Detail Oriented?

[FayetheAspie]

I have considered myself to be detail oriented for quite some time and even have it listed on my resume. I frequently notice small things that others have not noticed. I'm often the first to notice the small spider on a corner of the ceiling or one of the screws is missing on something. I also tend to notice changes in patterns. For example, my Dad used to try to slip new shows onto the DVD shelf and I would always notice them because there would be a stripe of some color that differed from the previous pattern. Now; however, I am coming to realize that some people use detail oriented to apparently mean something more like someone who enjoys reading through pages of code or mathematics looking for errors and such. That description does NOT fit. The mere thought makes me feel panicky almost like it would suffocate me or something. Basically, I am trying to figure out whether detail oriented is an accurate description or if I have misunderstood the meaning all this time. If so, what would be a better way to describe this trait of noticing all these visual details?

 

[FayetheAspie]

I do try to make sure things are done accurately if it is something important. In fact, I can become overly obsessed in this regard. At the store where I used to work, they quit letting me cull fruits and veggies. I don't think they wanted some of the products pulled that I had pulled. We were supposed to look for bruises and such but I later came to be under the impression that they really only wanted them pulled if they were actually rotting or something. I don't know why we had to watch a video saying pull it if they don't really want it pulled. Apparently, this is another aspect of detail oriented that I do fit.

 

[Ronald Zeeman]

Detail oriented to me means capable of fixing a Swiss watch. In my case its being able to see the forest while concurrently seeing individual trees. Just able to see anomalies.

 

[Judge]

Sounds like your strong points may be honed down to pattern recognition. Something that I'm inclined to think is something that happens very quickly compared to going through many lines of code searching for a specific thing or syntax error that would be expected to take more time.

The way I see it, they're two somewhat different skills reflecting a need to be detail-oriented, though one having expectations of being far more time sensitive than the other.

You may find that most jobs, regardless of what they involve come with expectations of working quickly and efficiently. So take pride in your ability of pattern recognition and use it to your advantage relative to it being a time-sensitive skill.

 

[mysterionz]

Yeah this is me, esp with the uncomfortable images thread I made a while back

 

[RemyZee]

Throughout my life I've only had one consistent compliment that people gave me: "You see things other people don't see." At least this sounds like a compliment. I notice things all the time that other people don't, including the sensory things like sounds or changes in the light patterns or shadows, changes in people's tones of voices or even smells that change as I move from one room to the next in the house. I agree with the pattern thing....notice the changes and similarities. Are these things examples of details?...yes details have come to be associated with some kind of employment quality, but they are more than that: It's the way a person interacts with patterns and changes.

 

[Ronald Zeeman]

A friend of mine had a friend who for finishing his final project for his diploma was a program, his program had a bug his friend could not find it. My friend mentioned it off hand to me so I said off hand why not get your friend to see my brother who could maybe help him I guess his buddy thought nothing to lose. so he did, my brother found the bug in ten minutes and the friend of a friend submitted the project got his diploma after years of waiting. I was stunned when my friend told me, not unexpected, knowing my brother who said nothing to me. Took me a while to realize, my brother was a genius keep hearing stories about him.

 

[WhitewaterWoman]

I'm not detail oriented at all. I get frustrated if a task has too many bullet points, if directions have too many turns, if a recipe has too many steps. I sail over things. Sometimes it works out and sometimes it doesn't.

 

[Jumpinbare]

I have considered myself to be detail oriented for quite some time and even have it listed on my resume. I frequently notice small things that others have not noticed. I'm often the first to notice the small spider on a corner of the ceiling or one of the screws is missing on something. I also tend to notice changes in patterns. For example, my Dad used to try to slip new shows onto the DVD shelf and I would always notice them because there would be a stripe of some color that differed from the previous pattern. Now; however, I am coming to realize that some people use detail oriented to apparently mean something more like someone who enjoys reading through pages of code or mathematics looking for errors and such. That description does NOT fit. The mere thought makes me feel panicky almost like it would suffocate me or something. Basically, I am trying to figure out whether detail oriented is an accurate description or if I have misunderstood the meaning all this time. If so, what would be a better way to describe this trait of noticing all these visual details?

