Category: Jobs and Employment
Hey All,
Sometimes I think I am the only person here holding down a full time job, family, and more. I was curious to see who works and what do you do? I work in Northern VA as a customer care rep dealing with government and military employees.
Nope, you're not the only one. many people on this site have full time jobs. I am a Massage Therapist at a upscale full service day spa. Beside massage, I do body scrubs and mud treatments. I make really good money and work on commission, for every massage I receive $42 and body treatments I receive $55. I have at least 20 to 25 clients a week, so do the math. There is no way I would want to sit home collecting a lousy disability check for $750 a month.
I work for a pizza place, taking orders, doing follow-up... I actually love it... a lot more than I thought I would. The money's not great, but I find I can make someone's day a little better :)
This may or may not count, but I'm a freelance transcriptionist. The money's not the greatest, and I still have to rely on SSI, but it definitely helps. I'm on the prowl for better, full-time jobs though.
My husband thinks that I can do "better' than a pizza place... but right now I am just thrilled to be working... and I can cut back my hours while I train with my guide dog locally... I can't name many other companies that would be ok with that... esp with a new employee.
I have contemplated putting my skillset on LinkedIn... that way if there are position that match my skills I can apply - keeping my toes in the water so to speak, but minus the stress of an intensive job hunt.
Kate
I echo what Gracesong said, as I, too, am reliant on SSI, and the little bit of money that I get from my part time transcribing job.
also, to the person who said living off a $750 monthly SSI check sucks, that's being quite generous. I get a lot less than that, at the moment. lol.
I work full time for the UK Civil Service, I'm based in London.
I worked as a proofreader at National Braille Press in Boston for three and a half years. I had to quit about a year and a half ago due to unrelenting, chronic migraine.
No, you aren't alone. Smile. I've done it all. Done have the family to hold down anymore, but the rest.
Post 4 and 6 yeah self employment is to be commended no matter what it is. Wish I were in business for myself again as you never feel so alive as when you are doing that.
For now I'm in the software business working as one of many developer peons fixing the endless list of bugs and addressing the endless list of customer complaints. Daughter has recently moved out.
Far from the fantasy many will claim about people on here I think probably most work. And those who are searching work really hard too: my wife was in business for herself for a few years after doing back to school a second time, and then had to spend a ton of time searching for work when writing didn't pan out. Silly kidlets making up tall tales about people doing nothing.
While everyone has my respect for whatever work it is you're doing, those who are freelancers / small business people have my utmost respect. And I know secondhand that writing is a really difficult business to make so much as a dime at. It's no easy road.
As someone who is working on a professional writing degree...don't I know what a hard road it is and will be. Rewarding, though.
And I agree, Leo: more of us are actually either working or looking very hard for work than one might imagine. And let's not forget the many many perfectly qualified sighted people who are struggling just as desperately as we are to find a job. It's not easy for anyone right now.
exactly. it isn't just a blindness/disabled hardship.
Ughgh, I have a friend on Twitter who truly believes the reason why the unemployment rate among the blind is so high is because many of us are not trying to look for work. Wanna know the ironic part? She's blind, has a Masters in HR, and she's a transcriptionist too. Yet, she can't even find a job.
I wish she'd stop being so condescending every time we had those discussions and realize it's difficult for everyone. As blind people, we can't necessarily go to the nearest local Starbucks and apply for a job as a waiter/waitress or a barista. I mean, the employers can choose to give you a chance, and you should try applying for those jobs, but it's much less likely.
Sounds like she is young, idealistic and ignorant. Time to grow up. On the other hand, you are making a lot of sense. No surprise since you're in business for yourself.
i'm a contractor. That means, i run my own contract, and owns my own. I suppose, in a way, you can consider as own business. More towards providing service to other company for them to provide the service to their clients rather than direct service provider. I also do alot of other casual jobs, and also running my own business as social network manager for businesses. Sometime, i work as full time, others, i work as it needed. Flaxible, but no steddy income.
Thanks for all the responses. To the poster who works at the pizza place, some people love jobs like that. Don't worry about that and you have plenty of time to do something else. To the people in school, awesomeness and I really think it goes a long way now days to have a degree.
