It took way too many failed interviews (29) to realize that it was about faking a “good personality” rather than skills or experience

I’m on the autism spectrum and I have a hard time with interviews. My “biggest weakness” is that I take everything at face value and I don’t often see ulterior motives unless I’m explicitly told. I ca

I’m on the autism spectrum and I have a hard time with interviews. My “biggest weakness” is that I take everything at face value and I don’t often see ulterior motives unless I’m explicitly told. I can’t read between the lines, I literally have to memorize these speech patterns in a mental flowchart to know what they actually mean. I was confused for the longest time because all of the interview questions so far have been behavioral or situational questions (describe a time when _ or what would you do if __), even though I’m in a technical STEM field. I answered all of these questions honestly without knowing that they didn’t actually care about my accomplishments and even soft skills during the interview because they already have my resume. They only care if I can showcase charisma and be funny while answering these questions. I spent way more time honing my technical skills rather than my “charisma” because I thought employers choose interviewees with the most experience. Man…