[Blindtlk] web business was Professions on list?

[Julie J.]

Diane,

Sure, I would love to talk about my web based business and book.

The book is about training my own guide dog.  I've been working on it 
from pretty much when it actually happened.  Monty is my third owner 
trained guide and I finally felt like I had enough idea of what I was 
doing that I could write about it.  The book is in the style of a memoir 
or personal narrative.  I am self publishing it as an ebook in various 
formats.  I'm also looking into making it into an audio book, but that 
is a bit further down the road.

The web business...let me start by backing up a bit.  Several years ago 
I had my own business making guide dog equipment.  My web site also had 
lots of information about general blindness topics.  I went with a 
company called Site Build It.  They have everything you could ever 
possibly need to build an entire web business, not just a web site.  It 
was JAWS accessible.  There were a few minor details that I needed a 
sighted person to help with, like picking out pictures and the visual 
aspects of the template.

I sold both the web site and the equipment business a few years ago.  I 
got tired of it and was ready to move on to other things.  I had always 
been pleased with Site Build It and their product.

So fast forward to the very beginning of this year.  I had been thinking 
about starting another business and finally decided to take the plunge 
this January.  Having had such a positive experience with Site Build It 
in the past, I decided to go with them again.  I signed up and got started.

A bit of explanation about Site Build It, This is absolutely not just a 
web site builder.  This is an extremely extensive business building 
suite of products.  You get everything you need included, no extra 
hidden costs.  It is split into 10 days or units of info.  You work your 
way through day by day, although each "day" will take you longer than a 
calendar day.  Only after day 5 do you register a domain name and start 
building your site.  Up to that point is a lot of research on profitable 
topics, planning site structure, exploring monitization options and 
thinking about how you plan to spin your particular idea.

Okay so I figured out what I wanted to do, did my research and planned 
out the details.  I registered my domain name and then went to the site 
builder to get things rolling on the actual building of my web site.  I 
was devastated when I found out that since my previous experience they 
had completely revamped their software.  The whole web builder was mouse 
driven, drag and drop.

You have 90 days from your initial purchase to request a refund.  I was 
so mad I almost did go for the refund, accompanied by a nasty letter 
about the utter lack of accessibility of their product.  Instead I went 
for a long walk.  I calmed down and collected my thoughts.  The next 
day, I contacted customer support, explained my situation and asked if 
they could set me up with the previous version that had worked with JAWS.

I honestly wasn't expecting much.  I figured they'd dilly dally, make 
some excuses, give some flowery apologies and then refund my money so 
I'd go away.  It took them about a week to assess whether this was 
something they could do or not.  then I got an email telling me that it 
would take a considerable amount of time for them to do the necessary 
programming and did I want to wait?  I replied that I did want to go 
ahead and that I was fine with waiting.  It took a month, but they fixed 
it so that I have the older version that works with JAWS.  They have 
promised that it will be available forever and that anyone who wants to 
use the older version will be able to.

I am pleased beyond words!  This is a whole new level of customer 
service that I am not used to.  They went the extra mile to make it 
right.  They never made excuses or tried to get out of the extra work it 
would be.

I have been working with it to build my site for only the past few 
days.  I don't have much up yet.  If you'd like to take a look the 
address is:
http://www.dogapprovedtoys.com
It's a start.  It will take a good part of a year for it to be fully up 
and running and making money, but I'm content to put in the work 
necessary to build a business.

If you'd like to find out more about Site Build It or purchase your own 
the link is:
http://www.sitesell.com/Julie92.html

That is an affiliate link and I do make money if you sign up.  I want to 
be clear though that I signed up as a customer first, then and only then 
because I love their product and customer service so much, did I sign up 
as an affiliate.

If anyone has questions, please email me at
julielj at neb.rr.com
I'm happy to answer any questions or help you get started.

