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Ask HN: Can Asperger's run their own startups?

4 points by um304 ↗ HN
Given the fact that Aspies have hard time socializing, is it even possible for them to run their own startups? Have you ever seen any Aspie run a successful business? If yes, what were the major challenges and how did they manage them?

9 comments

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a3voices
Yes, it's easily possible provided they have enough experience and inclination, just like anyone else. I don't see why not.
nostrademons
"Aspie" is a wide continuum. If you extend it broadly enough, it encompasses people like Larry Page and Bill Gates, who most certainly can run their own startups.

You do need to deal with people in a business. However, "deal with people" does not mean "be a social butterfly", it just means understand them well enough that you can provide what they want.

tobylane
Perfectly possible, although I'd say I'm severely lacking in stress management and people skills. Both of those are a matter of experience and confidence. The other thing I'm lacking is a desire to make startup levels of money, but I can't say how widespread that is in autism. If Bill Gates is considered autistic, he certainly doesn't have problems being ruthless to raise money. More of him would answer your question.
jpetersonmn
"Given the fact that Aspies have a hard time socializing"

As a father of a daughter with Autism, I think that you're overgeneralizing quite a bit. People with Autism and Asperger's vary greatly in their personalities. While a lack of social skills may be a prevalent trait, it doesn't mean anyone on the spectrum has a hard time socializing.

um304
Please pardon my ignorance, I have just learned this term after realizing how well it explains 26 years of my life. Wikipedia defines the syndrome like this:

"Asperger syndrome (AS), also known as Asperger disorder (AD) or simply Asperger's, is an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) that is characterized by significant difficulties in social interaction and nonverbal communication, alongside restricted and repetitive patterns of behavior and interests."

From this definition, I get the impression that "difficulties in social interaction and nonverbal communication" is what defines AS. I'm very curious to learn why you think it is overgeneralization.

phaus
I found out around the age of 26 as well. From my understanding, the distinguishing characteristic of Asperger's is that its the only form of autism that isn't accompanied by mental retardation. The lack of social skills is a very common occurrence, but I'm not sure its universal.

Personally, I have terrible social skills, but I'm not sure all of us do.

jpetersonmn
I've already explained in my previous comment why I think it's an overgeneralization. Even though it's a prevalent trait, personalities and abilities vary greatly. I know several people with Asperger's and several of them do have a difficult time socializing, others are very social but have other traits. Obsessive hobbies, strict routines, some are very gifted in some areas, but struggle with other things most people find simple, etc...
davismwfl
Having been around this a lot in my life, my answer would be it is totally dependent on the individual. As jpetersonmn mentioned, people with Autism in general have a wide range of abilities and those with Aspergers can vary significantly from very mild to fairly significant.

From my experiences, usually they are amazing people and extremely intelligent and have some abilities I really admire. Of course, many times social interactions can be tough for them, reading body language, facial expressions etc are also not usually something they excel at naturally. However depending on their severity level, most can be taught to do things that come natural to those of us without Aspergers. A friends son with Aspergers has learned to read facial expressions better, but it took him quite a bit of effort to learn to do it fast enough so that conversations run fairly smoothly. But I'd never rule him out from doing whatever he wanted.

While I have no personal knowledge of someone with Aspergers running a startup, I would say that absolutely they could run their own business and excel. But it would all depend on the severity of their condition and their support network.