Showcase of Undergraduate Research and Creative Endeavors (SOURCE)

“Silly Guy” and the Neurodivergent True Self

Being one’s true self, one without the need to mask or perform as someone else, is a belief I hold strongly. While “being yourself” is one of the most fundamental life lessons someone can learn, sometimes being yourself as someone with autism is something that society never wants from you. Strong fixations, stimming, and oversharing can make neurotypical people uncomfortable, and might make them take action to “cure” people whose brains just work differently. The way our modern world was organized, there is no place for neurodivergent people to truly and authentically be themselves in a professional environment. “Silly Guy” is a piece to push against the fold about presenting something very “unprofessional” professionally, and about how I express my neurodivergence, by “re-introducing” people to my sense of humor and creative style without feeling ashamed to do so, all while encouraging others in a similar book to do the same.