[nabs-l] Stop Blaming the Economy

[Peter Donahue]

Good afternoon everyone,

    Our own experience with recruiting blind individuals in to our ventures 
has proven Joe's point beyond any reason of a doubt. The economy didn't tell 
them to say "No" to a viable opportunity when it was presented to them. They 
said "No" to themselves and the opportunity. We've seen this happen over and 
over again as recently as last week. Such individuals have their reward and 
the privilege of never knowing the good they could have done to achieve the 
financial independence needed to help themselves and their families, and for 
that matter the NFB.

Peter Donahue

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Littlefield, Tyler" <tyler at tysdomain.com>
To: <jsoro620 at gmail.com>; "National Association of Blind Students mailing 
list" <nabs-l at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Sunday, November 17, 2013 11:08 AM
Subject: Re: [nabs-l] Stop Blaming the Economy


Joe:
Through this thread, my point hasn't been to say that blind people are
not capable of working. In fact, if that were my stance I wouldn't be
working through college right now, taking out loans to cover what
scholarships do not. My point is to say that your conservative "I have a
job and so should you--just pull yourself up by the bootstraps" ideal is
very very flawed. You began this thread initially complaining about
people who blame the economy, to which I agreed partially and said that
while there are some people who do, the economy makes it a lot harder to
get jobs. It increases the difficulty for us as blind applicants because
we already have other hurtles in the way--assistive technology,
accomadations, etc etc. Basically I'm saying it's not quite as easy as
you make it sound, while boasting about yourself and skills at the same
time. Most people looking for jobs (even sighted people) will agree
here. You hold a pretty comfortable position within the government,
which I dare say is not really the same as applying to a huge
corporation or even a smaller business with minimal resources.

