Find out how Bridget has found her calling in technology for critical infrastructure projects.
Bridget is a Data Analyst who works on both geospatial and digital engineering projects at ASA. After spending years switching between retail jobs, she has found a role in data analytics that plays to her strengths, working on Australia’s critical infrastructure projects. Find out more about Bridget’s journey below.
Bridget: I was born and bred on the south side of Brisbane. I went to a state primary school and then a private high school in the area. I’ve lived there my entire life; it's very much home. I couldn't imagine being anywhere else, and I feel so lucky to have full-time work here. In my family, I have one younger brother, who is very close to me. He’s not neurodivergent, but my special interests are closely aligned with his. We've been able to stay really close throughout our lives. He's an excellent support for me.
During my school years, I definitely had some obstacles, especially socially. I had one really good friend in primary school, and that was pretty much it. My mum remembers me asking her why I couldn’t make friends, and that was painful for her to hear. I had a lot of trouble with one particular primary school teacher, who could tell that there was something different about me, but did not act in a compassionate way. She was annoyed that I could never focus. I’d often daydream in class, and so she called my parents in and said that I had issues and needed ‘to be checked out’.
“There were signs I was neurodivergent when I was in preschool. All I would do all day was take a box full of dinosaurs and colour-code them. After going home, my teachers would mix them back together. The next day, I would reorganise them by colour all over again.”
And then came high school, where I often felt like I didn’t fit in and was being treated differently. For example, it felt like I would be spoken to like a small animal or something. Classmates talked to me in soft tones and simple sentences, as if they had to be careful not to break me. Often, asking about my interests was like a great novelty. I didn't really understand it. I don't think of myself as somebody different. While I have many specific, specialised interests, I simply consider myself a person. However, I didn't have the worst time in high school.
After I finished school, I worked in three retail positions. First in a clothing store. That was followed by three years at one of the large grocery stores, and finally, I spent just under a year in a jewellery boutique. The clothing store was okay, and I did pretty well in the grocery store. Although I didn't like all of my coworkers, I did make connections there, and it wasn’t an uncomfortable environment. When I moved on to the jewellery store, I found I had to work with KPIs, which meant hitting sales targets every day. And that was new to me. It felt terrible to have to constantly push people into making decisions that weren't necessarily their own. Oh, you want to buy this? How about this? And there were weekly leaderboards for which employee had been able to upsell consistently. There was a lot of pressure between co-workers.
That job was also extremely limiting in terms of expression; I wasn't allowed to wear colourful makeup, have my nails painted or piercings. It was all banned, and the uniform was very strict, which also made me very uncomfortable. I think that because masking my behaviour was very strong, it became unbearable for me to communicate with so many people in a single day. So, I ended up having a series of pretty bad meltdowns. That was undoubtedly the reason why I had to stop working in retail. I even had physical symptoms, like shaking limbs, lasting for hours. My doctor suggested that I take some time off because I had totally burned out and had also regressed significantly in my social skills.
But I never went back, and I entered a period of long-term unemployment. This started in 2021, during the COVID-19 pandemic, and we were out the other side before I could even contemplate going back to the workforce. One key change I made was finding a new psychologist, whom I'm still with, and she's fantastic. She taught me a lot about myself and had suspected that I was neurodivergent when we were talking, but she waited for me to bring up the possibility to share her thoughts about it. She may have been unsure how I would react to that.
“I only found out I was autistic a couple of years ago, when I was 23. It took me quite a while to internalise the diagnosis and think, okay, that's me. I’m now comfortable with it, and it feels natural to refer to myself in that way.”
After being diagnosed, I have explanations, so it was nice to learn more about myself. But I wouldn't say I necessarily felt good about hearing it. I was concerned about how people in my life would react. I did receive some reactions from friends, along the lines of ‘you don’t seem autistic to me.’ After letting go of some masking behaviours, over time, they couldn’t imagine giving that response again. It makes me laugh.
When I thought I was ready to return to work, I collected my résumés and went straight back to applying for retail jobs, as that was all I was qualified for and all I knew. Even though nobody in my life wanted me to be in that environment again, it was not to be anyway; managers or casuals were all that was being advertised, and each time I would hand in my resume, it would be placed to the side, and I’d be immediately asked how old I was. At 24, I was practically ancient in retail and far too expensive for a casual position.
It was only because I was assigned a great disability employment officer called Sean, who actually cared, that I was able to find my current position at Australian Spatial Analytics (ASA). He was always looking for jobs for me, but not anything that would make me feel uncomfortable. He didn't push things on me. It made no sense to place me into roles I had no interest in or didn’t match my strengths. I'm eternally grateful to him.
"He came to me with ASA and said they had built up a reputation with an Inclusive Employment Australia (IEA) provider (formerly known as Disability Employment Services) as a workplace that was safe and would accept people who needed accommodations."
