I have never been fired... I have always been successful and yes fitting in is essentially team work.... The younger you learn it, the better the chances.. stay true to yourself but always try team work.. .A young aspie at our support group has learned this and is very successful at his work and loves it!
I thought you might be interested to see this web page - actually four web pages if you include the three questions. What do you think of the advice?
http://www.worksmart.org.uk/career/fitting_in
fitting in at work
How important is fitting in at work?
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How can I make sure I fit in?
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Does fitting in have to mean conforming?
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further information
Working is only a part of being at work. The work pays the bills and is the reason you’re there, but the people you work with are a central feature of your working life, and can prove even more important in the long term, with friendships often lasting long after the jobs through which they were begun. Fitting in at work is a key step towards ensuring that your working life is productive and happy and that you make the most of the social potential your workplace provides.
How important is fitting in at work?
If only in terms of the actual work you do, fitting in at your workplace makes a big difference. A cohesive team, bound together not just by their presence in an office or factory but by shared interests and social experiences, makes for a much more effective unit than one where work is the only thing bringing them together. At the very least, the employer will need to recruit new staff a lot less often.
For an employee, a workplace where you fit in with your colleagues feels like a completely different place to one where you don't. Being a part of a group gives you more energy and enthusiasm and inspires creativity, as well as providing access to a ready-made social network with immense potential. If you don't fit in at your workplace, you're unlikely to be very happy or to stay there very long.
How can I make sure I fit in?
The first step to fitting in is to get a sense of the culture of your workplace. Every organisation has its own culture, which manifests itself in the dress code, the look and layout of the place, the level of formality and the way staff interact with each other. Getting a clear sense of the way things are done is an important step towards making sure you pitch your own behaviour in a way that will chime with your colleagues. If you show up every day in a suit when everyone else is wearing jeans, unless your work requires it, you'll be erecting a barrier between you and those around you.
Set yourself some basic rules about how you deal with your colleagues. Don't be critical of them or their work. If you have an issue with someone, approach them about it personally rather than airing your concerns with other people, and do so in a positive, constructive way rather than being confrontational. Asking for help with problems you have with your work is a good way of breaking the ice and indicating a level of respect for colleagues' opinions, which will help. Developing these kind of habits will create a good climate for fitting in.
Make the effort to go to social functions arranged through work. These allow you to meet your colleagues outside of the usual working environment, when they're more relaxed and the organisational hierarchies and work-related barriers are weaker, and you can let your personality come across more easily. If you're asked to join people after work or at lunchtime, accept, because that's a clear invitation for you to fit in. And, if nobody asks, it's often because everyone thinks it's someone else's responsibility, so don't be afraid to do the asking yourself. Just like you, most people like to know that others are interested in them.
Does fitting in have to mean conforming?
If you're conforming against your wishes then you're not fitting in. Fitting in means making your personality a part of your working environment, not allowing it to disappear under a culture of which you can't be a part. If the culture of your workplace doesn't appeal to you, then it's worth trying to develop alternatives. If, for example, your colleagues get legless in the pub every evening and that's not your thing, try suggesting alternatives - a sporting outing, perhaps, a musical gig or a movie. The odds are that you'll soon find like-minded people who'll welcome the chance to do something different. Of course, it is possible that, despite your efforts, the culture is simply one you could never fit into. But most workplaces contain a remarkable variety of people, and trying to make connections is nearly always well worth the effort.
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