Struggles to hold on to a job

[Savak]

Greetings

I thought i would reach out on this forum as i need to discuss my issues, challenges and problems. The thing is that I have had Asperger's Syndrome/Autism Spectrum Disorder all my life, I received an official diagnosis in 2016 and then again in 2018.

I have been living in Canada since 2012 and I have worked in 6 accounting firms from 2015 till today, unfortunately I have been laid off all 6 times and I am going to be laid off again on November 4, 2020. The only good news is that i have now acquired the Canadian CPA designation

I know it's a reality that major reason behind my being unable to hold on to a job is directly linked to my condition where my bosses have complained about my inefficient communication skills, being socially slow, awkward.

I have tried very hard, in most organizations early on I was able to create a good impression with my work ethic but later on as the expectations and responsibilities went up, I was not able to meet the expected expectations and the most difficult challenge I faced was being unable to multi task, being unable to fearlessly communicate with my bosses as they started to get annoyed and were no longer as friendly to my questions or discussions and naturally my immediate reaction was of self defense where I avoided putting myself in situations where I would face stress, criticism and aggressive cross questioning.

I am now beggining to question whether I made a mistake trying to pursue a career in public accounting where you have to interact frequently with clients, co workers, bosses and have to face them, speak to them even if the situation is very stressful and whether my condition demands that I be practical and choose something more manageable.

I really needed to speak to someone about this and I thought maybe for starters speaking to an autism specialist would be the right way to go about it

Regards

 

[Creep]

Is it possible to be your own boss? That would eliminate the need to interact with a boss & coworkers. You’d still need to interact with clients.

 

[Giraffes]

Finding a 'good fit' for employment may increase your success, for myself a small team, elements of autonomy, opportunities to find a low arousal quieter space, have you a lists of elements within employment that may support 'you being you?'

 

[clg114]

Welcome to Autism Forums! I agree with Creep. I started working for myself 14 years ago when I was sixty. It has been great, I worked less and made more money. You have a talent that people need, why not provide that service to people who need it. At first you would have to promote yourself to get some work, but that is not as hard as it sounds. Once you get some repeat customers, you are on your way. I know it sounds scary, but my only regret is that I didn't do it years earlier. Good luck!

 

[Aspychata]

Think what's tough is incorporating our social skill set or lack thereof with our hard skill set. Until you manage this or get better at soft skills, you are destined to keep repeating like a endless loop. You really have to work on your communication skills as uncomfortable as it is. l have improved. But l strive for improvement everyday. If you come up deficient in one area of your life, then you need to tweak it to enable survival. So it maybe uncomfortable but you need to adult, or take steps to improve. l have had enough bad jobs that my soft skill set improved.

 

[Bolletje]

I’m still looking for a good fit too. I’ve been a medical doctor for three years and so far two of my jobs haven’t worked out. I ended up quitting my first job myself and my contract for my current job won’t be renewed. While I perform my job very well and don’t have problems with coworkers or patients, I’ve run into a wall repeatedly where I suffer from burn out and/or depression because of the stress from vague assignments, inefficient work processes and confusing hierarchy.

I’m interviewing for a new job and I have a good feeling about it, but I’m worried I’ll run into the same problems again. My psychologist has suggested I might not be cut out for normal employment and I should consider applying for disability, but I just don’t agree. I’m good at my job, dammit, I just need to find a workplace that isn’t a total chaos on organization level.

 

[Mia]

Since you are in Canada, have you considered writing government exams as a CPA? This would place you in a position of having to deal far less with co-workers, bosses and clients.

There is union system in place that would protect you from arbritary encounters with others who might not like your social skills. It's far less stressful than a public accounting firm, where you have to deal with clients and bosses on a regular basis.

Would suggest that you stay away from working for the revenue agency, where there is high turnaround and stress on the job. Many other government departments are in need of accountants. They would train you, and there are many advantages to working for the government. If you don't like the job you have been offered you can take other exams within the government departments and move to another area of interest.

 

[clg114]

I’m still looking for a good fit too. I’ve been a medical doctor for three years and so far two of my jobs haven’t worked out. I ended up quitting my first job myself and my contract for my current job won’t be renewed. While I perform my job very well and don’t have problems with coworkers or patients, I’ve run into a wall repeatedly where I suffer from burn out and/or depression because of the stress from vague assignments, inefficient work processes and confusing hierarchy.

I’m interviewing for a new job and I have a good feeling about it, but I’m worried I’ll run into the same problems again. My psychologist has suggested I might not be cut out for normal employment and I should consider applying for disability, but I just don’t agree. I’m good at my job, dammit, I just need to find a workplace that isn’t a total chaos on organization level.

Private practice?

 

[Aspychata]

Private practice has a lot of overhead, and paperwork, and medical malpractice insurance costs.
That's the reason doctors prefer companies, because the company absorbs those costs, and has policies in place which cut down on lawsuits.

In the US, government has one DEA license which is a blanket type and covers all MDs that work there. Another thing that doctors don't have to apply for every couple of years. Doctors in the US also have to keep md state licenses active every two years by cme and registration. So the paperwork and fees are ongoing.

 

[VictorR]

Have you considered reaching out to an organization or network that specializes in placements for those on the spectrum? Most major cities usually have one (though they might not specialize in ASD - but they can usually reach out to other non-profits for guidance)

 

[Bolletje]

Private practice?

I need to have a specialization first before I could even think about starting a private practice. But like @Aspychata says, a private practice brings a lot of stress too. Even though malpractice lawsuits aren’t that much of an issue here, the amount of extra administration is killing. My dad’s a GP and he had a private practice in our house when I grew up, so I got to see all the stress up close and personal.

 

[Savak]

I am about to obtain the Canadian CPA designation by the end of this year. I just need to give one exam in the US which will allow me to acquire the US CPA designation. One of the options that i am considering is opening my own accounting practice. I also desire to get into teaching on the side.