Attention, Autistic creatives... who are just looking to begin their career out of college or those who have not had luck landing the job they want, read on... For anyone, it's difficult to land the creative job you want when you have little to no experience in that field, but it's hard to get experience if no one gives you an opportunity to learn and gain the experience. This is where the Gig Economy can come in. How the Gig Economy Can Help... For some creative autistic individuals the Gig Economy can be a great place to begin gaining work experience on real projects for paying clients. This does several things for you:
All of the above bullet points are invaluable to a future employer because it's proof that you have experience, a body of work to show for it (your portfolio) and that your work provides value to clients. Learn more in the Intro to Online Autism Entrepreneurship guide. It's free, below. Posted by: Nick Venturella
As part of Autism Awareness Month, Microsoft is hosting the first Autism @ Work virtual career fair for people on the autism spectrum. The job fair is part of the second annual Autism @ Work Summit held in Palo Alto, California.
read full article AutismHR has finally created its own Facebook Page. You can check it out, post comments and/or Like the page. If you didn't know, AutismHR also owns the LinkedIn Group, Autistic Professionals, which we're really just trying to get started. Check it out. And you can always find AutismHR on Twitter as well. Thanks, -Nick Owner of AutismHR.com Temple Grandin is one of the most well-known autistic individuals advocating successful, meaningful work for autistic individuals.
AutismHR was created in part for creative autistic individuals to provide education toward meaningful income from their artistic skills in the Gig Economy. In this article Grandin provides some advice for creative individuals on the spectrum. Project SEARCH helps autistic young adults gain exposure to various work environments while learning valuable skills to aid them in landing more permanent work after graduation.
I wanted to share this podcast, from Nick Loper of Side Hustle Nation, because he interviews Fiverr freelancer, Kendell Rizzo, who has made over $100,000 in profit in 18 months selling services, workbooks, and other downloadable products on Fiverr.
In the interview, Kendell provides some really practical advice for anyone who does use, or is looking to use, Fiverr to sell creative services. The advice can be applied systematically to increase your Fiverr revenue over time and continue to build a solid portfolio of great work. I encourage you to take a listen, take notes and learn what kind of success is possible with Fiverr's Gig Economy platform. Posted by Nick Venturella Hear what author and work culture expert Rawn Shah described in a 2015 talk at TEDxBedminster as “the fragmentation of work,” which he believes is the future of personal productivity. For some autistic individuals concentrating on one or more Micro Jobs (aka Gig Economy jobs) that relate to a particular subject of interest could prove to be a viable option toward meaningful work. Posted by: Nick Venturella I recently found an article on the Bureau of Labor Statistic's website about the Gig Economy.
The article provides a nice overview of the Gig Economy. It outlines several common types of work one finds in the Gig Economy as well as the pros and cons of this approach to earning an income. The Gig Economy is certainly not a fit for everyone, but it's AutismHR's belief that for many creative autistic adults with viable skills it can be an alternative to, and/or a springboard toward traditional employment. Read the full article here. Posted by: Nick Venturella In recent months AutismHR has fielded several questions, politely asking why the site uses Identity-first language, so I thought I would address it here.
Within the autism community there is healthy debate over the use of person-first vs. identity-first language when addressing individuals on the spectrum. Here's an example of each form: Person-first language: "AutismHR.com is designed for adults with autism." Identity-first language: "AutismHR.com is designed for autistic adults." For those not immersed in the autism community the difference may seem subtle, but there are distinct differences. I can appreciate and respect people's preference for person-first language. That is a view that many hold. The idea is that it identifies the person as being separate from their difference. The individual is identified as a person first, and only second by the medical diagnosis they bear. Identity-first language still recognizes the individual, but accepts the idea that the individual's difference makes up a part of who they are. Such individuals cannot separate themselves from their difference. It's a holistic way to identify someone. My overall opinion is that person-first and identity-first language is both correct and incorrect. However, the target audience for whom such language is intended requires the author/content producer to make a choice about which language to consistently use. AutismHR has simply chosen to primarily use identity-first language to reflect the preference of the many in the autism community for whom AutismHR is primarily geared -- self-advocating individuals on the spectrum. The National Center on Disability and Journalism has a good post that points out the differences in more detail. I encourage anyone curious about this issue to read it. Posted by: Nick Venturella |
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