The unspoken nature of corporate politics - Audio link

Post Reply New Topic

Hi Folks,

The link below is to the recording of a radio show I guested on in the Phoenix, Arizona, USA area. During the show, I talk about the characteristics of my autism, verbal vs. nonverbal communication, and the unspoken nature of corporate politics. I include a story in which I did everything I was verbally asked to do and did so successfully, but seriously failed in regard to the unspoken agenda. For those of you who wish to delve into corporate employment, this might be an interesting and useful listen.

http://www.breakradioshow.com/archives/ ... -rob-behr/

Regards,
Rob

Hey Rob,

I've just been listening to your story on breakradioshow. I really liked it and it's so true to my life. I 'm in the IT world too and I'm (of all things) a business systems analyst. I've also been confused when I've done the typical autistic thing of just rolling my sleeves up and throwing myself into a project and doing whatever it takes to get it done - and then finding out that this annoys/angers people.

I got my diagnosis of Aspergers about six months ago at the age of 49 so I've always presumed that my inability to navigate the political life of the corporate world was pretty much a given for everyone who ever had to work in an office. (If you've ever watched the movie, "Office Space" you'll know what I mean.) My only saving grace has been my ability to work twice as hard as everyone else in my office and pick up concepts just by reading books. I've had one or two managers who have recognized my skill set and kept me in their departments because my ability to work incredibly long hours on a project and foresee IT catastrophe has actually helped their careers - but they are few and far between.

Anyway, just posting here to let you know how much much I enjoyed listening to your talk.

B_Y_O

Thanks! I'll be doing more shows and I'm working on several short books.

Great show. I really like the analogy to "the sixth sense" -- so much the way I felt last year when I found out at 48.

Also, that tied in really well with the idea about nonverbal communication when you said it often comes up when people can't bring themselves to tell you something, because in my case a thing they couldn't tell me was that they thought I was autistic.

You tell the story really well and I appreciate your effort here.

Also, love the host: I want to hear more of this show.

Edited to add: I also enjoyed the way all three of you had a hard time knowing when to talk and kind of spoke over the others a few times. I have this problem all the time.

Thanks for the kind remarks! The neurotypical folks seem to think we should be held responsible for their inability to actually say what they want us to understand.

I enjoyed the live format. It's not rehearsed, so the show has the normal characteristics of a conversation, because that's what it it. Otherwise, it would sound like a fake, contrived dialogue of an infomercial.

Kim and Paul, the host of the show, do a really good job.

Thanks again!

Just wanted to add- the story about the manager who wanted to take early retirement and everyone but you knowing about this really resonated with me.

That is pretty much the story of my career. I have pissed people off immensely without having a clue as to why--Here I am doing an extra good job, going above and beyond to get things under budget--and it turns out they are trying to inflate expenses so that next year's projected budget will be larger. Oh that kind of thing happened and happens all the time! Thanks again.

[Moved from Work and finding a Job to Autism Politics, Activism, and Media Representation on OP's request]

Hi Folks,

Understanding Autism Radio has a Facebook page. If you "Like" it, then you will get notifications about upcoming shows.

https://www.facebook.com/UnderstandingAutismRadio

Regards,
Rob