Plenty of neurodivergent people have an interest they could talk about for hours. Trains, coding, true crime, plants, a particular period of history, a video game’s entire lore. Careers advice often treats these as hobbies to keep quiet about at interview. We think that is a mistake. Deep interests come with deep knowledge, sustained focus and real motivation, which are exactly what employers say they want.
Turning passions into a career is not always simple, especially if you have little or no work experience. These steps can help.
Start with what you love
Write down the things you choose to spend time on when nobody is asking you to. Then think about the jobs connected to them, including the less obvious ones. A love of art could lead to graphic design or illustration, but also to gallery work, art supplies retail, framing or digital content. A love of animals could lead to animal care, veterinary support, kennel work, rescue charities or pet product businesses.
Our lists of jobs that suit many autistic adults and jobs that suit many adults with ADHD might give you some ideas, though the best fit always depends on you.
Know your strengths
Your interest is one part of the picture; how you work is the other. Are you precise and thorough? Good at spotting patterns? Calm in a crisis? Happiest working alone on a problem, or bouncing ideas around with others? Those strengths point to the type of role and environment where you will do well. A project coordination role, a data job and a creative role could all connect to the same interest but feel completely different day to day.
If you are autistic, our article on building a career around autistic strengths goes into this in more depth.
Get advice from people who know the field
Careers advisers, mentors and people already working in the area you are interested in can tell you what the job is really like and how people get into it. The National Careers Service has job profiles, a skills assessment and a course finder that can help you see which routes exist. Online communities around your interest are often full of people happy to explain how they got started.
Build skills and experience
A lack of experience is not the end of the road. Look at what qualifications or skills the roles you are interested in actually ask for. Online courses, short workshops, apprenticeships and vocational training can all help you build them.
Volunteering, internships and small freelance projects connected to your interest give you experience to talk about and help you find out whether you enjoy the work as much as the hobby.
Show your work
For creative and technical interests, showing is far more convincing than telling. If you write, start a blog. If you take photos, put together an online gallery. If you code, build projects and share them on a platform such as GitHub. A portfolio gives employers evidence of your skills and commitment, and gives you something concrete to talk about at interview.
Be targeted in your job search
Applying for everything is tiring and rarely works. Focus on roles that connect to your interests and play to your strengths, and read job descriptions carefully to check the day-to-day reality matches what you want. Tailor each application so your enthusiasm comes through; our guide to tailoring your CV shows how.
Entry-level jobs and internships can be a good first step, even if they are not the dream role yet. If you feel stuck about where to go next, our article for neurodivergent people who feel stuck in their career may help.
How Enna can help
When you are ready to apply, start with our neurodivergent jobs board, where employers are actively looking for neurodivergent talent, and set up job alerts so matching roles reach you first. Our CV help for neurodivergent jobseekers will help you show employers how your interests and strengths fit the job.
