Finding a job at any time can be difficult, especially in the post Covid world, but imagine if you had a disability as well? Most people don’t know what that’s like.

For some, they had careers and for various reasons, ended up with a disability. They thought their life was over. The prospect of working seemed like a faraway memory.

And yet, life does go on, and it can be rewarding. There are opportunities out there. It takes a little extra work to find them. Perhaps a lot, but it’s worth trying.

First of all, no matter what your situation, you need to think of your skill set. What abilities do you have? Perhaps you are good at something in particular. Could there be a job related to those abilities?

Go ahead and think of what you can do. Make a list of your abilities. Be realistic. It’s no use saying you want to be an astronaut or a famous actor for example. There are a lot of things that everyone would like to do, and would love to get paid for, but most will never be able to. Some will say we can achieve anything we want. The ones who made it of course. The reality is that few can. You hear about those stories but you never hear about all those who didn’t make it. Most of us have to struggle to progress. We must set reasonable and achievable goals. We don’t want to end up worse than where we started.

From the list you’ve created of your skills, think of the jobs that might be matched to your skills. Perhaps you have three of the requirements for a particular job, such as sales or accounting or house painting, but there might be other skills that are missing.

Is there a course you could do that could give you this experience?

Look through the job ads. See how many jobs are actually available in your field. Is there any? Is there only a few? It can be quite daunting and even depressing when applying for jobs, only to find two hundred people have applied for the same job. Whether you have a disability or not, this process can really get you down in the dumps and make you want to quit. You can reach for the stars, but it all begins with that first small step. In other words, think big, but start small. Make that plan. Write those lists. Do your research.

Can you do the job from home? There are so many jobs today that can be done through a laptop and a phone. It’s really quite amazing. One good aspect resulting from Covid is that employers are now much more willing to allow people to work from home. This has opened up the workforce to the disability sector like never before.

You may already know about Job Support, a service for people with intellectual disability. There is a wealth of information there. https://jobsupport.org.au/

Even volunteering can make you feel useful and contributing to the community. It can be wonderful for your self-esteem. And you never know where it can lead.

If you’d like to talk to us, we might be able to help out. And of course, we have great support staff who can help you too. https://phmhealth.com.au/contact/

It all begins with that first small move.

By Anthony J. Langford