Jldiaz, as far as the degree going a long way, that is unfortunately becoming more and more subjective as time goes on. Unless you're going into a very specialized field where there is high demand, it's almost better to get your associates, look for a job, and ponder what you truly want to do. Don't kid yourself. Unless you've got the money, a college degree may not be the best path. You may find yourself with the piece of paper in hand and several thousand dollars n debt to show for it. Besides, in many fields, a Masters is now the new BA.
Oh, and LG, she's hardly young and immature. She's in her late thirties, early forties.
I'm working full time as the Executive Director of Sun Sounds of Arizona, a radio reading and information service serving Arizona and elsewhere. I have a very good salary and benefits and consider myself very lucky. I raise a family, and have been fortunate to work full time in broadcasting for 37 years now. Personally, I think those who believe that a degree doesn't help if you are blind are kidding themselves. Many areas open to sighted people who do not have a degree are not open to us. Even sighted people without degrees, or a trade are finding it increasingly difficult to make ends meet. Still, at least do what you can, and don't quit. It is true that a degree doesn't guarantee anything. However, a degree in anything ups the chance of employment if you also have a disability. I'm not saying that is fair as a degree doesn't really prove much, but it is the way it is.
Those radio reading services provide a whole ton of information and resources to a whole boatload of people who aren't able to access the Internet, or are otherwise unable to get access to information the rest of us can. I am sorry to see them get ridiculed by some of us privileded types who have had access to the Internet or know how to use technology.
So, my hat's off to you, Pasco.
Sorry for the typo in the prior post: I meant privileged types.
Thank you. It is true that many people, particularly those who are older, and more newly blinded do not have some of the resources for information access those on this board probably have. One misconception though. Now that many reading services like mine have gone on-line, providing both live streams as well as on-demand downloads and podcasts, quite a few web savvy people still listen also. Many people prefer the human reader to synthetic speech, particularly for pleasure reading. Some reading services are good, and some not so hot, just like in anything. But nowadays, you have the choice on line of a couple of dozen to choose from.
to clarify my previous point, I didn't say a degree wouldn't increase one's chances for employment. I simply stated one needs to be cautious of what one gets their degree in. If you wish to work in Human Resources and get an HR degree, go for it. On the other hand, if you are not sure what to study and are getting a degree just for the sake of getting one, then university might not be the best path right now. Also, highly technical fields and professional degrees, i.e. doctors, dentists, and lawyers, need college to succeed.
If you have a solid vision of what you wish to accomplish with your degree, by all means, pursue that. However, if you're majoring in English just so you'll have a diploma to hang up on the wall, you might wish to consider a more hands-on path for the time being, i.e. vocational school.
Amen to the last post. There is immense pressure--both from parents and from secondary schools--to put kids in college right after they graduate; in a lot of cases students are misled into believing that a degree, any degree, will get them a job. If you're getting a BA in English, for instance, you may really enjoy your studies, but if you're focused on employment you're far better served by getting a job and putting some experience and references on your resume.
right on, to the last two posts. I couldn't agree more.
Honestly, I wish I would have done that. It was never, if I went to college, but rather, when I graduated from college. Therefore, I went to college and got a degree in something that I really could have cared less about because I knew it was a field in which I could get a job. After working in that field, I discovered that I absolutely hate rehabilitation and social work. At 2 or three different times in college, I considered dropping out. My VR counselors basically told me I'd never be able to do anything if I didn't get a degree. I wanted to go to court reporting school or just work. They basically told me that if I didn't want to spend the rest of my life rolling silverware, then I needed to stay in school.
While I didn't really enjoy school, I did enjoy the college experience. Having said that though, I'm strongly considering going to some sort of vocational school or something now because I would like to work again at some point. My biggest challenge is figuring out what to do because for every idea I have, our division for blind services has 10 reasons why it won't work. We won't qualify for financial aid of any sourt so before I throw a craptastic amount of money at something, I need to know that it'll be an accessible vocation. DBS has said that they either don't know, or haven't had success with accessibility in the fields about which I've inquired. It's really quite frustrating and discouraging. They can't even point me in the direction of other people with my degree of visual impairment who are working in any field other than rehab or computers.
