Back in January 2006, SiM blogger Barney Mayse posted a comment which, I think, catches the direction and spirit of this SiM blog – both of which have been honed by its wide variety of participants.

Barney wrote:

“…Our ability to influence employers comes from our persistence, patience and courage. We are looking for allies, and, if we look long enough, we will find them. They are the ones who will benefit from our talents, skills and abilities. Saddle up folks, it is time to ride.”

16 months is a short ride along the trail that leads to a level recruiting ground for both disabled and non-disabled job seekers, but, during that short time, your thoughts about disability employment issues have reached an audience wider and deeper than I had expected when eSight first developed this initiative in December 2004.

Here are some examples of how your insights are being used by others to create an environment in which you’ll have more opportunity to enter and advance in mainstream workplaces.

First, take a look at the 12 SiM summary articles which capture your most relevant thoughts about key disability issues. Notices about each of them have been e-mailed to more than 3,000 professionals and employers who are interested in disability employment issues.

Second, we have concrete examples of how four prominent organizations have used SiM resources to serve their members, participants and users.

Third, read through the list of more than 20 newsletters, e-mail lists, web sites, directories and blogs which have also shared SiM resources with their users .

Posting to the SiM blog is tapping the most important features of the Web to your advantage. You’re extending your reach and making the most of your impact. I encourage you to continue to do so through this SiM blog and eSight’s other forums as additional thoughts come to your mind about how to resolve various disability employment issues.

We needed your final thoughts before we reformatted the articles for further use among employers.

Liz, for instance, wrote, "…I think the best thing business needs to know when hiring a person with a disability is that it's a person first and last and that disability may make them unique in a way you'd never experience…"

She added, "Employers need to go beyond their expectations, their fears, their prejudices and gain a new perspective."

That idea about a new perspective among employers was echoed by Helen, who recommended, "Train your HR recruiters and your staff well. Awareness is key to the success of both the company and the individuals involved… Train leaders to look for potential rather than focusing on limitations."

Yes, prospective employers and job seekers need to better understand each other. But fostering that understanding is, in part, up to us as job seekers, too. That means, when we are seeking a job, we research companies – and network – so we know where we best fit in terms of our skills, temperament, values and goals.

Knowledge of ourselves and of the companies we target in our job search determines how we hone our resumes, our cover letters and our offering statements.

In today’s job market, job seekers need to show up-front proof of their abilities and potential. Job seekers with a disability, in particular, need to show they have learned how to be problem solvers – and adapters – through living with that disability.

Instead of trusting prospective employers will presume we have the attributes of ability, adaptation, and potential as job candidates with a disability, we need to be proactive in helping employers recognize those strengths in us.

So, let’s change our perspective this week.

For the last 12 months, eSight’s "Swimming in the Mainstream" blog discussions have focused on what employers can do to address disability employment issues – from weeding out paternalism in the workplace to creating a level paying field in recruitment.

This week and next (before we switch to a completely new discussion forum in February), let’s turn the tables and ask about how we can proactively carry out our responsibilities as job seekers with a disability.

As job seekers, how can we best help prospective employers to appreciate our abilities, understand our potential and recognize us as the problem solvers they want to hire?

You’ve just completed a series of 12 "Swimming in the Mainstream" (SiM) blog discussions during calendar 2005 in which you’ve joined an average of more than 600 eSight members each month either through direct comment in writing or in non-written affirmation/disagreement.

The results?

By recounting your personal experiences in response to the various discussion topics during the year, you have collectively painted a collage of yourselves -- a picture not many people who are not involved in disability groups get to see.

The 12 insight articles which summarize your insight about each topic through direct quotes show you are:

· Adult, authentic, mobile and confident;
· Solution and inclusion oriented;
· Emotionally intelligent, technologically savvy and myth resistant.

Through monthly e-mail press releases, eSight has publicized each of these articles widely among 3,000 selected employers, career counselors and other individuals who are interested in disability employment issues. So, your observations have also reached the right people from the perspective of raising awareness about "what it’s really like" to build a career when you have a disability.

You can access each of the press releases at www.tabinc.org's press page.

There is also a link to each insight summary article on eSight’s login page under the heading, "Insights for Employers."

The new insight summary article for December, "Target Job Candidates With Disabilities Who Are Risk Takers," highlights the perceptions of SiM blog participants when they realized they were taking a calculated risk, as an adult, in a career-building situation.

We‘re highlighting that article in eSight’s Employer Resources section this week.

Before we repackage the 12 insight summary articles for further use in raising awareness among employers, career counselors and job seekers about disability employment issues from a real-world perspective, we would like to give you one last chance to add a thought which would help summarize the series.

What piece of advice for employers would you like to add as a cap to this series of "Swimming in the Mainstream" insights?

To illustrate my point, consider this handful of comments I’ve collected from SiM’s "Taking a Career Risk" dialogue:

"…I have decided that the collection of stuff isn’t anywhere near as important as my growth as a human being. I have discovered that risk aversion is another term for fear of the unknown, and, frankly, no one really knows what is around the corner anyway…"
- Laine

"…Countering inappropriate work place practices is not easy. If you are prepared to risk putting out a call for help, then you may find you don't have to do it alone. This has been my personal experience."
- Kate

I wish I had those observations to think about 30 years ago. They may have helped me avoid some hard times in my career.