I tend to agree with your initial take.

 

[FayetheAspie]

I know I don't want to go the manufacturing route with my science education. It seems to be more about paperwork, set repetitive procedures and regulations than it is doing science experiments and constantly learning new interesting things. I just can't seem to find it interesting at all and don't know if someone with ADHD should really be working in a field that needs to be regulated so carefully (at least not if they don't find it interesting). I guess my idea of science had always been the scientist and inventors you learn about in school doing experiments and making discoveries or else analysing a sample of something to find out what it is or to make sure something is not in it (like examining a sample of water for microbes).

 

[Jonn]

I have considered myself to be detail oriented for quite some time and even have it listed on my resume. I frequently notice small things that others have not noticed.

I was under the impression that what you have described is pretty much universal in the autistic community.
NTs tend to see the "Bigger Picture", while those on the spectrum have "An Eye for Detail.
This is one of the reasons we are at the forefront of innovation, a la Gangnam style Elon Musk style, imo.

Spoiler

 

[Jonn]

I do try to make sure things are done accurately if it is something important. In fact, I can become overly obsessed in this regard.

I used to be a perfectionist.
I literally virtually got nothing done.
These days, "I don't let perfection be the enemy of the good."

Throughout my life I've only had one consistent compliment that people gave me: "You see things other people don't see."

Same.

Also:
Being cognitive-based, rather than intuitively oriented, we on the spectrum tend to put into words things that NTs tend to know subliminally rather than consciously.

I'm not detail oriented at all. I get frustrated if a task has too many bullet points, if directions have too many turns, if a recipe has too many steps. I sail over things. Sometimes it works out and sometimes it doesn't.

I think you have to be interested in the subject to be "Detail-Oriented."
For me, Psychology gets me going.
Other subjects, not so much.

ADHD can make being methodical/systematic extremely difficult, btw.

 

[Jonn]

I know I don't want to go the manufacturing route with my science education. It seems to be more about paperwork, set repetitive procedures and regulations than it is doing science experiments and constantly learning new interesting things. I just can't seem to find it interesting at all and don't know if someone with ADHD should really be working in a field that needs to be regulated so carefully (at least not if they don't find it interesting).

Based on experience, repetitive activity is an anathema to ADHD.
My understanding is, based on research and personal experience, that we need the dopamine hit that comes with new interests, or a change of "mental climate/context".
I often shun new experiences while revisiting older, familiar ones.
For me, it seems "mixing it up" is more important than finding something new, in many situations. <shrug>
Maybe I should change that.

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I guess my idea of science had always been the scientist and inventors you learn about in school doing experiments and making discoveries or else analysing a sample of something to find out what it is or to make sure something is not in it (like examining a sample of water for microbes).

This seems to fit in for you.
Having been psychologically ritually abused may have altered me, here, though I do enjoy discovering new concepts/ways-of-thinking (for me, if not for others).

 

[Rodafina]

Basically, I am trying to figure out whether detail oriented is an accurate description or if I have misunderstood the meaning all this time. If so, what would be a better way to describe this trait of noticing all these visual details?

@FayetheAspie
In your initial post, it sounds like you are describing being observant. Your observational skills allow for excellent pattern recognition.

'Detail-oriented,' in my mind, has more to do with being able to organize items or tasks, notice and correct errors, stick to schedules and routines, and thoroughly complete projects/assignments.

 

[FayetheAspie]

@FayetheAspie
In your initial post, it sounds like you are describing being observant. Your observational skills allow for excellent pattern recognition.

'Detail-oriented,' in my mind, has more to do with being able to organize items or tasks, notice and correct errors, stick to schedules and routines, and thoroughly complete projects/assignments.

I'm not used to being called observant.
I often will be sent out to check the mail or something and when I come back in if someone wants to know about the temperature I can't tell them because I wasn't paying attention. I literally didn't notice if it was cold enough to need a jacket or whatever the question was. I miss things all the time and frequently drift off into elaborate daydreams if bored at all or if excited about something I am hoping will happen (having an interesting career, rescuing someone, finally going on a date for the first time in my life, being given a bouquet of wildflowers or a handmade card are common themes). Yet somehow, I am usually the first to notice that something has been damaged or is dirty or the first to hear that the power wasn't turned off on some gadget due to the low hum that others don't seem to hear and if someone ask me to examine something, I pick up on minute details that others don't see without a magnifying glass or something.

