Invisible <voi### [at] devnull> wrote:
> As an aside...
>
> My therapist seems to think that I'm nervous of public speaking because
> I'm autistic. I was under the impression that *all* people are nervous
> of public speaking. (Or at least, the vast majority of people anyway.) I
> didn't think this was "abnormal" in any way...?
>
> --
> http://blog.orphi.me.uk/
> http://www.zazzle.com/MathematicalOrchid*

1. What's so desirable about the statistical property of being "normal"?
Technically, having red hair is "abnormal". I don't see a problem with it.

2. I, by no means, would try to pass myself off as someone who can speak with
any technical authority on this subject, BUT it seems to me that "autistic" is
the flavor of the month among pop-psyche circles and that the label is being
thrown around by a whole bunch of quasi-professionals who lack the requisite
background in neuroscience to be doing so. Human beings quite naturally come in
a wide variety of dispositions with regard to social interaction.  These days,
it seems that ANYONE who doesn't fall into the "productively gregarious
corporate team player" category is in for a pejorative "diagnosis".  Until if
and when it comes from a fully qualified neurologist who has run the necessary
*physiological* tests ("behavioral surveys" are pure hokum), I would take the
"autistic" label with a micro grain of salt.

3. I'm one of the oddballs who has always enjoyed having an audience - the
bigger, the better.  During my college years, I had an easy ride at my job at
the local Science Center because most of my co-workers dreaded having to stand
up in front of several hundred people to give presentations.  So, they were
happy to have me do nearly all of them while they were busy doing what I would
have considered hard work.  Since the subject has come up MANY times in my
life, I've developed a fairly standardized bit of advice. It has helped some
people enormously and others not at all.  In the event that it might help
*somebody*, I'll included it here. In your mind, divide the audience into two
distinct groups. Group One are the decent folk whose opinion might be worth
actually caring about.  They'll empathize with your situation and be more than
willing to cut you a break for any imperfections in your presentation - just as
you would gladly do for them.  Group Two are the jerks who have nothing better
to do that stand around passing judgment on others.  Talk to Group One as you
would to any group of friends and ignore Group Two as they so richly deserve to
be ignored.

Best Regards,
Mike C.

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