer a question that you yourself would be uncomfortable asking. Better, don't truthfully answer. Tell a "white lie"; one that is socially acceptable. Then BS your way through it; be sure to believe the lie yourself.

And never tell them you wages. There is a good chance you make more than them. And if you do, a mutiny may follow. And you may end up losing your job; a) As a solution to the mutiny b) As a result of ALL of the attention, your flaws become more visible c) You want out of there.

They will really pry at this. If they're subordinates, tell them that you are underpaid. If direct coworkers, it helps if you know what they make. But minimum/starting wage is usually good. Look at it this way, it would erk you to if they made that much more that you. If you're friends with them, it might be ok. But make sure that you're really friends; not them playing you like you're their friend. Easy way to tell: if you could invite someone to have a beer with, would you invite them?

Lae

In your big posts, press the (enter) key twice to space out your ideas for the rest of us that are a bit dyslexic and have a hard time finding the start of the next line in a huge unbroken block of text.

I would just copy the stuff you need and have it with you, no need to ask for permission. Remember to put the originals back where you got them from. If it helps, get yourself a ruler to help keep the form straight. Another thing that helps me if I'm doing stuff on my own but everyone around me is busy? chatting - is earphones with classical or instrumental music. If I listen to the radio with people talking, I tend to write down what they say - which isn't usually helpful.

You can come and bug us here about your problems as much as you like. At work I'd suggest asking a different person each time so you're not bugging the same person all day. If one person seems to mind less, explain your problems and ask them if it would be ok to bug them more often. When you do ask someone how to do something, write the question and answer down, and use that as part of your instructions to yourself. If you've got access to a computer (duh), type it up and make it organised and neat.

This way you won't be bugging people about things they've already told you and you will have a nice set of instructions if you ever have to teach someone else your job, like you're sick for a day or you get promoted or rotated to a different job. You might think this would make it easier for your boss to fire you, but it has always made them want to keep me because it is a handy skill to have - writing really good instructions that newbies can follow. If you have a lot of pages of instructions, keep them together and tidy in one of those folders with the plastic sleeves. And you can index them with little bits of postit note or plain paper and stickytape.

That is all good advice, thank you. Also thanks about the spacing, we haven't had the computer long and I'm having to teach myself how to work things.

Yes, that works much better, thanks!