Don't let them limit you, DG. Yes, some jobs are really difficult for us to do, and a few others are downright impractical. But I can't count the number of times other blind folks I know have been told they'd never be a teacher, or a rehab worker, and a handful of other things. You don't want to jump into something without doing your research, but try and get feedback from as many diverse sources as you can before you decide you can't do a thing; try especially hard to touch base with other blind people doing the same thing you are thinking of doing. They'll likely be honest with you and you'll know what to expect.
That's been the challenge so far, finding other blind folks doing the things I have thought of doing.
Almost everyone I know is either working in the field of rehabilitation, computers, social work, etc. What really sucks is that I'd like to work part time but that seems even less likely. I'll find something when the time is right, apparently. I just don't even know where to start.
DG, I know it may not be a great start, but have you considered doing transcription? I'll be the first to say it's not great pay at all, seeing as you only get paid per the audio hour you transcribe, but it's something.
As for you guys's posts, I'm encouraged by the fact I'm not insane for feeling the way I do about college. It's very easy to tell someone college is a must when you don't have several grand in debt behind you and no financial support from anyone in your family. Just to make it clear, that statement wasn't meant for anyone in particular; it's merely a general observation. Sighted people are having a hard enough time even with their college degrees, especially with their debt. Students are defaulting at an alarming rate.
Just so you don't think I'm making this stuff up, here's a link with detailed information from the US Bureau of Labor detailing the jobs with the highest projected growth. All but a few of them require technical degrees.
http://www.bls.gov/emp/ep_table_104.htm
Oh, and sorry for the double post. As a side note, I wish there was a way to edit your posts. Anyway, I agree with Meglet. Now, skills and experience are key. Four years in college won't give you the experience you need for a full-time job. My significant other experienced this phenomenon firsthand. People wouldn't hire him because he had no experience, even if he had the requisite skills. Also, one way of looking at a degree to the employer is it only shows you can attend lectures, write papers, and theorize the hell out of a problem, not solve it. That means you won't do jack for their bottom line.
To the poster who has all the ideas of what you'd like to do, how about listing them, and maybe one of us could help. I agree that blind people are far too often pushed into certain fields. I had to fight the state to do what I wanted. They said it wouldn't work. They wanted me to be a medical transcriptionist. No thanks. It took lots of resolve, but I got the degree in what I wanted, and have had a successful career. And it wasn't in computers or rehab or social work wither. In my case though, I think college was essential. I can't speak for anyone else, but it helped me.
That's a great idea. Maybe some of us could connect you to others we know who are in similar fields.
There's that, and I believe the AFB has something called Career Connect, which will connect you with blind people in the field you wish to enter. How responsive people are may depend on the person, but you should give that a try.
Will do. I'm about to leave for an appointment but I'll gather my list and let post.
In my experience, most blind people I've ever known were more than happy to assist someone else, especially in work-related situations.
To the OP, I am a Case Manager. I have a B.A. in Sociology. I would agree with the posters who have pointed out the need for a more structured use of a degree. I was lucky in that I was able to get good work experience that utilized skills that would compliment my degree. I actually liked Social work and the Human Services field. So for me, it worked. I realize it might not be everyone's cup of tea.
I've actually been browsing the boards on here and found a post someone started about a home based business selling gourmet food mixes, which I was a little skeptical about at first, sense I'd been involved in one similar to that before, who I still buy from, but don't try to get people to join anymore for various reasons, because it's a pain in the knock to convince them to do so.
So after doing some research on thegourmetcupboard, finding their customer service to be really friendly and helpful, and on top of that, finding out you had the option to sign up or simply buy their products, unlike with melaleuca, who I worked for before, I was sold, especially sense there wasn't a startup cost.
It hasn't been easy getting things up and running, which I'm still having trouble with, but I've just been trying to keep an open mind about it, considering the fact that I've had 1 buyer, and several who've been interested/spreading the word, which sounds promising.