All my best!
Julie



On 3/24/2013 8:18 PM, Diane Graves wrote:
> Julie,
>
> Thanks so much for sharing your story. I'd be interested in hearing about
> your web based business. Can you talk some about that? What type of book are
> you writing?
>
> Diane Graves
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: blindtlk [mailto:blindtlk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Julie J.
> Sent: Sunday, March 24, 2013 11:25 AM
> To: Blind Talk Mailing List
> Subject: Re: [Blindtlk] Professions on list?
>
> Peter,
>
> I'm not Cheryl, but I also became blind as an adult.  Perhaps you, or
> someone else on list, will find something helpful in my story.
>
> > From a young age, I wanted to work with animals.  I started training dogs in
> high school.  I was good at it and enjoyed it a lot.  I decided to go to
> college to become a veterinary technician, a sort of veterinary nurse.  At
> this time in my life my vision was about 20/100 after correction.  I was
> never taught a single alternative skill.  I didn't even know about CCTV's or
> large print.  This was before computers were mainstream.
>
> I didn't do so well in college.  Partly that was because I lost a major
> portion of my vision during this time in my life and had zero alternative
> skills.  But to be perfectly honest it was also because I wasn't ready for
> college or at least not the classroom part!  I was 17 when I started
> college.   I had lived a fairly sheltered life.  My parents didn't go out of
>
> their way to limit the things I did because of my visual impairment.
> However I lived in a place where it wasn't safe to go out at night alone.  I
> also feared doing many things because I didn't know how.  I could have taken
> the bus to go shopping or to a movie, but I didn't because I was afraid.  I
> isolated myself.
>
> I gave up on veterinary technology.  Sometimes I regret this, but mostly I
> am grateful for the opportunities and experiences I have had.  If I had not
> lost most of the rest of my vision and made the choices I have, I would not
> be where I am now.  I love my life.  If I could go back and change anything,
> I don't think I would.  I needed to make the bad decisions I did so I could
> learn and grow.
>
> I'll fast forward a few years.  I met a lot of people in college, made many
> friends, one of them being my first husband.  I had figured out that there
> were services for blind people, by accident.  I was starting to see
> possibilities.
>
> We moved around a lot, eventually settling in one place long enough for me
> to finish my associates degree in sociology.   Still no mainstream
> computers, but I had a borrowed CCTV and was using large print, readers,
> talking books and RFB&D for textbooks.   My rehab counselor was my gateway
> to all things blindness related.  I didn't know a single blind person.
>
> Then I became pregnant and my perspective on the skills I would need changed
> dramatically.  Now it was no longer about getting by or making do.  I needed
> to get myself together because now I was responsible for someone else.  I
> learned Braille and cane travel right away.  My rehab counselor and teacher
> brought me the basic tools like a slate and stylus, Braille paper and a
> cane.  they gave me brief lessons in how to use these tools.  But when they
> left I practiced like a mad woman.  I was only given the first ten letters
> of the alphabet in my first lesson, but by the time my teacher came back I
> had filled up every sheet of paper she had left with every word I could
> think of with those ten letters.  I took my cane when I went places.  I
> wasn't very good with it, but I was learning.
>
> I attended a few workshops the state agency for the blind put on.  these
> weren't skill based, but more like college and employment workshops.  I met
> other blind people.  I soaked up everything like a sponge.  I eavesdropped
> on other people's conversations, hoping to pick up tidbits that could help
> me.  My world view of what I could do was changing rapidly.  Before I met
> other blind people and started learning alternative skills, I thought I
> would work in jobs like housekeeper or dishwasher.  After I met blind people
> who were lawyers, genetic counselors, diesel mechanics, agency directors and
> mothers I had hope for myself.
>
> I finished my last two years of college, graduating with a B.S. degree in
> sociology.  I had no job prospects.  My husband wanted to finish his degree
> in the same town where the state residential training center for the blind
> was located.  So he went to college and I went to get my blindness training.
>
> I am so grateful to the progressive attitude of the Nebraska center for the
> blind.  they understood that my situation was unique and respected my
> choices.  I lived in an apartment with my husband and Kiddo, while I went
> through center training, instead of their typical apartments for the
> students.
>
> The program is typically 6 to 9 months. I wasn't willing to give up that
> much time out of my life if I could at all help it.  From the first day I
> was at the center I told the staff that I intended to finish in three
> months.  I asked what I needed to do to make that happen.  No delaying, no
> messing, no taking it easy, I asked them to lay it all out, give me
> homework...whatever it took, I meant to be done in three months.  I read
> Braille on my lunch breaks, I practiced cane travel on weekends and evenings
> on my own.  I pushed myself hard.  I finished in three and a half months.
>
> As a result of my center training, I met people who helped me with
> connecting to a temporary job with the Department of Labor.  I started
