[nabs-l] Stop Blaming the Economy

[Joe]

Tyler,

I'm not sure what reality check you're hoping I'll receive. If it's
unemployment you're wishing on me, anything is possible, but even with a
position in the federal government I have kept a part-time business running,
because although government jobs are said to be secure, nothing is
guaranteed. The shutdown didn't bother me because I still had income to fall
back on. If I lose my job tomorrow, I will have six months of savings to
actively seek the next best position. Why? Because I have kept my skills up
to date, because I have kept a fair professional network intact, and because
I understand the ability to create positions for myself through the
consulting capacity that a lot of Americans pursued after the economic
decline several years ago. I say that in hopes people will be angered enough
to try new strategies to find their next job. Remember it's usually the
first one that's the toughest to obtain. If an idiot like me can steadily
increase his income, you can do it better.

It's easy to say there are more people looking for jobs than there are jobs
to fill. Unfortunately that oversimplifies the argument into one of quantity
without fully looking at quality. The people who get chosen are the ones who
make the cut, and that's true no matter the condition of the economy. The
concern should not be the sheer number of people competing for the jobs you
wish you had. It's what you've been doing to separate yourself from those
numbers.

Ashley,

Right on about volunteering. I completed a year of AmeriCorps. During that
year I pushed myself into areas outside of my responsibilities and learned a
valuable skill that played a key role in landing my first real job. Anything
you can do to fill your resume is viewed positively.

Minh,

I don't agree with Tyler's points, but I can see where he's coming from.
Yet, it's exactly your mentality I can't process. This notion that we as
blind people will always be at a disadvantage when compared to people who
need no accommodations drives me crazy, because it assumes no matter what we
do, we will always be viewed as second class citizens when compared to our
sighted peers. An employer is not thinking about the state of the economy
when she is looking to hire someone to fill a role. All she cares about is
finding the right person to do the job she needs completed. We're going to
need accommodations no matter the economy, so either we are competitive, or
we are not. I don't buy the logic that somehow the dim economy makes things
significantly worse for us.

Joe