National Disability Employment Awareness Month

The Power of Positivity

Ever since he was a young boy, our son has been enthralled with music, baseball, and animation. As an adult, he pursues these passions by singing in a choir and cheering on his beloved Yankees. Recently, he even figured out how to incorporate his love of animation into his current job with a local public TV station. There's a lot to learn from his experiences, which I'm delighted to share in this post.

Andrew has long loved PBS programming and is a big fan of his workplace -- both the mission and the people. Although his main job is data entry, he shared his love of animation with folks soon after his first day of work.  When they learned about his special interest, co-workers invited him to help create an animated video series about living with disabilities. "The Positive Place" has Andrew's imprint all over it and continues to be well-received by viewers of all ages. This week, in fact, Andrew was invited to share this work with a group of elementary school students with disabilities in New York. Spreading his positive message about pursuing your passions is very important to our son, and also very motivating for others.

So how did he get here -- to an interesting job that he loves where people are so supportive and encouraging? Well, Andrew took the long road for sure.

His first work experience was delivering our local newspaper, driving house-to-house in his powerchair, talking with customers and neighbors. He also enjoyed volunteer stints at two local preschools, a public library, and our local school district's bus company dispatch office. And he received extensive job coaching to help him adapt to and accomplish his job responsibilities. As a teenager, he developed his communication and executive function skills selling skincare products and dog treats.  Every experience taught him something different about himself and about working, but nothing captured his heart and mind like his current job does.  I think I know why.

Like may people with developmental disabilities, Andrew enjoys contributing to a team, feeling valued, and being challenged but not overwhelmed by his work. His current employer understands this.  His colleagues have gotten to know Andrew and appreciate what he brings to the job environment.  Like all good co-workers, they support him in meaningful ways and help build his confidence and self-esteem. This enables him to self-advocate, accept constructive feedback, and courageously try new things. The positive cycle fuels itself, enhances his job performance, and reinforces his desire to work hard for his employer.

"The Positive Place" was born from Andrew's thoughts and ideas and developed in collaboration with true experts in the field of animation and digital content creation.  It was awarded a New England Regional Emmy Award for graphic arts and continues to inform and inspire everyone who sees it. 

Here's the second episode, which began airing this Fall:

We could not be more proud of our son and his colleagues at CPTV for how they embrace employment opportunities and possibilities.  Staying open to learning and new ideas enables everyone to contribute their talents and work towards their employment dreams.

Building Healthy Relationships at Work

I recently learned about this new training curriculum for parents, employers, schools, and service agencies to help individuals with I/DD navigate complex work relationships.  Developed by Elevatus Training in partnership with Project SEARCH, the materials are straight-forward and accessible and teach young people important information to maximize success on the job.  Learn more HERE.