On Differences

I've been thinking about teamwork. Specifically I've been thinking about how it is that many employers today expect teamwork. Everyone is on a team, part of a team, hopefully the winning team.

I am not a team player. I have come to accept that about myself and to embrace it. Being a maverick, an independent thinker, a solitary sort, an aspergian to the core-- well, there is nothing to be gained by fighting my intrinsic way of being and navigating around the universe.

I am an investigator. I know how to ask questions. I know how to listen for what is not said as well as for what is not being said.

I know who I am.



I respect you for who you are, just the way you are. I give you the basic respect that every human being deserves. I even respect you for being a person of faith, for being on your god's team. I respect you for your need to be managed, even to be micro-managed if that is as you wish.

I also deserve respect, the same basic respect that I extend to you. I deserve respect as a person of non-faith, for being a solitary traveler. I deserve respect for my need to be left alone, to seek out what works for me. If you cannot respect me for who I am, then respect me because I am a human being like you.




I am not asking for your permission or for you toleration. I am far beyond that. I am asking for your acknowledgment. If you cannot acknowledge me for who I am, I accept that. I know that acceptance is not approval. I deal with what is. Your inability to acknowledge me does not cause me to think less of myself. It is a far deeper pain than that.

sapphoq and friends