How I Work (Neurodivergently) - Yenn Purkis

This week we have the fantastic writer, public servant and Autistic advocate Yenn Purkis joining us for the How I Work Neurodivergently series!

Name: Yenn Purkis

Location: Canberra, Australia

Current gig(s): Officer of the Australian Public Service, disability and gender advocate and author

One word that best describes how you work: Diligent

Neurodivergent? Yes - autism and ADHD as well as anxiety and schizophrenia?

First of all, tell us a little about your work background and how you got to where you are today.

I basically threw my life away between 1994 and 2000, spending time in prison and other institutions. I could not and did not work and sought negative things. Life was very difficult. In 2000 I decided that a new millennium should equal a new life and that I wanted to be ‘ordinary.’ That meant having an education, a job, a mortgage and a suit. In late 2001 after I have been in university for a year, I got a job washing dishes. This was not a difficult job but I was a big perfectionist and work caused me extreme anxiety. Anxiety is always the trigger for my schizophrenia and this was no exception. I got very unwell and had to quit the job - and almost had to leave my university degree. I remember thinking ‘I can’t work now but one day I will be able to.’ I started on a journey from being unable to work at all to begin a full-time professional employee.?

Over the next few years I put in place measures to build my confidence and experience around paid work. My ultimate goal was to work full-time in a clerical-type job. First off I took a volunteer job in a gallery. This was great and I wasn’t too stressed. May manager always had positive things to say about my work. Then I had my own business doing videos for my art school colleagues and this gave me confidence too. I then worked for a charity - an absolutely horrible job but it gave me confidence and experience in there workforce. The last stepping stone in my employment journey was to write my autobiography, which was published in 2006. Being a published author gave me immense amounts of confidence. Within three months of the book coming out I had applied for two public service graduate roles. I was successful for one of them. It was amazing. I had to respond to a lot of questions about my history and my mental health but I was successful and joined as a graduate officer in 2007.

I have now been a public servant for over 16 years and I still really enjoy it. I have been promoted twice and am now in a middle management position. My job has changed my life in a big way - and yes, I do have mortgage and a suit! It is a privilege to do what I do and I just love it.

In terms of my advocacy work, that has basically grown and grown since the publication of my first book in 2006, with people all over the world wanting me to do various things. I currently have 12 published books with five more on the way. I love the books. They are like my paper children. I also give talks a lot, having done one for TEDx Canberra in 2013 as well as conference talks and talks to various organisations over the years. I also have a lot of requests for media such as podcasts and radio interviews. I was even in a documentary called Alone in a Crowded Room once. I have a bunch of awards for my advocacy work and lots of requests for me to give advice and share my experience. Advocacy is my passionate interest so it is just lovely doing it all the time.???

What are your job responsibilities?

I am going to focus on my day job rather than my advocacy work as I feel as if it is more relatable. I work in human resources in diversity and inclusion in a big department so there is lots of communication and organising meetings and events and working with our inclusion networks.

Take us through a typical workday.

I sometimes work in the office and sometimes from home. The work is the same whether I am in the office or at home. I send a lot of emails, make phone calls and have meetings with my colleagues and managers. I draft various written things as well.

What apps, gadgets, or tools can’t you live without?

MS Teams!

Do you stim? If so, how and when?

Yes. I have a spinner that sits on my desk at home and I spin it. I also have fidget cubes that I sometimes use. I mostly stim when I am working from home.?

How do you align your neurodivergence with your work environment?

I have used a rehab case manager over the years to help make work more manageable, mostly in relation to my schizophrenia. However mostly I see my neurodivergence as a positive attribute in the workplace.? I have a lot of things which I see as being related to my autism that are a plus at work, such as my honesty, loyalty and diligence.

What’s your favourite shortcut or hack?

Give everything a good proofread and then give it another one before you submit it / send it!

How do you keep track of what you have to do?

I keep a to do list that I update several times a day to reflect what I have to do, what I have done and where things are up to.?

How do you recharge or take a break?

I make a cup of tea which I have at my desk or I get up and walk around for a bit. Regular breaks are important as I can become hyper-focussed if I am not careful.?

What’s your favourite passion/interest/side project?

Autism advocacy in all the forms it takes in my life.?

What are you currently reading/listening to, or what do you recommend?

Reframing Autism site?[Gerard: awww thanks!]

And Dara McAnulty’s book, Diary of a Young Naturalist?

And I haven’t read it yet but it is on my list - Hannah Gadsby’s book. I feel I can recommend it without having read it due to the complete awesomeness which is Hannah Gadsby!???

What’s the best advice you’ve ever received?

You don’t have to act on your thoughts?

Anything else you'd like to tell us?

I love everything I do. It is an absolute privilege to do the work that I do. Oh, and shameless authorial book plug - here are links to both my employment books - one isn’t out yet but will be out in June. I have also included a link to Spectrum Women because I wrote the employment chapter for that one too!

Yenn's Books:

Planning your Career Through Intense Interests (2023)

https://www.amazon.com.au/Planning-Career-Through-Intense-Interests/dp/1839973528/ref=sr_1_3?keywords=yenn+purkis&qid=1680396721&sprefix=yenn%2Caps%2C293&sr=8-3 ?

Wonderful World of Work (2014)

https://www.amazon.com.au/Wonderful-World-Work-Workbook-Asperteens/dp/1849054991/ref=sr_1_15?keywords=yenn+purkis&qid=1680396743&sprefix=yenn%2Caps%2C293&sr=8-15 ?

Spectrum Women (2018)

https://www.amazon.com.au/Spectrum-Women-Barb-Cook/dp/1785924346/ref=sr_1_18?keywords=yenn+purkis&qid=1680396743&sprefix=yenn%2Caps%2C293&sr=8-18 ???