How To Deal with Any Handicaps You Have

Often times people may think that they are going to get turned down because of a "handicap" that they have or think they have. However you most likely don't have a handicap that will keep every employer from hiring you. No matter what handicap you actually have or think you have, it will not keep you from getting hired from any place in the world. The handicap would only keep you from getting hired at certain  places. It is your job to try to find employers that will want you, regardless of what others may think. To help you do this, I am going to give you a few tips based on the topics Boles covers in this chapter.

Do Not Generalize Employers
As mentioned earlier in the book, you should not generalize about employers. There will be employers that are interested in hiring for what you can do, but there will also be employers who are bothered by what you can do. No matter how many times you run into the latter and how frustrated you may be, you should always thank them and ask if they know any employers who may be interested in someone with your skills. In addition, you should should always remember to write and mail them a thank-you note no matter upset you may be. Then you must keep going day after day to find the employer who will only look at what you can do, not at what you can't.

Everyone Is Handicapped
You may be wondering how many people in the entire workforce is handicapped, and the answer is everyone. "A real handicap means disability: there are things that a person does not have the ability to do." There are approximately four thousand skills in the world, however the average person most likely only has one thousand of them. With that being said, there are approximately three thousand skills that every person does not have. The three thousand skills that people do not have will differ from person to person, but still everyone is "handicapped". So, when you go job-hunting you should focus your attention on what you can do instead of everything you can't do. If you have a real handicap, but it doesn't keep you from performing a particular job, than there's nothing special about it compared to other people's handicap.

What You Can Do, What You Can't
To focus on getting your mind off what you can't do, and on to what you can, take a piece of paper and divide it in to two columns. Then, do some research and get a list of skills that are transferable. Whatever list you find, copy as many of the skills on to the piece of paper, but put each skill into one of the columns. When you are done assigning the skills to one of the columns,pick out five favorite skills that you can do, and write how you actually used them in the past. This will help you gain an understanding of the the jobs you can do and love so you are able to hunt for them.