But, on the other hand, maybe they wouldn’t have been as helpful as I now see them. Perhaps there are no short cuts to becoming a mature individual from a career standpoint. Perhaps there are rites of passage in career relationships, too, just there are in family relationships, marriage relationships etc.

And maybe that’s why work experience early in life can be critical in career development. We need that on-the-job time to experience each development phase, each passage.

As we bid goodbye to 2005, maybe it’s a good time just to benchmark where we have been in our careers –- and, in the process, show those who are following in our footsteps the issues they’ll perhaps encounter themselves through their own unique experiences.

When did you first realize you were functioning as an adult in a career-building situation?

It’s from Cindy. She writes:

"I was a case manager… was placed with (an assistant) who had no computer skills and was going to school full time (which left me with no help to accomplish my job tasks). I resigned my position after five months because I was set up for failure…"

That takes nerve. That’s taking a risk –- something a person with a disability is not always expected to do.

I don’t know if I could do what Cindy did. Sure, I quit a good job after 28 years with the same company to start a new career, but I took two years preparing for it.

See my story, "Beyond Success."

When is it time to ignore advice to "play it safe" and take a risk by changing jobs?

By doing so, you’ve gone beyond the legalities and developed your own definition of "inclusion" in the workplace.

I’ve summarized your ideas and presented them for an employer audience in a new eSight article, "How eSight Members Define Workplace Inclusion."

It’s featured this week in eSight’s Employer Resources section, and we’ll distribute it widely to employers through eSight’s extensive outreach mailing list -– all made possible by a grant from the American Express Foundation.

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity
Commission (EEOC) document is a broad statement of the "access and inclusion" rights people with visual impairments possess under the ADA when it comes to employment.

The EEOC issued the document to help "eliminate unfounded fears and stereotypes which lead to employment discrimination against so many people who are blind or visually impaired."

I think we can give employers an even clearer picture
of what we believe "inclusion" should look like in
today's workplaces.

Here are some of the key points the EEOC document makes about accommodating individuals with visual impairments under the ADA:

"An accommodation is any modification or adjustment to a job or work environment that will permit a qualified individual with a disability to apply for a job, to perform a job's essential functions (i.e., fundamental duties), or to enjoy equal ‘benefits and privileges’ of employment.

"An employer must accommodate a vision impairment that results from another disability even if the vision impairment is not itself substantially limiting…"

What kind of accommodations have you requested and received that helped you gain an equal footing with other employees in terms of taking advantage of training and other opportunities for advancement?

I believe the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) document is helpful for both employers and job seekers.

It's a broad statement of the "access and inclusion" rights people with visual impairments possess under the ADA when it comes to employment.

The EEOC issued the document to help "eliminate unfounded fears and stereotypes which lead to employment discrimination against so many people who are blind or visually impaired."

I think we can give employers an even clearer picture of what we believe "inclusion" should look like in today's workplaces.

Here are the key points the EEOC document makes about what an employer can ask about your disability:

"The ADA limits the medical information that an employer may seek from a job applicant. An employer may not require a job applicant to submit to a medical examination or ask about an applicant's disability before making a job offer.

"This means, for example, that an employer may not:

• Ask about any medical procedures an applicant has had related to her vision (e.g., whether the applicant ever has had eye surgery);
• Inquire as to whether the applicant uses any prescription medications, including medications for conditions related to the eye; and
• Ask whether an applicant has any condition that may have caused a vision impairment (e.g., whether the applicant has diabetes if the employer suspects that the applicant has retinopathy).

"An employer, however, may ask all applicants if they will need a reasonable accommodation for the application process…

• There is a medical explanation for some change in the employee's job performance.
• Or, the employee's medical condition may pose a direct threat to safety…

"An employer must keep all medical information separate from general personnel files and treat it as a separate, confidential medical record. Issues regarding confidentiality more frequently arise in regard to non-obvious conditions; however, even if the impairment is obvious, information about it must be kept confidential…"

What discussions about your disability have you had with prospective employers that you believe were not appropriate under the ADA?

It’s a broad statement of the "access and inclusion" rights people with visual impairments possess under the ADA when it comes to employment.

The EEOC issued the document to help "eliminate unfounded fears and stereotypes which lead to employment discrimination against so many people who are blind or visually impaired."

See "EEOC Explains Employment Rights of Persons Who Are Blind or Visually Impaired."

The EEOC document, like most government directives, is a little bland, even though it includes 30 helpful but hypothetical examples of how the ADA guidelines can be applied to specific situations.

Let’s liven it up with our own personal-experience stories -– and give it some tinge of reality for both employers and job seekers.

Between now and the end of December, you’ll have an opportunity to think about five basic ADA questions covered by this EEOC document. We’ll consider them one week at a time. They are:

1. When is visual impairment a "disability" under the ADA?

2. What questions may employers ask job applicants about their visual impairments?

3. What are the ADA’s provisions about accommodations for those with visual impairments?

4. How should employers handle safety concerns?

5. What does the ADA say about illegal harassment?