People with Asperger Syndrome (AS) often struggle with change and this is magnified when it is part of their professional role to manage and lead change. Written by a business leader with Asperger Syndrome, this practical guide provides advice and strategies for coping with and implementing change in the workplace. Combining theory and practice with case studies and hands-on tools, the book aims to help those who find change particularly difficult to overcome these challenges and use their unique talents and skills to become change champions in the workplace. The book explores the change management life cycle and how it affects leaders with AS and teaches key skills for successfully leading change, preparing staff for change, and dealing with the effects of change on the organisation as a whole. This is a vital leadership development handbook for executive-level business professionals with Asperger Syndrome as well as those who aspire to careers in these roles.
Entrepreneurship can be an ideal career option for enterprising individuals with Asperger Syndrome (Autism Spectrum Disorder) and this detailed guide explains how to tell if being self-employed is right for you and how to go about starting and growing your own business. Written by a successful entrepreneur and business consultant with Asperger Syndrome, this book provides all the guidance you need on the practicalities of starting up a company. The unique strengths that people with Asperger Syndrome can bring to a new business venture are highlighted and solutions are offered for elements of entrepreneurship that can create stumbling blocks such as developing working relationships within your company, marketing yourself and your business, managing finances, networking and maintaining a healthy work-life balance. Full of pragmatic advice, case studies from established business owners with Asperger Syndrome and practical tools for professional development, this is an essential startup handbook for anyone on the spectrum considering making the leap to becoming an entrepreneur.
This practical guide to effective public speaking for professionals with Asperger Syndrome (Autism Spectrum Disorder) provides tailored advice on using your Asperger strengths to your advantage and overcoming areas of challenge to find your public speaking voice. Written by a business leader with Asperger Syndrome, it includes guidance and hands-on tools for preparation, research and delivery of successful speeches and presentations. It addresses all the key areas that can cause particular difficulty for people with Asperger Syndrome such as coping with anxiety, interpreting the facial expressions of your audience, awareness of your own body language as projected to others, sensory overload issues caused by the speaking environment, and surviving post-speech networking and social events. Whether giving a presentation at a meeting, hosting a corporate event, or delivering an autism awareness speech, this book provides all the guidance that professionals with Asperger Syndrome need to master public speaking.
Tony Attwood's guide will assist parents and professionals with the identification, treatment and care of both children and adults with Asperger's Syndrome. The book provides a description and analysis of the unusual characteristics of the syndrome and practical strategies to reduce those that are most conspicuous or debilitating. Beginning with a chapter on diagnosis, including an assessment test, the book covers all aspects of the syndrome from language to social behaviour and motor clumsiness, concluding with a chapter based on the questions most frequently asked by those who come into contact with individuals with this syndrome. Covering the available literature in full, this guide brings together the most relevant and useful information on Asperger's Syndrome, incorporating case studies from the author's own practical experience as a Clinical Psychologist, with examples of, and numerous quotations from people with Asperger's Syndrome.
This book is devoted to emotional and narrative immersion in the experience of gameplay. The focus of our research is the complex interplay between the story and mechanics in digital games. Our goal is to demonstrate how the narrative and the ludic elements together can form unique player experiences. The volume is a collection of case studies involving close reading of selected independent titles, with focus placed on the themes, motifs and experimental approaches to gameplay present therein.
