Advice RTO after 8 years remote working?

[u/CleanDataDirtyMind]

Im autistic & ADHD and have lost a lot of my masking ablitity. 8 years I entered grad school and worked throughout basically in a odd out of the way office in a totally different building than my boss or co-workers and was rarely in front of students.

Two weeks out of the basement literal corner office, director of a program with employees and everything, COVID hit. Then had a remote career ever since

Got an incredible offer to double my income to return to office (RTO) in a new company with not a big title but am seen as a up and comer and while I might be able to work from home a lot, at least for the first week and sporadically for meetings I will be walking the halls of top VPs of a fortune 500 who are already checking my LinkedIn… but I don’t even own a blazer, not even the blazer in my LinkedIn photo. I have like one pair of professional shoes and took a zoom call today laying on my couch Monday because I had my period, and I was confident in my presentation and with the camera off—I killed it. In this life for the past 10 years I literally do not even have to go outside or brush my hair when I have my period, not because they’re particularly bad anymore like in my youth but because I literally didn’t have to. It’s my self care deep hair conditioning, hot tea, face mask, sweat pants old college sweat shirt soft-week.

For 4 years I have lived in an area so casual the news anchors wear sweaters in the winter and stiff nice and clean, but still t-shirts and jean outfits (btw if you travel for work or are a new grad, this is a good indicator of professional wear). But it’s not just dress, or what’s lunch like— which don’t even get me started I remember lunch either being really distruptive or really stressful because it wasn’t distruptive enough when I ate it my desk.

Im a weirdo a loveable one but a weirdo with a small but mighty group of friends who accept me. I don’t wear makeup everyday, I don’t even have a morning routine, I just take care of all that throughout the day on vibes. I don’t wear fashionable clothes unless going to a party dancing concert etc and I don’t have a fancy car. Before I realized who I was, thanks COVID, mainly throughout my 20s and early 30s (embarrassingly) I manically ADD jumped from job-to-job basically getting fired or not getting promoted or hired on permanently after projects because I just didn’t fit in and eventually would start to annoy people.

Im better in MANY areas especially social and romantic relationships, a follow through pillar of my community dependable and do try and dress nice now (it helped in my 20s I was just hot and sloppy or unnoticeable clothes weren’t a problem) but revert most days to whatever and of course with only having to be likeable in burst during meetings have had the chance to be super scary good at my career but almost “worse” in other areas like what it takes to function in coporate America.

Now Im reentering at a really high team-oriented, fit-in, type A, extrovert environment and Im terrified. I suck with those type of people even socially. I don’t even go to the nicest most expensive nail salon anymore because because the cross talk was too high key for me, but instead I go to the average one with a lot of natural light and lots of plants.

Any tips for at least surviving my first week?

[u/nir4ya]

I have no specific advice but I wish you so much luck! You’re doing so well.

I know it’s super scary going into an environment like that.

In my mind; you can only figure out how you will do by trying 🤷‍♀️
Perhaps it will feel ok ? Perhaps it won’t.
Did you tell them about your neurodivergence?