• A highly sensitive person will thrive anywhere they can use their creativity, intuition, and empathy.
• It is important for an HSP to not choose a vocation that is over stimulating. Too much over stimulation can cause burn out, stress, and illness.
• HSPs tend to be very productive, conscientious, and meticulous when they work. They do, however, feel uncomfortable and make mistakes when being watched closely or scrutinized.

Books for Highly Sensitive People and Careers:

Making Work Work for Highly Sensitive People
by Barrie S. Jaeger, Elaine Aron (Foreword)

Review from Amazon:

A practical guide to coping at work .

Making Work Work for the Highly Sensitive Person builds on Elaine Aron's groundbreaking bestseller The Highly Sensitive Person.

This new book, which includes a Foreword by Aron, gives highly sensitive persons (HSPs) strategies to build confidence, combat stress, and find work that is emotionally, financially, and creatively rewarding. Based on cutting-edge medical and scientific research, this fresh perspective on how readers can secure satisfying careers includes strategies to:

Detect jobs that are not right for HSPs
Make their opinions heard and valued
Control good personal internal boundaries
Defend themselves from bullies in the workplace
Move out of a job that feels like drudgery, and into a job that supports career goals and dreams

Tips for the Highly Sensitive Person at Work:

My Boss Keeps Watching Me!

HSP's do poorly under direct supervision. We do our best work on our own. It's a mystery to me how I can make so many blunders under my boss' nose, but when he/she leaves, I can produce superior results.

You can't always avoid supervision, but you can prepare for it. Request agendas for meetings ahead of time, and manuals and other written resources for training. Learn as much as possible ahead of time.

And if you make mistakes under supervisory pressure, don't fret. Remember, you're not incompetent, you're simply an independent worker who requires little supervision to do a good job.

- Marsha Talley, Web Page Designer

My Computer Screen Makes Me Edgy
Glaring computer screen giving you headaches and getting on your nerves?

I love my computer. It's quiet, it doesn't talk back, and it allows me to work in creative solitude. But after a full day of looking into a computer screen, I can feel pretty tired and edgy.

If this is a problem for you, too, set your workspace screen to a soothing color. (I use light blue.) It doesn't affect printouts, but it's easier on the eyes.

In Windows, this is how:

From the Start Menu, click on Settings.
Click Control Panel.
Double-click on Display.
Click on the Appearance folder.
From the Item drop-down list, choose Window.
From the Color drop-down list, choose a color.
Click OK.

- Marsha Talley, Web Page Designer

I Have Writers’, Painters’, Thinkers’ etc. Block
Why is it that so often when you really need to tap into that wealth of creative juice that flows deep within you, the wall that you have erected around yourself as protection keeps you from dipping in? The more you "need" it, the thicker the wall. The harder you work to get over it, the higher the wall becomes. You run yourself down with desperate self talk like, "If I don't ‘get into the flow’ right now, I'm finished. Why can't I do this? What a looser."

The harsher you are, the more your tender, sensitive self hides away. Remember the fable about the sun and the wind? They bet each other as to who could make the person walking on the path below them take off his coat first. The wind blew at gale force making the temperature drop and the leaves rip away from the trees. The person below wrapped his coat more tightly around himself and clung to it for dear life. The harder the wind blew, the more he hung on to his coat. When the wind finally gave up, the sun shone through the clouds and gently enveloped the man with its warm rays. As the man noticed the change, he realized that the howling storm was behind him. He was safe. He removed his coat.

And so it is for us. Coats and walls are wonderful inventions. They help us make our way through situations during our days that would be difficult to take without the protection they provide. When we are ready to contact the sensitive self that is hiding inside, we need to provide a warm, safe and gentle environment so she will be coaxed to come out.

If it’s been a rough day, give yourself time to relax. Take a warm bath or shower to wash off the grit and to de-clench your teeth. Listen to quiet music, read a lovely poem, taste a luscious dinner. Put on soft clothes. Close your eyes and listen to the part of yourself that knows. Your sensitivity is precious. It deserves special care.

Help! I Work With the Meanest Person on Earth!
It happens. It’s not fair. And HSP's are hurt more than anyone else. So, do we have to pack up and leave because we are defenseless against the nasty barbs, threats, or insults this barbarian seems to thrive on throwing our way? Who’s to say his evil twin isn't employed at your next stop? Life is funny. Really funny. You never know when you might need an especially impressive mean-guy story. Perhaps your next cocktail party, when you are feeling overwhelmed and at a loss for some amusing tidbit to add to the conversation.

Think of this person as your most fascinating and useful science experiment to date. Keep an eye on him. Observe his moods and any clues you might perceive that could predict when he might blow. Be on the look-out for his next ferocious attack. Write it down. Complement him on it. Let him know that of all the mean things he has ever done or said, this was his best, with the possible exception of that thing last week. If you are too impressed for words, don't say a thing. Just watch him in amazement. Like you might watch Old Faithful erupting in the comfort of your own office. Or you might laugh out loud in anticipation of how funny this story will be tonight as you are telling it to your friends.

My guess is that this will be the first time his rotten behavior has been met with scientific interest, detachment, and humor. Most abusive people are used to being taken very seriously. The element of surprise might knock him off his game. Perhaps he will laugh along with you. After all, life really is funny, isn't it?

Work

"One of the most important things you can do as a sensitive person is to not do work that you don't enjoy, or work in an environment that feels abrasive. Sometimes it may feel like the path of least resistance is to stay where you are, but it is worth the conscious effort to make changes and keep on making changes until you find yourself doing work that you enjoy." (Mystic Life)