Is working from home a good option for (most) Aspies?

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CloudSea
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06 Sep 2021, 5:53 am

Hi All,

Apologies if someone else has already asked this question. I'm looking for work, but due to previous negative experiences in earlier places of work (some bullying by co-workers) I'm wondering if prioritising WFH jobs is the best option.

I'd love to know your thoughts. Thanks!


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chaosmos
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06 Sep 2021, 7:34 am

I typically loath my 8-5 grind as a teacher when we aren’t in lockdown, which we have been and working from home for the better part of a year now…

I’d say WFH is mostly enjoyable, but I absolutely despise zoom meetings and find I’m much less productive. I think it’s the overstimulation and lack of logical conversation flow that ensures online.

I guess if you are doing a job that doesn’t require team work then that would be most ideal!



chaosmos
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06 Sep 2021, 7:35 am

Oh you’re in Sydney! How’s lockdown for you? I’m in VIC.



Joe90
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06 Sep 2021, 11:56 am

Not for me, I have ADHD so knowing me I'll probably be procrastinating all the time. I seem better at organising myself when I'm in the workplace than I do at home.


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badRobot
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06 Sep 2021, 12:29 pm

Work from home culture can vary widely. Some remote jobs record your desktop and require your camera to be on the whole time you work to be paid. Some require you to be in a video call the whole time. This could be much more stressful than being in the office with a good culture and work ethics. I work from home office for almost a decade, I couldn't be happier, but I work mostly on my own projects at my own pace.



blazingstar
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06 Sep 2021, 3:58 pm

I've worked from home for more than 20 years. I love it. I have the self-discipline to do the job, largely because doing my work results in better quality of life for others and this ability to impact positively other people drives me to do a good job.

I do run zoom meetings and they go okay. Our team meetings in person weren't all that great either. But it meets the needs.

I'm not totally at home. I do have to make visits to clients, but it is less than half of the job responsibilities. This past year, I did not even have to make visits because of the pandemic and I really loved it.


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Fireblossom
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07 Sep 2021, 10:51 am

If you have bad sensory issues, then working from home where you can control the work environment is likely better. Same with if interacting face to face with other people causes you anxiety. However, if you're easily distracted by other things you could do at the moment, be it house chores or some hobby, then working from home is likely to be difficult due to trouble in concentrating.

So, I'd say that working from home would work for most aspies, but aspies with ADHD (which often causes trouble in concentrating) might have it harder.



CloudSea
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17 Sep 2021, 3:50 am

chaosmos wrote:
Oh you’re in Sydney! How’s lockdown for you? I’m in VIC.


Lockdown's okay for me, thanks. Perhaps I'm one of the lucky ones? I'm thankful I don't live alone, because even though I haven't got the best people skills, I'm an extrovert - I still like interacting with people! I feel for you Victorians - is it lockdown #7? :(


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MrsPeel
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17 Sep 2021, 6:44 pm

Well, working from home didn't work for me.

Not enough self-discipline, I'd let myself get distracted into doing things I wanted to do instead of the work. Or sometimes the opposite - working in the evenings and weekends because of work/home stuff all getting mixed up.

Am much better focussed now I've found an autistic-friendly workplace. Just do work at work, just do home stuff at home. But everyone's different.



badRobot
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17 Sep 2021, 11:37 pm

MrsPeel wrote:
Well, working from home didn't work for me.

Not enough self-discipline, I'd let myself get distracted into doing things I wanted to do instead of the work. Or sometimes the opposite - working in the evenings and weekends because of work/home stuff all getting mixed up.

Am much better focussed now I've found an autistic-friendly workplace. Just do work at work, just do home stuff at home. But everyone's different.

There are ways to create work/home anchors to switch your brain. For example, I wear a watch with an hourly signal when I'm "at work" and I have different lights for work. People rely on willpower and discipline too much, make it easy.