creating a job were you use your autism as workinstrument

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I'm wondering, does anyone out here use their autism as a instrument to work with? Like for example to be a spokes person to give information/presentation/education to several audiences, or to write papers that they use in education systems, or to use your experience in a way to help others like in a therapeutic or practical way? If so, please tell me your experiences on this. I'm curious, because i'm at a point in my life right now to discover this whole new 'job' as a autism-experience-expert and how you can make a difference with that in someone's life or can help others with. And i was wondering if anyone else does this on a daily basis.

I've tested software, and worked with web & biomedical contracts building many kinds of technology, I've considered and even tried to shift my efforts towards [autism] accessible interfaces. Now I'm interviewing at a mobile videogame studio. It's starting to look like my technological ability to surprise might finally pay rent. I think corresponding with free-thinking logicians is the fastest way through to finding good work. You're talking about a process of extreme selectivity, so I think the best advice for you will come from quite a number of disciplines. I don't do this professionally, nor just for the autism spectrum, so I have to suggest that you find yourself anyone local with your same goal, or factor travel into your research.

Oh i'm sorry my dear, but this is not what i meant actually. You describe some kind of a skill that comes with the autism that can help you find a job, but that is really not what i'm talking about over here. I'm talking about the autism itself as a 'job', like were you give education about your autism and what it means to be autistic to bring more awareness about autism (like Temple Grandin), or become a autism-coach to help others with autism to whatever problems they have. Like in, your autism is the central link of your everyday work. Besides, i don't ask for advice, i ask for experiences about that kind of work. And sure, i can find any locals around here who do that kind of job, but i was thinking: hey why not world wide? I'm just curious of the experience around here.

I'm sorry if i'm not that clear about this. Maybe it's because of a little language barrier. You see, back here in The Netherlands there's a word for this kind of job. The best translation i can give you is 'experience worker' or 'experience expert'. It means that you work with and for others based on your experiences with your 'disorder' (i rather use the word 'vulnerability' on this), in this case autism ofcourse. It means that you're the missing link between people with autism, or the environment that deals with a person with autism, and the social workers and coaches and therapeutics that help these persons already.

Because the vision behind this all is that 'nobody can help a person with autism better than another person with autism, because as a person with autism, you know what the other person with autism is going through, which means, you're more aware of the do's and dont's and the why's, but also solutions, pitfalls and all the negative and positive and all between that'. It's like you're a little extra service into 'social-workers-land', because of your experience with having autism. Am i making any sense??

I heard of a couple of autistic people who started up consulting service for parents needing help raising their autistic children.

This person: http://www.jamesmw.com/

I am looking at starting a consulting and design firm that will help with the design of living and environmental setting that are autism friendly. For example. Explaining to parents why it maybe better to use white Christmas lights strung around the perimeter of the room for lighting instead of using the normal light fixture located in the center of the room. Since I too am autistic. I can better comprehend the needs of other autistic people in ways that NT's simply can't.

I would start by creating a blog and writing out your experiences. I would then ask someone who is social media savy to help you promote your blog once you have enough content. By this I mean enough stories or experiences written that you feel would interest people to come back. Depending on what you are writing it could be a few to let's say 20-30 entries. You could use a free blogging service of your choice there are many out there or pay for a dedicated hosted site.

I would also look into local groups that are looking for speakers on the particular subject. The local autism group may have a need for such speakers.

You could contact someone who is already trying to educate people, you mentioned Temple Grandin, she has a contact form on her website you could try to communicate with her and get pointers as well as to where to start.

Personally I would start with a blog. That way you have reference material to point people to and can start to educate while you are looking into other avenues. This way as well you can gauge as to whether or not it is a good fit for you. Sometimes we get a little too tenacious and find out it's to much. I do it to myself a lot.

I hope that helps, and if I can help any further let me know I'd even be willing to be a sounding board for ideas. It sounds like you are trying to make something really positive out of this and I admire that.

Woow thank you so much for your tips, Kicker!! This is actually a really great idea! I sure am going to remember this when i'm a little bit further in my process in all this!
And thank you for your compliment! I really do want to make something really positive out of this! I really like the idea of empowerment! I already am a kind of spokes-person in my own area, but not on a permanent organization or anything, and i really wanted to do this more frequent, and also expand this thing of mine to a more professional level.

Right now, i'm in a course program to give me a little bit of theoretical knowledge about this type of job, and am already looking for a job at our local mental health center. Autism is not the only 'psychiatric disorder'. I also want to work with the whole concept of having a 'mental health disorder', so that's not only autism, although autism is the main thing i want to be focused on. Not only do i want to be a spokes-person, i really would like to work with groups, and maybe even individuals. I hope to start a supportgroup/workgroup for peers and also others like me very soon. I'm very busy to find people who can help me with a format and all.

I also doing a course that's called 'digital recovery story', where you talk about your 'disorder' on paper. What it means to you like how is your life so far, what are the things that support you and what are your experiences on professional help, what kind of role you play in life and what others expect from you, pitfalls and own solutions, stigma's, and last but not least, how you see your future. You send it to a professional 'experience worker' and they give you more stuff to think about. Writing things down really helps me to get everything together. Helps me realize what kind of message i want to send into the world. And getting al these questions about my writings helps me to write even more! In the end, i hope that this can maybe be a basis to a dream of mine, to one day write and publish my own book. I also have the idea to make a film, and start to making my own theatershow around all this. But that is really far far ahead to the future.

First i want to find out what's possible on this area, and what's working for me ofcourse. I'm a novice so i'm really just seeking now. I really hope that i can find the right people who help and guide me in this. And in the meantime i was thinking, i can't be the only one around here that is walking this road?? But if i do, that's ok too. I'm just curious Maybe it's better if i ask you all what you want to see or expect from a 'autism experience expert' or a spokes-person of a mentor of a supportgroup? If you had to choose between a social worker who has no autism that helps you, or a social worker that has also autism, which one would you choose (both is also an option ), and why?