12 Unique Strengths of Autistic People That Prove the Spectrum Isn’t All the Same

Autism isn’t a cut-and-dry condition with a few clear symptoms. It covers a vast range of developmental differences, which is why it’s referred to as a “spectrum,” making every person who has it distinct. Sometimes, people with autism may express it with a few unique strengths, and these strengths can vary from person to person. Recently, Reddit user drawsprocket asked Redditors on the spectrum what their greatest strengths were. Here are some of the responses that were given.

[Editor’s note: Some responses have been edited for spelling, grammar, and/or length.]

12. Google Guru

“Googling. I’m serious. I’ve actually had people send me their Google queries because they know I can find in five minutes what they’ll fail to find in several hours.” —Ildera

11. Ear for Music

“Music – can pick up basically anything and play it fairly decently in a few hours. This could just be from learning an instrument young though…” —cripple2493

10. Never Get Lost

“I am never lost. I have encyclopedic knowledge of the streets of Manhattan and the first thing I do in a new city is buy a map and study it.” —DonQuixoteReference

9. Thinking Independently

“I don’t naturally conform to the group mentality and because of that can see some of its flaws more easily. That makes me a pretty independent thinker.” —staticrain2

8. Being Resourceful

“I’m incredibly resourceful, whether it’s cooking, organizing, etc. I almost always see things from a perspective others miss, and it is really useful in my career.” —bradystrasse

7. Learning and Memorizing

“I can memorize facts like … Flareon is the only fully evolved fire type Pokemon who can’t learn Solarbeam. At least before Gen 7 … Real life knowledge? I’ll get back to you on that. Though in all seriousness, being a fan of a lot of Japanese media has made learning and memorizing Japanese a lot easier for me since it’s associated with my special interests.” —WintersWhite

6. Art and Interpretation

“I’m very artistic and I can interpret people well. I love animals and sometimes I can imagine what people around me would look like as an animal, only just by looking at them.” —spencexxx

5. Storytelling

“Storytelling, I spend a good third of my day in a little world in my head making stories and plots and beings.” —aww_shoot

4. Picking Up New Games

“Figuring out rules! I can learn to play, and then teach and play, a complex board game even while drunk.” —elberoftorou

3. Assembling Puzzles

“I’m awesome at fitting shapes and colors together. My skills include Tetris, 1000 piece puzzles, modelling kits, and assembling furniture (like IKEA or Sauder stuff). I like to sew too, but patterns confuse me. I make a lot of easy things like skirts, headbands, and curtains.” —neonlexicon

2. Writing

“I like to write poetry. I’ve been writing since I was in middle school … before poetry, I would write fanfics of my own design from my favorite cartoons and anime on a typewriter, before I started to learn to use a computer, and began typing on there …” —TruffulaDragonfly1

1. Empathy

“My greatest strength is my empathy, I guess. Apparently I tend to boost morale during theater and help everyone work harder because I’m very passionate about whatever we’re doing. I help people feel emotions that are hard for them to access.” —vulcanoes

The responses from these people show that there are many facets to living with autism. Some people may feel empowered in some aspects of their life, while others may feel vastly different. And that’s totally OK. It only reinforces that every one of our friends on the spectrum is truly unique and diverse, and they should be appreciated for what they bring into our lives.