`This accomplished author demonstrates incredible insight into her AS, and how it has shaped her life. She is courageous in sharing with the reader moments clearly painful to recall, which offers parents a rare peek inside the world of their children. At times mesmerized by her poetic style, Willey is the first AS author to effectively convey the emotion and isolation experienced by these individuals.' -ASPEN Newsletter `For families living with "Aspies" and professionals working with them, this is highly recommended to further understand the challenges of Asperger Syndrome' -Joan Wheeler, CoOrdinator, Regional Services `This autobiographical narrative details the life of a woman with Aspergers Syndrome (AS), a mild form of autism. It focuses on the obstacles she confronts, her means of overcoming them, and her ultimate recognition and acceptance of her status as an "aspie"...The book will be an aid for people who have AS and it may be even more useful for those who do not have it, but who are close to someone who does.' - Disability Studies Quarterly `The book will be of great benefit to everyone concerned to help children and adults with mild Asperger's syndrome, but most of all to the people who are themselves affected.' - Child Psychology and Psychiatry `The author is a university lecturer who found that many of the puzzles of her own life fell into perspective when, after several years of knowing one of her twin daughters was different from the other, she eventually found someone who listened and explained Asperger's Syndrome. She vividly describes her own difficulties and emotions as she herself grew up with Asperger's Syndrome...Her story is told simply and through it we gain insight into what it is like to lose your way in your own home town, be assaulted by your heightened senses and attempt to unravel the mysteries of social communication. In the appendices she describes the strategies that have been of most help to her. This book is a testimony to the exceptional qualities of those who have Asperger's Syndrome.' - Therapy Weekly `Before reading this book I had some academic knowledge of the symptoms of Asperger's Syndrome which had stimulated my curiosity about what it might be like to suffer from the condition. I looked forward to reading the book to see if it would help me to understand how a person with Asperger's might think and feel. I was not disappointed. The book is well written and easy to read and I found it hard to put down. I felt the author's descriptions of her struggles to communicate with others and cope with sensory overload gave me a real insight into how Liane thinks and feels. It also gave me food for thought about conformity pressures in our society and how we treat people who seem different from the norm...This is a hopeful and optimistic book. Liane is a doctor of education and she is happily married with three children. I used the words "suffer from Asperger's syndrome" deliberately in the first paragraph as that is how I saw it. Liane has a different view - she does not minimise the difficulties she has had to face but she does not wish she was different. She challenges us to think about what we mean by the word `normal' and to be less rigid in our thinking about `normal' behaviour. I believe this is a valuable read for all counsellors and will give them much food for thought. Asperger's syndrome occurs with varying levels of severity. Hopefully, reading the book will help counsellors to work more effectively with clients who may have the syndrome to some degree and to avoid labelling them as difficult. It would also be very useful for clients where they or one of their relatives might have Asperger's Syndrome.' - Relate News `Liane's autobiography will allow others to understand the world as perceived by a person with Asperger's Syndrome ... I strongly recommend this book for teachers as it will provide the previously elusive reasons for behaviours that were considered unconventional or appeared to be abnormal. Specialists and therapists who diagnose and treat such children will find the book a treasure trove of information and insight ... [this] book will be an inspiration for thousands of people throughout the world.' - From the Foreword by Tony Attwood `This accomplished author demonstrates incredible insight into her AS, and how it has shaped her life. She is courageous in sharing with the reader moments clearly painful to recall, which offers parents a rare peek inside the world of their children. At times mesmerized by her poetic style, Willey is the first AS author to effectively convey the emotion and isolation experienced by these individuals.' - ASPEN Newsletter
A life skills guide for individuals with autism and Asperger's syndrome discusses social skills and strategies needed for success in the adult world, including discussion of perspective-taking, nonverbal communication skills, and stress management.
Jerry Newport, diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome / High Functioning Autism at age 47, wrote this book for those with developmental disorders, but it resonates with people with any disability. His message: everyone has the power, and the right, to improve the quality of their lives despite their disability. Don't believe you must be "normal" to be happy; learn to co-exist with neuro-typicals, and become the best human being you can be. Jerry candidly reveals his own failures and successes. His heartfelt advice stems from a deep sense of caring for "his people" on the spectrum. If you read only one personal account about autism, this should be it!
If you only buy one book to improve your life this year, make it this one. Temple Grandin, Liane Holliday Willey, Anita Lesko, Stephen M. Shore, and many other Aspie mentors, offer their personal guidance on coping with the daily stressors that Aspies have identified as being the most significant, in order of urgency - anxiety, self-esteem, change, meltdowns, depression, friendship, love, and much, much more. Based on years of personal experience, this book is packed with advice from Aspie mentors who have all been there and done that! World expert Dr. Tony Attwood rounds up each chapter with professional analysis and extensive recommendations. He includes essential information on destructive strategies that may look attractive, but that have counter-productive effects. Including full color artwork from Aspie artists showing visually how they interpret each stressor, this is THE inspirational guide to life for young adults, the newly diagnosed, and as a life-long reference for anyone on the spectrum - written by Aspies for Aspies.
Delve into the dramatic impact Asperger Syndrome can have on the complex world of adult interpersonal relationships. Psychologist Kathy Marshack shares poignant true stories based on her own life and the lives of her clients, focusing on how partners/spouses of someone with AS can take back their own life and find true meaning and happiness. The author discusses these sensitive issues and shows readers how to take control of their lives and grow away from dysfunctional behavior and dysfunctional relationships. Each chapter closes with a series of "Lessons Learned" that recap the main points of the chapter and offer new ways to look at these very unique challenges.
