There’s a lot of fear and anxiety around how to engage with autism and neurodiversity and how to engage in the topic of neurodiversity at work. We understand that people are afraid of making mistakes. This is often the most significant barrier to learning and advancing neuroinclusion.
However, in the words of author and poet Maya Angelou, “Do the best you can until you know better. Then, when you know better, do better.” When we conduct presentations or workshops, we often start by saying that if people have uncomfortable questions, those are probably important questions.
We always strive to give people space to ask uncomfortable questions in a judgment-free zone. So, for Autism Awareness/Acceptance/Celebration month, we hosted an “Ask Us Anything” webinar. We invited guests to submit questions anonymously to our autistic neuroinclusion experts and auticon Canada employment coordinators, Tonie Minhas and Jean-Julien Guyot.
Do the best you can until you know better. Then, when you know better, do better.
Maya Angelou
We were delighted with the response. We received many thoughtful and honest questions from many people, many starting with “I’m not sure if I’m saying this right…”, and “I don’t want to offend anyone…” This was precisely our hope. What we learned is that many have the same kinds of questions, and a few themes emerged.
In this six-part series, we’ll capture the highlights from our major themes:
- How do I talk about autism?
- How do I know if someone is autistic?
- Where does masking play a role?
- Is it true autistic people are anti-social?
- What are the most common challenges autistic people face at work?
- What do you wish people would ask you about being autistic? (Bonus question!)
We will also include excerpts from our webinar where Tonie and Jean-Julien share their personal experiences.
We hope this series will help you feel more comfortable being uncomfortable, asking difficult questions and advancing your knowledge and understanding of autism and neurodiversity in the workplace.
You can watch the full webinar on-demand here:
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We are here to help! Contact us at ac.no1728826370citua1728826370@ofni1728826370 to learn more about how your organization can embrace and support neurodivergent talent.
