Introduction
I’ve been autistic for 35 years—my entire life. For most of those years, I struggled with organisation, routines, and the overwhelming sensory chaos of everyday planning tools. Bright colours, cluttered layouts, flimsy materials that felt wrong in my hands. Nothing worked the way my brain needed it to.
So I built something that did. This is the story of how lived experience became a business, and why designing for autistic minds means designing differently.
The Problem with “Normal” Planners
Walk into any stationery shop, and you’ll find hundreds of planners. Complex layouts with multiple sections fighting for attention. For neurotypical people, these might be inspiring. For many autistic minds, they’re exhausting.
Here’s what I learned the hard way:
Sensory overload is real. Glossy paper that reflects light. Bright colours that demand attention. Thin, flimsy materials that feel insubstantial. These aren’t just preferences—they’re barriers. When a planner feels wrong in your hands or hurts your eyes to look at, you won’t use it. I didn’t.
Visual clutter kills focus. Many planners cram every page with decorative elements, multiple fonts, and competing information. For someone managing executive dysfunction, this creates decision paralysis before you’ve even started planning your day.
One size fits nobody. Neurotypical planners assume everyone thinks, plans, and processes information the same way. They don’t account for time blindness, routine rigidity, or the need for predictable structure.
Building a Business Through Autistic Burnout
Starting ROARGANISE wasn’t a smooth journey. I was navigating my own autistic burnout whilst trying to design products, manage suppliers, and learn e-commerce. There were days when answering a single email felt impossible, let alone running a business.
But burnout taught me something crucial: if I was going to create planning tools, they needed to reduce overwhelm, not add to it.
Every design decision came from lived experience:
- Black and white colour schemes because my eyes needed rest, not stimulation
- Soft-touch, waterproof vegan leather because texture matters when you’re holding something every day
- Thicker paper (170gsm)Â because flimsy inserts felt temporary and unreliable
- Clean, simple layouts because my brain needed clarity, not decoration
- Customisable inserts because rigid systems don’t work for flexible autistic routines
I wasn’t designing for a market. I was designing for me—and for everyone like me who’d been failed by “normal” planners.
Why Sensory Considerations Matter
Sensory needs aren’t luxuries. They’re fundamental to whether a tool gets used or abandoned in a drawer.
When I chose waterproof materials, it wasn’t just about durability. It was about the tactile comfort of smooth, consistent texture. When I selected FSC-certified 170gsm paper, it was because the weight and feel communicated reliability.
Every sensory detail either supports or sabotages executive function. If a planner feels wrong, your brain spends energy managing discomfort instead of managing tasks. That’s not a personal failing—that’s a design failing.
What I’ve Learned About Serving Our Community
Three years into this journey, here’s what I wish I’d known sooner:
1. Autistic people know what they need. The most requested features—dated monthly calendars, food trackers, weight loss planners—came directly from customers. Listening to the community is the only way to truly serve it.
2. “Professional-looking” matters. Many customers use these organisers at work or in medical appointments. They needed something that looked polished and serious, not childish or overly decorative. Autism doesn’t look one way, and our tools shouldn’t either.
3. Planning tools can support diagnosis. I didn’t expect this, but many customers use the organisers to track symptoms, routines, and challenges to share with doctors during ADHD or autism assessments. Clear, structured documentation helps medical professionals see patterns quickly.
4. Sustainability aligns with autistic values. Many autistic people care deeply about environmental impact. Using FSC-certified paper and vegan materials wasn’t just ethical—it resonated with the community’s values.
Final Thoughts
Building ROARGANISE has been the hardest and most meaningful thing I’ve ever done. Every organiser I check before dispatch, every customer email I answer, every design decision I make—it all comes back to that autistic teenager who couldn’t find a planner that worked for her brain.
If you’re autistic and struggling with organisation, know this: it’s not you. It’s the tools. You don’t need to force yourself into systems designed for different brains. You need systems designed for yours.
And if you’re thinking about creating something for the autistic community, start with lived experience. Listen to autistic voices. Design for real needs, not assumptions.
Because when we design for autistic minds, we create tools that actually work.
About the Author: Lisa is an autistic entrepreneur and founder of ROARGANISE, a UK-based business creating sensory-friendly planning systems for neurodivergent individuals. With 35 years of lived autistic experience, she designs products that address executive dysfunction, sensory needs, and the unique challenges of neurodivergent organisation.
