I recently spoke with someone who was having trouble at their workplace. She’s what the kids today call a bit “neurospicy.” A combination of some neurodivergence, along with some mundane eccentricities, makes it difficult for her to connect with most people and creates challenges in certain interactions. At one point, she commented: “It’s so difficult for me at work because I’m… like this!”
And then it hit me: No, that’s not it. It’s difficult for her because other people aren’t.
See, there’s nothing inherently wrong with her. She’s smart and funny and kind. She’s just smart and funny and kind in a way that’s a few feet to one side of the people she’s around all day. My suggestion to her was that it wasn’t her job that was difficult (objectively, she’s great at it), it’s just that she’s doing it with the wrong people.
Because she’s smart, this set her on a whole flurry of investigation, looking for organizations that do what she does, but catering to groups and demographics more aligned to her own identity. Sure enough, there were many! And now she’s in the (much friendlier) process of chatting with them to look for her next role.
If you’re a little different from the people around you, remember that those people aren’t all people. It’s one flock, and you find a different one of your feather.
The Opportunity Machine 