The "Social Era”, as Nilofer Merchant coined it is proving that we have come a long ways in how we interact with people. The early days of social media was about connection and engagement, than came measuring our value by the number of friends, and now our influence will be measure by how engaged we are. While many scramble to learn these skills and gain audiences there is a growing subgroup of people who are becoming quite proficient at the art of connection. People with Autism and Aspergers, a group not normally known for being connectors are gaining doorways into talking with folks online.
For people who have Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), myself included, the world of interaction can be a challenge. Many have gone their whole lives cut off from the real world either by speech barriers or the absence of Neurological typical social skills. With 1 out of 88 people now diagnosed with ASD it is clear this is starting to look more like a phenomenon than a disorder. Mentioned by Autism Activist and Autistic person Temple Grandin the rise of internet age may have come from people with #ASD people. Many could argue this but what is clear is people ASD are gaining ground in the Social Era.
Carly Fleischmann , a non-verbal autistic woman from Toronto, for example, is building a world of relationships that has reached 51,000 followers. Many of these followers also share Autistic Spectrum Disorder and are discovering ways to break down walls from both socializing and the belief that ASD is about being intellectually disabled. With the click of a button they are expressing ideas, music and even art they've created to let others knows what they have been trying to say all along.
How is it that so many people with Autism Spectrum Disorder are excelling is social media? They can be the maven of mavens. When they get fixed on something that interest them they (me included) have to know everything about how it works, as well as how they can make it fit into an pattern that is efficient. Sound familiar tech people? Dr. Grandin believes the ASD gene is the origin of creativity and problem solving and may be the reason why we have advance so for the last 200,000 years.
Another example is watching some of the people I work with that have been open enough to share that they have Autism Spectrum Disorder. After talking with a friend about how their social media management was working when she started a few weeks earlier, she was feeling disappointed. When I asked her what the problem was, she said “I can’t get past 32”. I said, “32 followers?” She said “no 32.2k followers, and my About.me still won’t get past 10k a week. Maybe there is something I am saying that is keeping everyone else away?” The look on my face was priceless. Later that same friend had a total stranger come up and thank them for a blog they wrote.
While all people with Autism Spectrum Disorder vary in functionality and skills it is clear they are finding it much easier to connect. They are making friends with people Globally and some seem to be quite good at building rapport without the use of a real voice. It will be interesting to see what the future holds but I am happy to see so many with ASD gain ground and find their place in the Social ERA.
Follow on Twitter: @ChristoB78
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