 

[Rodafina]

We are observant of that which interests us or seems meaningful, but so frequently that does not align with what others find relevant or interesting.

 

[Judge]

I know I don't want to go the manufacturing route with my science education. It seems to be more about paperwork, set repetitive procedures and regulations than it is doing science experiments and constantly learning new interesting things. I just can't seem to find it interesting at all and don't know if someone with ADHD should really be working in a field that needs to be regulated so carefully (at least not if they don't find it interesting). I guess my idea of science had always been the scientist and inventors you learn about in school doing experiments and making discoveries or else analysing a sample of something to find out what it is or to make sure something is not in it (like examining a sample of water for microbes).

This is when you need some pragmatism. You might consider trying to re-prioritize your immediate focus- and goals. To seek stable employment to allow you to live a financially independent lifestyle to escape the toxicity and influence of your father.

For now it's probably best not to be overly concerned about how you assess your own personal strengths, and not focus so much on a career you want, but rather the job you actually get. And to accept how the job market ebbs and flows with both good and bad economies which tends to "color" one's real job opportunities at any given time. And a willingness to learn through extended vocational education programs. Even while you may work full time.

Starting with a focus on the acronym "STEM": Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics. You just might find some of these kind of jobs might be more suited to you, especially if you are willing to compromise in some ways. Also, to closely evaluate government statistics relative to the percentages of non-college STEM jobs and their projected opportunities in the recent future.

https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/finding-a-job/stem-jobs-without-a-degree

Measuring progress (and gaps) in the US skilled technical workforce

Life in the lab: science careers without a degree

STEM Jobs That Don’t Require a Bachelor’s Degree

Is College Overrated? 6 Best STEM Careers Without a Degree - STEMtropolis

 

[Masked Man]

I have considered myself to be detail oriented for quite some time and even have it listed on my resume. I frequently notice small things that others have not noticed. I'm often the first to notice the small spider on a corner of the ceiling or one of the screws is missing on something. I also tend to notice changes in patterns. For example, my Dad used to try to slip new shows onto the DVD shelf and I would always notice them because there would be a stripe of some color that differed from the previous pattern. Now; however, I am coming to realize that some people use detail oriented to apparently mean something more like someone who enjoys reading through pages of code or mathematics looking for errors and such. That description does NOT fit. The mere thought makes me feel panicky almost like it would suffocate me or something. Basically, I am trying to figure out whether detail oriented is an accurate description or if I have misunderstood the meaning all this time. If so, what would be a better way to describe this trait of noticing all these visual details?

I believe what you're missing is the context.

When an employer uses the words "detail oriented," it means in the context of job duties. So yes, it can mean going through pages upon pages of code to suss out error.

For a nurse, it would be the ability to catch medication errors before they occur or to spot new illness symptoms in a patient.

It's also not necessarily something done out of enjoyment - it's a learned skill. It demonstrates competence and being able to be present while performing your tasks.

 

[Aspychata]

I think visual detail is excellent for jobs that require that type of job skill. The first thing l think of is detective work, which you really have to catch visual, digital, emotional details, yet it is filled with very long times of waiting for the perp to screw up. Mechanical or factory positions all align well with great visual abilities. So perhaps do research in regards to that end? Doctors, nurses, PA's are very visual, they need to ask questions, visually check your blood pressure, etc.
Landscaping is strenuous but can be very visually demanding. You constantly trim and maintain clean lines by way of pruning. Car detailing which seems popular in my area, also requires visual detail, and being able to clean car interior and exteriors. Lab positions require repetitive visual acuity day in and day out.

 

[FayetheAspie]

@Aspychata Sadly though the investigative jobs and the medical jobs listed all tend to have extensive education requirements and even the factory/mechanical jobs seem to expect previous work experience within those fields.