> working as a Statistical Clerk directly after center training.  It was a
> good job.  It had many of the things I love, surveys, statistics,
> understanding groups of people and a nice paycheck.  However it also showed
> me that I needed some things I hadn't previously realized.  I needed to work
> more directly with people.  I was stuck in a cubical all day and I hated it.
>
> In the next years I worked at the same training center I had attended as a
> student.  I went back to school, working toward a Masters degree in mental
> health counseling, but gave it up because I became too emotionally invested,
> causing myself way too much stress.  I got divorced and became a single Mom.
>
> I moved into the first place where I was truly on my own, no husband or
> roommates.
>
> Fast forward a bit more, I moved into a very small town, got remarried,
> started my own business, sold the business and now work for county
> government.  I honestly have had very little idea how I was going to manage
> all the details of each of these life events before I jumped in.  I had
> basic skills I felt I could apply.  I had good connections with other blind
> people, who could connect me with yet other blind people who had the skills
> and techniques and were doing what I wanted to do.  The most valuable skills
> a blind person can possess are a willingness to explore, the ability to
> problem solve and the ability to advocate for oneself.  Some good basic
> training in alternative skills and a network of people who will support you
> are also important.
>
> To answer your specific questions...
> *How did you know the right skills or technologies to master in order to
> know which fields to go into being blind? *
>
> My answer, I didn't.
> I learned basic skills, like Braille, cane travel, JAWS and household
> skills.  I practiced applying those basic skills in every situation I could.
>
> I could use my cane to get to the grocery, the bank or the playground at the
> park.  The same basic techniques of two point touch, using landmarks,
> listening to the environment etc., but each situation was a bit different.
> I learned to problem solve on the fly.
>
> *How did you overcome or continue to
> overcome against the odds with the changing nature of technology, the
> economy and other adverse situations? *
>
> My answer.  I'll try to give some examples that hopefully will help
> illustrate how I have managed.
> My current job as the Diversion Coordinator is grant funded.  this means it
> is unattractive to many people because funding is not guaranteed from one
> year to the next.  I wanted a job and was willing to deal with this
> uncertainty.  Although funding isn't certain, I do feel like I have a decent
> amount of job security.  After all crime isn't going away anytime soon.
> Each year I fill out the paperwork to get the grant money.  I attend the
> training workshops on grant writing so I can get better.  I have applied for
> and gotten other grants to supplement or increase programs.  I started an
> adult diversion program that is fee based.  Last year our grant was cut.  I
> lost about one quarter of my salary in that budget cut.  However because I
> had started the fee based program my salary was able to stay the same.
>
> There are a lot of bills being introduced in the legislature this year that
> could potentially dramatically change diversion programming and juvenile
> justice in Nebraska.  I have absolutely no idea if I will have a job next
> year, how different it will be or where funding will be coming from.  It
> causes me some stress, but I feel like I do a good job and am respected at
> work.  I am hopeful that between my own ingenuity and the support of my
> supervisor we will be able to figure it out.
>
> In case I am wrong I have also started a web based business.  It will take a
> good year for it to be fully functional and making money.  If all goes well
> it will be some supplemental income, if all goes badly, it will be something
> to fall back on.  I believe in diversifying one's financial portfolio.  I
> have also written a book and will be putting that on the market shortly.
> another way to earn a bit and to keep all the eggs out of that one basket.
>
> As far as technology...mostly I figure it out as I go.  Since I've started
> my job the Crime Commission created an online way to document cases and to
> our statistical reporting.  It had issues, so I contacted the folks in
> charge and pressed hard for them to fix it so it would be accessible.  There
> are laws about making stuff accessible for blind people.  It has taken four
> years, but finally everything is working as it should.
>
> I just bought an iPad late last summer.  I have never had any training on
> how to use it.  I know from other blind people that it would be accessible
> out of the box.  The first few days were frustrating because it is so
> different from anything I am used to, but I got the hang of it.  I have
> learned how to use it by trial and error.  When I get stuck I ask the nice
> folks on this list or some of the other blind people I know who use I
> devices.  I now use the iPad daily for my wake up alarm, calendar, email,
> internet, games, dictionary, and other life details.
>
> I guess this huge novel I've written sums up to: I start by figuring out
> what I want to do, then I figure out how to do it.  I figure if I do
> nothing, I will be exactly where I am now in a year.  If I try something, I
> have the chance to better myself.  I might not make the right decision or do
> the right thing, but I will be guaranteed to learn something, even if what I
> learn is what doesn't work.
> All my best,
> Julie
>
>
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