Do you find getting work harder than keeping it?

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The challenge for me has been to do the kind of lateral thinking to be able to spot opportunities where I have not thought of looking for them; or, in ways that I have not considered. This is one of the limitations of AS: you tend to get stuck in a pattern and not see novel ways of looking that might come without thinking to neurotypical people.

Put me in a job, and all I see, live and breathe is my work. But, getting there is way more than half the battle.

That's been my experience anyway.

Also, how in the name of God do you speak one-on-one with someone in a company who might size up your skills and way of thinking and realize that you'd be a good fit, if you can't please the people in HR?

There is so much stress on being a good fit nowadays, that the skills and aptitude seem completely secondary.

Maybe it's just me but with the proliferation of HR, has it not in fact gotten harder for people on the spectrum to pass the gatekeepers than ever before?

Yes, I have severe difficulty in getting a job - I "look good on paper" with postgrad education, awards, patents, published work, 'good' experience, etc. - and mild difficulty in keeping a job.

I have never been formally dismissed - that said, I have had one forced resignation on the understanding that it would avoid impending dismissal and that I would recieve a positive work reference. It ended up being the best decision I made - not that I knew at the time - I recieved a $32k pay increase and a study package which allowed me to pursue the postgrad education I sought (worth another $17k) - I was then made redundant from that job after 2 years, threatened a lawsuit for unfair dismissal which is a tactic that worked - I got transferred to a different department and promoted with a payrise, but then was made redundant again from the new department. I was going to again threaten a lawsuit again but I was physically ill at the time and just didn't have the emotional energy required.

It then took me around 47 interviews to get a new job. But again - I'm grateful that by complete chance and fluke - I ended up being interviewed by an ex university professor who happened to move to the private sector. He is a world leading expert in the field and he happened to like me. I screwed the interview itself - showed up late, gave wierd answers, etc - but he was willing to look past it all and instead look at my potential. I then had go through 4 further interview rounds - each time he supported me through them, making sure that he smoothed over anything I didn't do well at. I ended up getting the job and he made them give me a salary that still amazes me - a full $23k more than the last one!

My biggest success was being with an aspie group where I talked about my challenges and got advice:
- Think of the interviewer as a police investigator. Don't give them any evidence that they can use against you. Just answer the question directly and as it is asked. Don't volunteer anything.
- I was told I was a bit feminine in my handshake and did not have any hobbies. I then decided I should get a gun lisence and tell people I shoot things as I thought shooting things = 'masculine' and it would be a hobby. But the other aspies explained to me it could get taken as an implied threat of harming the interviewer if I started talking about guns at an interview given I can come across as a bit 'intense' and 'strange'.
- Use xanax if need be as a once-off at interview time
- Watching a video where a young aspie boy, after much effort, found a job as a library assistant stacking books but then his 3 month contract was not renewed. It showed how down he felt and I felt quite sorry for him (a rare emotion for me). I then identified with him and was like yes, I deserve a job and even though I am up to interview 46, I am going to go back there for interview 47.

I've found that getting a job is more difficult because of the interview process, but I'm capable of keeping jobs once I get them. The only reason I've left previous jobs was that there were layoffs, and in one case, the grocery store hired more people than they actually needed, so most of us weren't kept on after training.

Both. I've had 2 jobs, but the summer job is because of my mom. That has nothing to do with me. And as I'm 24 and graduated I need a real job. My first job I got easily (but that was back in 2004, right before the economy tanked and it was a lot easier back then) but I also got fired from due to (undiagnosed at the time) my AS. I worked as a cashier and I was waaay too slow no matter how hard I tried. I was terrible with speaking to customers. It is one of the most shameful experiences of my life. Now I've been unemployed so long I'm terrified of going back to retail because I think there's a good chance I would get fired again. I even think I'm being normal with the customers but I guess not.

My biggest fear is being unable to work, which means I'll never be independant. It's a depressing thought that you can do well in college and still not be able to function in the real world.

I wouldn't mind this culture of competition if HR people at least knew the rules of the game themselves - for example competency questions are fine as long as the HR staff interviewing you know what answers to look for, where as they most often look for specific buzz words so even the "right" answer can be wrong. I see no way of winning this game.

A few months ago I was so desperate for work I went for an apprenticeship with McDonalds - in order to get to interview stage you had to answer questions on their web site application questionnaire, at the time I was in a government work program who basically gave me the answer key...so they're not only not looking for good workers, they are willing to take on people who can follow an answer key rather than someone with enough brains to realise what answers they're looking for. Initial stages are all about ticking boxes, and interviews seem to be more about social skills than any competency - everything about this is just plain wrong.