Inventor wrote, “In school aspie is called nerd, at work, the boss.” This quote is from a discussion on WrongPlanet.net about business owners with Autism and Asperger’s.  As it turns out, for some, “Nerds Rule!” is not just a saying.

Mary, my social networking guru, sparked this post (I’ll get to her in a minute.) when she sent me this link:  Autistic Traits: A Plus for Many Careers (I like the punny humor in that.) where Lisa Jo Rudy wrote, “But autistic people aren’t typical. And neither are the careers for which they’re ALREADY good candidates.”

Then I remembered the episode of House I watched where the “radical” doctor with long hair, a guitar, and tattoos was not hired because, to paraphrase House, the only radical kids were the ones who spent hours in the library studying while the popular kids were out partying.

You have to grow a tough skin to put up with the ostracizing from other kids.  Now, I have friends because high school is long gone.  I also have a business and I’m the boss.  Why?  I invented The Cozy Calm Weighted Blanket.

I’m not unusual.  Evidently, it’s common enough for people with autism and Asperger’s to be self-employed or own businesses.  I have no stats for this, just the accumulated knowledge from being on a lot of Asperger’s and Autism boards for adults–something I noticed.

From what I have read, people on the autistic spectrum become self-employed so they can work alone.  Another reason is so they can work on their passion.  What happens when you focus on your passion and do it for a living?  You get very, very good at it.  Then what happens?  A lot can happen like getting highly sought-after, the product or knowledge becomes in demand (as in my case), or, well, who knows.  The sky is the limit as the saying goes.  Or, one can keep the business small, work alone, and charge a lot.

For 20 years, I chose the latter, but now, I’m growing the business to include others.  It’s forcing me to grow and learn some of the tools of popular kids, like how to manage people.  Mary is our social networking person.  (Yes, there are many of us in this company now.)  To be a good manager, I decided I would use my Aspie principle, “Follow Your Passion.” So, I decided, in a way I have known for a long time, that the way to be a good manager is to nurture other people’s passions.

What’s her passion?  I really don’t know, but she’s following it because her husband and her son are using The Cozy Calm Weighted Blanket and she’s sleeping so she demanded the job of telling everybody that she is ecstatic because she is alert and AWAKE!  She shouldn’t be so perky for someone who is promoting a product that puts people to sleep.  (lame joke)

I had it in the budget, so I hired her.  She is now our official Online Communications Specialist.  I agreed to it because her heart tells her that she wants to help people; she’s enthusiastic about her work because she loves what she does; and, well, she’s a really good person.  So, I think (and feel), “Hey, follow your passion wherever it may lead you!”

I encourage you to meet her on Twitter or on Facebook.  Believe me, she would love to talk with you.  I do too!  I just never know what to say, which is the social awkwardness setting in.  So, Mary is doing it.  It’s really funny.  I ask her, “I am really stoked about x, so can I tell people about that?”  She says, “Heck, yeah.  Don’t worry, I’ll tell everybody what you’re so excited about.”

She speaks for me; she speaks for herself.  The point I am trying to get across is do what you are good at.  I never thought I would be good at manufacturing and retailing, but it has worked because I love it.  I just had this idea in my head that I wanted everybody in America and beyond to feel as good as I did when my final prototype of my invention was made.  Just ask Mary; she’ll tell you.

Follow your passion.

Parents, remove every barrier to your kids can follow their passions, even if it seems weird or unconventional to you.  After all, the end goal is happiness, not money, but with the first, the other usually follows, so don’t worry.