ASD & talents.

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I hear a lot about how people on the autism spectrum are really good at certain things. I hear a lot about how people on the autism spectrum have "special talents" and that they're often really good at their "special interest" etc. For some unknown reason I sort of feel a bit pressured by that. My brain tells me that since I'm autistic I should be really good at something, but I don't feel like I am.

My special interest is a bit ... vague. My psychologist says my very intense interest in information and facts is a special interest in itself and that reading and what I study (medicine/human biology) are sort of special interests as well. I agree with that but I certainly don't feel like I'm super gifted in those areas. They're immensely interesting to me and I can get incredibly excited about them and very determined to achieve in those areas, but that's it. I don't know everything about the human biology, I don't read loads of books every day (I average about four or five a month), I don't feel like I don't have to study in order to get good grades etc. I enjoy pondering things, observing things, analyzing things, gathering information etc, but I'm not really gifted or anything. I often feel like I'm not good at anything. Like I'm the forgotten "Aspie" who didn't get any talents. (I'm aware I might have based these thoughts on stereotypes and I do apologize for that.)

Is it weird that I feel like this? Can anyone relate to it or am I alone in feeling this way?

EDIT: I don't mean savant skills. People with ASD are often said to be very talented even though they're not savants.

I have no specific talents and I assure you that I'm not just saying this due to low self-esteem and I really am great at something haha. I always get the impression that there is always at least one aspect or small quirk that is just spectacular when it comes to most on the spectrum, so yeah I kind of know where you're coming from.

I seem to have won the genetic lottery by being an aspie and my prize is... no talent at all.

Anyone have a rock I can hide under?

Ultimately, the amount of talent one has doesn't matter. What matters is how much someone works at something. Many people with a lot of innate talent never develop it into anything useful. Others overcome having less natural talent through a tremendous amount of hard work. In the end, no one who is a casual observer (who doesn't know the person personally) will be able to tell who was born with natural talent and who wasn't.

How long have you been studying medicine?

Remember that it takes time to become an expert (which is a type of talent.) NO musician, for example, is unbelievable 2 or 3 years after playing. It takes time to develop the skills. Most people only recognize this "amazing" talent after the person has been working steadily at it for 10+ years.

You are far more talented at medicine than I am or ever will be.

That's normal. Not all of us are savants. Of course, our ability to focus narrowly for long periods still gives us an advantage. We just have to build skill instead of starting with incredible natural talent.

My "special interest" is the only way I can counter my ADD. XD
I'm not extremely talented at anything specific, but I LOVE learning and I always land in the 98th percentile in any standardized test I take. MEAP test(state specific), ASVAB test, EXPLORE test(pre-SAT), and probably SAT. I don't know if this is special.

I think people have the impression that we are savants in our focused interests because of the few individuals that are so good that they get media attention, thus making it seem as if we're extraordinary in our focused interest.

Slave, yes, that does help a bit. Thank you.

nerdygirl, I'm a very ambitious person and if I'm motivated I can get really good at things. I doubt I have talent though. Perhaps I have certain talents but I don't see them (especially not now when things are going pretty bad due to loss of motivation). I don't know.

I've been studying medicine for a bit over a year now (took a few years off between high school and university and I also took a few other courses before I started studying for real in August 2013).

Greenhat & Klowglas, I'm sorry, I should have been more specific. I didn't necessarily mean talents as in savant skills. I just meant that I often hear about people on the spectrum being really talented at certain things even though they're not savants.

Nichard, I love learning things too (have done since I was a child) and I feel a strong need to learn things, but I certainly don't score in the 98th percentile when taking tests (with one-ish exception).

To be honest, I don't really have any special talents... unless you count written expression as one. D: It's not really that great of a talent though because only comes to me when I'm passionate about a topic or when I have to tell my doctor or psychiatrist something that can't be said verbally. It's not something I can do whenever I want to, and it takes a lot to really do it too.

I do agree with Klowglas. I also had the impression that all aspies were savants, which is strange considering how I have no savant abilities whatsoever. Then again, I don't have Asperger Syndrome from what everyone has told me. D:

I have a few talents----but, they're not anything a million other people can't do----I'm a "Jack of all trades, Master of none"! !

I'm not sure anything I know or can do qualifies as "savant," but I do like to think that now that I've managed to treat my symptoms with such success that I'm a lot less idiot and a lot more savant.

I'm not sure there's any one specific thing that stands out as my talent.. but I can pretty much do anything. I only need two things: Resources & process. Give me both of those and I'll get the job done. I'll do any construction trade, science/tech, service job, art (I made a nice functional engineered piece of art & have so many other ideas), engineering/math/problem solving, learn anything, try any sport/activity. I read, run, kiteboard, learn about health/naturla medicine/nutrition, cook, clean, fix things (break things! lol), repair/maintain my car, I'm a bit of a business geek & stock analyst and thus take care of my own investments.. I did the Tough Mudder in Whistler a couple years ago - and like they said then, "If you can do this, you can do anything you put your mind to!" and they were correct. About the only thing I don't do is girls. ;p

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No for supporting trump. Because doing so is deplorable.

Fortunately my number one special interest is electricity and I am really good at math & physics. So, I've been able to make a good career in the field of eletrical power systems engineering.

I consider myself fortunate that things worked out to my benefit.

I never had any special skills & I'm weak in the stereotyped Aspie strengths like math & computers. Most of my special interest have been posting online & listening to music or girls I had a relationship with or crushed on so there's no skills involved there either. When I mentioned Aspergers on other sites people assumed I would be a computer genius & I felt like the Aspie strengths made me a failure as an Aspie but not nowadays.

Most people who appear to be special talented in something probably had some good ability in that area to begin with and then worked at it a lot to develop their ability, so after some time, they are really good at what they do and appear to have special talent, but it was really the working at it that got them to a high level.

I have multiple talents. They are not savant degree but I wouldn't call myself an average either.

I am very capable of logical stuffs and creating something out of nothing. If I need a tool or item I will get a replacement the MacGyvers way. Door shut down and lost the doorknob? No problem. I can use a spoon to unlock them. Then fix the doorknob using a toothpick so the knob won't fall out again.

I am also very good at learning. I have ability to remember anything I once learned(learned=understood) when I really need it even if I forgotten it a long time ago. For example during the end of school year exams they told us to write an essay about something that I read about only one time - a few months before - and never repeated again.
During the exam I managed to remember enough about it to get 97% points which got me in the best 5% of students taking the exam in my whole country. Worth to mention is that there was a "leak" and a lot of students(including my school-desk classmate...) knew the topic will be on exam in a few days advance so they could prepare. I didn't get the leak message because I suck at social grapevine - I am always the last one who knows when there is a rumor out.