by Becky Waege, Member of MICC’s Autism Committee and Employment Services Specialist
Dr. Temple Grandin, a prominent author and speaker on both autism and animal behavior, joined Minnesota Independence College and Community (MICC) virtually on December 9th, 2020 for a personal Q&A with participants and staff. Over 80 members of the MICC community attended the virtual event organized and hosted by MICC’s Autism Committee.
Born in 1947, Dr. Grandin grew up without the services individuals with autism have today. She didn’t speak until the age of three and half and wasn’t formally diagnosed with autism until her 40’s. Despite these challenges, she has never let her diagnosis slow her down.
Dr. Grandin is well-known for many accomplishments, including numerous contributions to the livestock industry, authoring more than twenty books, presenting a TedTalk called, “The world needs all kinds of minds” that has over five million views, and an Emmy and Golden Globe award-winning HBO movie about her life, Temple Grandin. She has made TIME Magazine’s annual “TIME 100” list in 2010 in the Heroes category and is a member of the National Women’s Hall of Fame. Currently, Dr. Grandin is an Animal Sciences professor at Colorado State University.
Dr. Grandin covered many topics in the Zoom meeting with College Program students, Community Program participants as well as MICC staff and board members, such as her accomplishments as an author and inventor, being a woman in a male dominated industry, the struggles and triumphs of having autism, the importance of working hard, and shared great advice from participants’ insightful questions. While the Q&A was scheduled for one-hour, Dr. Grandin graciously stayed on for an additional 45 minutes to continue to answer each and every question from participants.
Here are the five takeaways from our time with Dr. Grandin.
1. Learn what your strengths are and make them work for you.
Dr. Grandin identifies three kinds of minds: visual thinkers, pattern or visual-spatial thinkers, and word thinkers. With each question participants asked, she suggested learning what type of thinker they might be in order to guide them to what types of things they may be interested in or good at doing.
2. Work is important.
Multiple times in the virtual meeting, Dr. Grandin shared how important learning how to work and getting a job is from a young age. There may be tools someone needs to utilize to work effectively or someone may need more training.
3. Get on a schedule (especially during COVID).
Even when motivation is tough, Dr. Grandin stressed the importance of keeping busy, having things to do, and sticking to routines and schedules.
4. Ask for help when you need it.
Dr. Grandin shares a couple of examples of times where she had to ask for help because she didn’t know how to do something.
5. Get exposed to different activities.
By trying new things, you’ll find activities you enjoy, make new friends, and learn what you’re good at which may lead you to a job or career path.
Dr. Grandin’s talk was an inspiration for us all, encouraging everyone to find their passion, work hard, and celebrate their unique gifts. On behalf of the entire MICC community of participants, staff, and board members, we extend a sincere thank you to Dr. Temple Grandin for sharing her well-earned wisdom with all of us. To have her as a role model in the autism community for participants to look up to and for neurotypical individuals to learn from is truly invaluable.