It’s an IEA’s job to place people in workplaces and keep them out of the system. If a company establishes a relationship with an IEA, it will have access to many candidates. I really credit my psychologist and IEA for helping me get back on my feet again. He said, 'I think you'd be great at this' not that he had anything to back that up with. He just knew I would try hard and that I was interested in data. I've always had a general interest in infrastructure, transport and how things work.
I’m someone who watches long videos on YouTube about a bridge collapsing and why it happened! I also like travelling by air. I know that aircraft are the safest way to fly, but it just takes one little stuff-up to bring a plane down. When I watch those videos, they don't make me more anxious about flying. They make me more confident because I know how much trial and error, as well as research, goes into making planes safe for everyone.
“Accommodations were the first thing I really noticed as different about ASA. Self-expression helps me feel more comfortable. Plus, I can wear work-appropriate clothing with bright colours and have my hair dyed. I also have decorations on my desk that remind me of home.”
That makes me more relaxed. These minor accommodations have been huge! I don't feel like I'm walking into a big workplace or a cold office. I also have some physical health complications. Through ASA and my IEA, I’ve been provided with a standing desk and an ergonomic chair. I started working three days a week, but only for the first two weeks. I then started full-time work for the first time ever, which was a significant adjustment period and a lot of information to take in! Obviously, a bit tiring, but full-time work is definitely the best thing for me as I thrive with routines in place.
I initially focused solely on geospatial projects. I very much enjoyed it, working on utilities, historical documents and categorising/translating data into a visual format. Recently, my supervisor, Keeton, reached out to me with opportunities to transition into the digital engineering side of ASA, working with programs such as 12D. I’ve reached the point where I’m teaching others in our team to use it! I’ve been given more responsibility, too. I am in a position where I assign tasks and perform quality assurance.
“Since I started at ASA, people who know me would say that I have changed significantly for the better. They can also see that having goals and a routine really benefits me. I was previously unable to go to places by myself. I did not feel confident making decisions about my life. But even just from a happiness point of view, I’m so much happier right now than I have been in years, because I have goals. I come to work, and I'm immersed in a group of people like me. It made me feel like a real person again.”
I always knew that routine was good for me, and I certainly never enjoyed the period of time when I was unemployed because there was nothing to be satisfied with. There was nothing to be proud of. There was nothing to work towards. I'm somebody who really needs to be working towards something. Having a routine where I wake up at the same time every day, go to work, and leave at the same time has been amazing. I never feel like it's a drag.
In terms of my neurodivergent strengths, I love absorbing data. I think our team all put a lot of emphasis on detail. I also love looking into program back-end processes, including innovating our workflows. We’re working on creating macros to streamline processes and increase efficiency. I also recently completed a Certificate III in Information Technology, which was funded by a grant ASA landed from the Queensland Government Department of Trade, Employment and Training.
“Undertaking the Certificate III in Information Technology, thanks to the Skilling Queenslanders Grant, will help other potential employers recognise me as someone with qualifications and experience. Combined with the projects I’m working on, it will definitely help with mobility within the data analytics field. I believe I have a much stronger foundation in technology. Having done the course has definitely boosted my confidence.”
Regarding communication with others, I’ve had experiences where things haven’t landed with neurotypical people. Especially when expressing passion about something. For example, they haven’t quite understood my level of enthusiasm. I’ve felt judged for being overly enthusiastic about my interests. Many neurotypical people think that the neurodivergent cohort is primarily male and don’t expect women to be autistic. Therefore, I’ve experienced some exclusion because there's a lot of doubt placed on me.
In the past, I have been given vague instructions, yet I was expected to understand them 100%. For example, once I got in trouble for being ‘late’ for work. I was told, ‘make sure you're in before 9 am'. I arrived 10 minutes early. Then my manager said that wasn’t good and that I should be there 15 minutes before. From that point on, it was always 15 minutes early. Once, I came into work with my shirt untucked, which is how I usually wear it. I thought it looked good. I was then told to ‘wear that correctly’, without being told to tuck it in!
In terms of communication mediums, I find Teams is a great tool. I can speak to people in person very well, but sometimes, when I'm feeling a little overwhelmed, it's nice to use Teams as an alternative. When I'm communicating with someone on Teams, even if they're in the same office as me, I know they understand that I feel more comfortable using Teams at that moment. It's very autonomous in that way.
At ASA, for the first time in a workplace, I don't have to force myself to make eye contact when I don't want to. I also allow myself to do self-soothing, like stimming. I tend to play with my hands or my hair, and nobody looks at me funny for that, thinking I’m weird. I don't have to analyse movements, speech patterns, or anything like that. I can be myself. It’s hard to be someone you’re not. No one should have to do that. I’m also being recognised for my contributions to the business, which feels wonderful.
“I can't possibly convey how important this job has been for my life and how grateful I am to every person who has helped me get to where I am now. I'm in the best headspace of my entire life.”
I firmly believe that I'm building my life from this point forward. I hope to stay in data analytics or digital engineering for the foreseeable future, possibly for the rest of my life. I thoroughly enjoy it, and it's undoubtedly a more fulfilling career path for me than retail!
