[nabs-l] Stop Blaming the Economy

[minh ha]

Are you kidding me? The economy is in the dumps right now and no
matter how well qualified you are, there just aren't enough jobs to go
around for everyone. I volunteer at a nonprofit that helps low-income
people look for employment, housing and benefits, etc, and I work with
people that have bachelors degrees and Ph.D.'s and they are hanging on
by a thread or actually homeless. If perfectly able bodied people
can't gain employment, then it's definitely a hundred times harder for
us to get a job because of our blindness. When the market is inundated
with qualified people looking for a position, who do you think
employers are going to look at first, the person with all the
qualifications that don't need accommodations or the person with the
same qualifications but need extra resources in order to work on a
level as everyone else. This is not an excuse for blind people to be
lazy and just sit at home and blame it on the economy, but it is a
reason why so many of us are unemployed.

Minh
On 11/14/13, Joe <jsoro620 at gmail.com> wrote:
> Yes, the economy could be better, but I have to say it irritates me to hear
> people blame the economy for being unemployed. There are lots of jobs out
> there. The shortage has more to do with unqualified applicants. Brush up
> your skills. Don't be picky about the job you can grab. Prepare a
> compelling
> resume. Be honest at the interview about what you can and cannot do. Think
> outside the box, because if the training centers are as phenomenal as
> people
> say, we ought to see more blind people working the fast food circuit. I'm
> not saying you should settle for minimum wage for the rest of your life.
> I'm
> not saying you're going to get hired tomorrow if you pound the pavement
> according to the suggestions above. I'm not even saying that everything you
> find will be easily accessible, but I am saying you need to stop blaming
> life for not getting a fair shake in the job market. I met a guy once who
> was really ashamed to admit he was working at a Lighthouse, and it pissed
> me
> off to no end because to me what mattered is that he had a job. Eventually
> you work your way to the job you really want, work up the corporate ladder,
> and you know, you work your ass off to get there just like everyone else,
> blind or sighted. Figure out your weaknesses and make it your full-time job
> to strengthen them, whether it's screen reader proficiency, Excel, Word,
> whatever. But, for crying out loud, stop blaming the damn economy, because
> if you wait for a perfect economic state, you'll still be looking for a job
> when you kick the bucket.
>
> Joe
>
>
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-- 
"All men dream, but not equally. Those who dream by night in the dusty
recesses of their minds, wake in the day to find that it was vanity:
but the dreamers of the day are dangerous men, for they may act on
their dreams with open eyes, to make them possible." T. E. Lawrence