This might surprise you to know that disabled employees are just as likely to get fed up with their jobs as anyone else. Disability and career choice. This might be caused by changes in their disability or health condition, the work they do has changed so that they find it more difficult because of their disability, or they simply feel that they can do more with their lives than is currently the case.
“But shouldn’t they know when they are well off?”
Who is saying they are well off – not them. It is still very common in the UK today for disabled people to be told they have choice, but this does not mean they actually have the power to do as they wish.
In the late 1980s I was sat in-front of my BPRO (Blind Persons Resettlement Officer) in Newton Abbot Jobcentre and was told I was going to RNIB Manor House. In my head I said “no way” in reality I had no choice so off I went. After a few weeks I though well I have done what you insisted and now back to getting permanent work as a machine setter. It is 3:00 on that Friday in 1989 I am set on my bed in Manor House. Terry enters my room. He sits down and proceeds to paint a dark picture of what my life will be like if I leave, including depression, drink and the thing that really grated, “you’ll let everyone down”. I had never knowingly been subjected to reverse psychology, but have used this approach many times over the years. To cut a long story short, I am now in July 1990 and it is my first day as RNIB Manor Houses its new Receptionist. It could be worse at least its not an office. And do you know what I did next? I asked Iris if I could put some posters up to brighten the room up. The next day, there it was a lovely great big poster of a Kawasaki GPZ 13000. “No” said Iris. Step forward to July 1995 and I hand in my letter of resignation. Off to University for me. Nobody in my family has gone, so I though I had better see what it was all about.
This was the first career choice change I made.
The truth is that I knew I could not stay there. I had to make something better for myself. I had tried from the inside, now I had to make my own fortune from the outside. It was full of the unknown, but isn’t familiarity the first form of contempt?
This was also a time of strength to say “no to my family”.
Think on there is much more where this came from regarding disability and career choice.
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Kind regards
Chris
Award Winning Coaching 2015