Haley Moss, a 24-year-old author and autism advocate, was diagnosed at three and told she wouldn't amount to much. She graduated law school early, published two books, and exhibited art worldwide. Her advice: trust your gut over logic, and listen to autistic people about their own lives.
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Welcome to the Business Blast Podcast. I'm your host, Tyler Wagner. This episode is brought to you by Authors Unite. Authors Unite provides you with all the resources you need to become a successful author. You can learn more about Authors Unite and join the free community at authorsunite.com. Now let's jump into the episode.
Alright everyone, welcome back to another episode of the Business Blast Podcast. I'm your host Tyler Wagner, and today I have Haley Moss with us. She is an author, artist, and autism advocate, and recently graduated UM Law. So welcome to the show, Haley.
Thank you for having me, Tyler.
Of course, thanks for joining us, and we'll dive in. The first question I have for you, Haley, is is what is the best story from your life that has an underlying valuable message?
So my underlying message that I always say is resilience, is I think that's the key thing that I want to hammer home. So I was diagnosed with autism when I was 3 years old and I didn't have the happiest of possible prognoses in life. So I was told, my family was told they'd be lucky if I had like one friend and if I worked in fast food and had any of these types of things that don't really fall as what we consider successful. But we've always believed in saying no and challenging the status quo. So I think that being resilient is the most important thing. And I'm going to be 24 years old, I graduated from law school, I graduated college early, I've written 2 books, I've had my art displayed all over the world and stuff. So I'm like, you know what, I think that just being able to fight on and know and believe in yourself is definitely the most important thing. Yeah, just being resilient.
And what is the most valuable piece of information we should know that's within your expertise or industry?
I think in autism world especially, the most important thing is to listen to people like me who are on the spectrum because we are the experts on ourselves. So I look at it as I probably know more about what is hard for me or what is easy for me than a psychologist, a behaviorist, or even my own family because it's still my experience. And I think to listen to the source as you do with any other minority group or marginalized person is you listen to their stories, not others. So I think it's really important to just listen.
And what is your best piece of overall business advice? Not necessarily industry specific.
Is to go with your gut and follow your heart. And sometimes I know that seems kind of contrary, especially because a lot of business in general is very logical, but you're going to know if something feels right or is right. And even with networking and who you meet, I think just knowing in your heart, if it feels good, it probably is, is just trusting yourself.
And if you could give your younger self one piece of advice, what would that be?
Is not to take things too seriously and to actually listen to yourself more and don't worry so much about other people's criticism. So I am still fairly young. So I think about my younger self being in like high school, middle school, etc. And what your peers are doing and saying means so much. And then in the long term, it really doesn't mean anything.
And in your opinion, what is the key to happiness?
Is being able to authentically live your life as who you are and be happy with yourself. So I think that accepting yourself and embracing that kind of positivity will make you happy because happiness is not a destination, rather so much a journey. I think self-acceptance, self-love, and self-care go really far.
Yes. What is the best book that you've read and what was the number one thing you learned from that?
The best books I've read. Okay, this is a hard one because I have my usual top 3 list, but this is probably a cliché answer, but Harry Potter because I love J.K. Rowling and the fact that she kept pushing on even though Harry Potter was rejected so many times before it finally got published. And knowing that someone is capable of that much creativity of inventing this entire world. And Harry Potter also gave me the ability to feel that I can live my truth and be myself because he was the Boy Who Lived. He was different and people judged him for it, but him being different turned out to be really cool.
And what is your favorite quote and why?
My favorite quote is one that I heard almost every day in law school. So for me, it's old. It might not be so old to some of you. 'But it is never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.' So that's said by Margaret Mead. And it basically is that a small— that it doesn't take a huge group to make a change and it could start with one person or even a small group. And that's always how it's been is everything starts with a little spark and then things grow.
Yes, I love it. Thank you so much for coming on. The last question I have for you before we let you go is where's the best place for people to find you online?
You can find me online at haley moss art.com. You can find me at Facebook and my URL is @haley— is Haley Moss Art, but my Facebook page name is Haley Moss. Haley Moss Art on Instagram and on Twitter.
Perfect. Thanks again, Haley. We really appreciate it.
Thank you so much for having me.
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