One generalisation of the autistic is that they have trouble 'reading' others, ie. that they miss the facial gestures, voice inflections, body mannerisms, etc necessary to fully understand what this other person is really communicating. As the NTs are purported to be able to do.
But I think this is very inaccurate. What the issue is, I think, is that during conversations the autist can be primarily introspective; they are thinking about themselves, possibly past history/insecurities, and most probably, an unwillingness to even try.
And I think this can be unfair to oneself because some of the common attributes of an autist: single-mindedness, logical reasoning, out-of-the-box thinking could be invaluable in the reading of others.
So try this next time you have an important conversation with someone; turn your focus outward to use the full-range of your attributes to see if you can read this person and to see 'in-between the lines' as to what they are really communicating to you. I think it would be a interesting experiment for autists and it could lead to a greater understanding of not only others but yourself.
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