This is interesting post, to write due to the fact that for over 2 years I have been sharing my content on the blog and YouTube to link in. I see that I appear in a lot of professional searches but see that I don’t seem to get people reaching out to me.
I am wondering if it is because of a couple of things that are really out of my control and some that aren’t, the ones that are out of my control are being outspoken about disability issues and the lack of representation and not falling into line. Is it because I am a risk taker and they don’t want to be associated with this risk. Is it because I see the cracks in the NDIS that everyone is telling us is fine?
I do wonder how this has happened but I realize one thing that I have done to myself is that I have outed myself as being disabled and as soon as this happen the connections reaching out started to dry up. I don’t see this as an accident either, I see this as something that we need to be aware of as I am capable of doing the jobs that I have applied for and I do need something to keep me connected into the community, and I do want to earn some of my own money as well. But given my disabilities are progressive I see that an employer doesn’t want someone who could be considered a risk and this is where we need to be very aware of what can go wrong when hiring someone with a disability.
They take less sick days, They are more committed to the role and will stay longer, they understand the gaps and will work towards having more inclusive polices including people with disabilities in the conversation, and creating more options for sales or services to be used and I see that now with the NDIS there is a lot of micro business starting up. I see that people need to be very aware of this and to be able to work we need a change in mindset about what a person who has a disability or a health condition can do.
We need to be much more aware of this and work towards having inclusivity a lot more, so this being hiring people with resume gaps, hiring people from diverse backgrounds, understanding the limits of peoples abilities and working with them to include them in hiring practices, and looking at ways to be inclusive as staff and business. This could be having a quiet hour, and less invasive lighting, having the option to remote work, having the option to hybrid work, having the option for someone to work part time. Are all great options and we see that the reasons that people say that they won’t work got pulled apart during the covid lock downs.
I see that Covid really did affect my mental health but I see that it’s now healed and I have accepted that I will always be an outsider even in the “disability community” due to the fact that I believe that a disability shouldn’t be used as an excuse it can be a reason don’t get me wrong it can be a valid reason but it is a reason. I also see that people need to be around other people and this could be in a group in a house together as we are a social creature at the end of the day. I also see that my body can’t do what it used to so I started the blog and the YouTube but find it quite isolating so I do admit that I over sleep but I am working through this and we need to accept that people sometimes need this extra sleep to heal as I am finding by following a diet designed to heal the neuropathy that I am struggling with is going away. I don’t know if it would be healed completely but it is definitely less of an issue now.
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