On 11/15/2013 11:15 PM, Joe wrote:
> Tyler,
>
> The difficulty in finding clients for your web development skills is a
> marketing issue, not a general employment concern. I'm not belittling your
> frustration of finding customers, but hustling for clients is part of the
> nature of an entrepreneur, regardless of whether you set up a full 
> business
> or just sell yourself. Outside of Craigslist, which I would never 
> recommend
> because of their general decline where service advertisement is concerned, 
> I
> would look into Elance and Odesk. You'll need to be careful with clients
> interested in low bids over top talent, but that's going to be true no
> matter what website forum you set up shop. You'll need to advertise across
> social networks, pick up the phone and make cold calls, and yes, in some
> cases you'll need to volunteer at first to prove your worth before someone
> hires you. That's how I picked up Serotek as a client. The crazy thing is
> that even after you secure new business, you still need to devote time to
> marketing for more, because you never know when the safety net will drop 
> out
> from under you.
>
> I see you've set up a website, but it does nothing to motivate me to hire
> you as a developer. That's not a personal slam. It's candid feedback from 
> a
> prospective customer.
>
> Finding business is a full-time job, and I understand if balancing that 
> with
> school is problematic at this stage of your life. But, especially in your
> high demand field, more skill really does mean more job opportunities. 
> Don't
> let the stupid media landscape of grim job statistics discourage you from
> pushing the kind of service you say you're qualified to deliver. It's not
> what the rest of the economy is up to. It's about what Tyler can
> specifically help my company do better.
>
> Remember, blind people were finding and keeping jobs long before we had
> today's technological conveniences. The NFB operation began with a dozen
> blind people working with far less at our disposal, and while some would
> argue the NFB is different because it's a social cause, it's because it 
> was
> a social cause that it took grit and elbow grease to make it get off the
> ground. A nonprofit is a business like any other, and if our past leaders
> had just crossed their arms and said, "Well, crap, I guess that's that," 
> we
> would have never seen the organization we have today.
>
> Before I move onto Bridgit, let me ask you something in all sincerity. 
> I've
> now written half a dozen posts with optimistic encouragement and
> suggestions. You may not like my viewpoint, but I think I've done a fair 
> job
> of backing up my assertions. What's your alternative? All I've read from 
> you
> is that the economy sucks, that jobs are too hard to get and that I'm
> basically delusional for thinking anything different. Never mind that I 
> and
> many others are the evidence that disprove your gloom and doom way of
> thinking. Surely you are not suggesting we are anomalies. So, tell us, 
> what
> would you suggest to the struggling unemployed person who is desperate for 
> a
> job? Are you basically saying to give up and it sucks to be you? If you
> offer no alternative, you're basically advocating for the status quo, and
> you've already said the status quo is no good. So, I am genuinely confused
> by your logic.
>
> Bridgit,
>
> First, let's touch on the point about the number of jobs. It would be 
> great
> if all the jobs we wanted were available where we live. I think we have to
> reach a point where it makes sense to question whether the area we live in
> is open to the kind of qualifications I can bring to the market. For
> example, I would not live in Maine and hope to easily break into screen
> writing, nor would it be as feasible for me to be a rising star on Wall
> Street while living in Oklahoma. Is it possible? Anything's possible, but
> certain regions of the country are better suited for my skills than 
> others.
> Grant writing is one service I offer as part of my side business, and I 
> live
> in the perfect place for it given the highest concentration of nonprofits 
> in
> the country. The persistent evolution of the Internet of things will help
> bridge some of these gaps, but until our generation fully takes over the 
> job
> market, we will still have to fight against outdated views that people 
> need
> to be in a traditional office to get the work done.
>
> Second, to your point about qualifications, it makes sense to think 
> through
> what it is we're studying in school before investing in it. Liberal arts
> aren't going to make people that marketable outside of academic circles, 
> and
> that's coming from a guy who may as well have graduated with a liberal 
> arts
> degree. If the qualifications are severely restricting the kind of jobs I
> can get, something's wrong with what I studied. That's why I'm a big
> proponent of taking a gap year to figure out yourself and what it is 
> you're
> really passionate about before spending thousands of dollars in a very
> expensive education program.
>
> Next, employers are humans just like we are. Their reactions are going to
> run a diverse range, but job hunting is a numbers game. There's nothing we
> can do to eliminate people who take a dim view of blind people, and let's 
> be
> honest. Their views would not change even if the economy was booming. If
> they did not discriminate against me for being blind, they might
> discriminate against me for being Hispanic, male, immigrant, tall, etc. 
> The
> only cold comfort I can offer is keep applying or move to an area with 
> more
> open minds.
>
> Finding a job after spending years as a stay-at-home parent is not easy, 
> nor
> is it fair. A stay-at-home mom knows more about running a company than the
> CEO given her responsibilities of time management, budgeting, planning and
> executing, but you know, the more I think about these qualities, the more
> they could make for a compelling resume. You're a great writer. Something
> tells me you more than others will find creative ways of conveying your
> talents. Not every employer will bite, but the one that does will be an
> awesome match.
>
> And, generally speaking to the list, I guess that's all I have. There is
> such a thing is diminishing returns for people who refuse to listen to
> something other than the tired arguments that it's the fault of the 
> economy
> or my disability or the next-door neighbor. I am accused of being too
> idealistic, but when real unemployment strikes, it's very easy to begin
> questioning your self-worth. When I'm down in the dumps and wondering if I
> stumbled down the wrong path in life, I would personally rather here of 
> how
> I might just make my passion work instead of constant reminders that we 
> have
> it so bad for being blind and for having to compete against so many
> applicants.
>
> To each his own. Me, there's a company I've been eager to work for these
> past few years. I believe next year I'll make a resolution to get off my 
> ass
> and earn at least a part-time  contract there. Statistics be damned. 
> They'd
> be lucky to have me working for them. Arrogant? Absolutely, but it's one 
> of
> many possible ways to separating the great from the good. The key is
> figuring out the approach that makes you better.
>
> To your success,
>
> Joe
>
>
>
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-- 
Take care,
Ty
http://tds-solutions.net
He that will not reason is a bigot; he that cannot reason is a fool; he that 
dares not reason is a slave.


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