Unemployed Again (Naturally)

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Here's a brief and oversimplified timeline of my life so far:

1991 - born

2009 - graduated high school

2013 - graduated college

early 2013-mid 2015 - had various short-lived jobs

mid 2015-mid 2016 - was legitimately unemployed despite constantly applying for jobs and seeking help from job agencies

mid 2016-late 2016 - had a seasonal job for a retail corporation

late 2016-mid 2017 - had a full-time job for a software company

I had a great (though quite stressful) job for the software company for 7 months and was able to pay my rent and all my bills for the first time in my life. However, because of my ADD, I managed to make a few minor errors despite starting to take Adderall for the first time since I was 11. I was let go from my job earlier this week because of my errors although my boss told me that she really enjoyed working for me and that I could use her as a reference. I feel like Bart Simpson in the episode "Bart Gets an F" when he still fails despite all of his best intentions. Throughout my life, everyone has constantly told me how intelligent I am, but much of the time I don't feel like it because I continue to fail at things that many stupid people are able to do, like get and keep jobs. People say that my expectations for myself are too high, but my only real expectations for myself are to be able to maintain a job that supports myself and have had at least one relationship in my entire life, which to me seem like really low expectations for a 26-year old, and yet I have not achieved either of those things. I already applied for unemployment and am applying to jobs and job agencies, with an interview on Thursday and another two in a week or two, but knowing how I was previously unable to get a job for over an entire year, I am unsure how long it will take.

Lurg, as you know, I am a fan of your posts and have been disappointed to hear of this development.

I guess where you are now is trying to find a new job at the level of your most recent one, but without the problems you had there. I am seeing two major issues at your last job, which I think brought about your termination. Correct me if I'm wrong.

1) I think some of the people there did not like your personality. This is a not uncommon problem for autistic people in group settings such as software development or any other places where people work at computers in cubes or other partially open physical environments. You can imagine that this turns the workplace into a grade-school playground, where cliques and company social rules and behaviors form.

2) The small errors- I don't know what these were, but I am going to imagine this was like not putting the new covers on the TPS reports like in the movie Office Space. If that reference makes no sense, like maybe writing a letter and forgetting to address it.

Neurotypical people have innate, or natural ways of correcting these two problems before they become too big. Autistic people can use artificial means to accommodate for the neurotypical talents they lack. If you can learn to do this, while continuing to use your OWN natural, autistic talents, you can actually become very powerful in any job that you do. If you'd like me to go on, I will, but I won't keep running on if I'm way off base.

If you can focus on self employment.
Try selling things on ebay or such, even if it's just a small part time business such as soap making.

Also try and get part time work. This can help you last longer in the job, and allow time for you to increase your self employment. Also helps with boredom/burn out, and people don't focus too much on attacking you (office politics), since you're not around as often.

Ideally you will aim for a job with minimal co worker interractions, sole charge is great.

One of the things that come with autism is rigidness due to fear and anxiety. I have met quite a few people on the spectrum who fail and give up completely. I had this attitude for years in terms of riding a two wheel bike until my parents said, "You can't drive until you learn to drive a bike." So I learned at 16 and just like that, I loved biking.

One thing to consider is that you can't give up just because one company lets you down. Rather, you have to keep moving forward and even if it includes taking as many tutorials as possible.

I don't understand why all of these replies are only coming in now as opposed to a month ago when I actually was unemployed and could have used the help.

Even though we were born in the same year, you are in a better position because you graduated, filled your time with short-term jobs, and made the effort to use agencies to their fullest potential.

Whereas myself, I only finished college (high school equiv.) with top grades but doesn't help that my qualification is looked down upon, the fact that I failed (not dropped out) university, and had paid jobs only last 1 day before I get fired and have benefits stopped because i'm a lost cause for them. And as above poster said, it's my personality, and if by a miracle i succeed through an interview, the final challenge would be getting along with the team. Fortunately i have someone paying my bills and food.