May 11, 2025 • 18 mins
Imposter syndrome in the workplace can strike anyone at any time, but it can be especially tough when you're living with blindness or low vision.
Listen as we dive into how to conquer those feelings of self-doubt and own your career with confidence.
Special guest speaker: Karan Nagrani aka ‘That Blind Guy,’ disability advocate.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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Episode Transcript
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S1 (00:05):
Hi and welcome to season two of the Vision Australia podcast,
The Career Path. Today we're diving into something a lot
of us can relate to in life imposter syndrome. We'll
be talking about how we can conquer those nagging negative
feelings in the workplace. I'm Sam Colley, your host and
(00:25):
Vision Australia radio community assistant for national programs. I'm thrilled
to be part of this series where we'll be helping
people in the blind and low vision community feel confident,
capable and ready to crush it in their careers. This
episode will be recorded, so feel free to hit pause,
take a breather, and come back to it whenever works
(00:48):
for you. You can find all the episodes by searching
Vision Australia's The Career Path on your go to podcast platform.
Today I'm excited to be joined by Karen Negrini, otherwise
known as that blind guy. Karen's a disability advocate and
all around awesome human and someone who knows firsthand what
(01:11):
it takes to push past imposter syndrome. Welcome, Karen.
S2 (01:16):
Thanks for having me, Sam. And you sound so calm
and professional. It just means I've got to lift my
game today.
S1 (01:22):
Oh, well, see how we go now. First up, let's
just chat a bit about imposter syndrome itself. How can
someone with vision loss overcome feelings of imposter syndrome and
build confidence in their abilities at work?
S2 (01:38):
That's a really loaded question, because it's hard to summarize
in just a couple of sentences, but it's something that
I've lived with for a long time because you just
always feel like, oh, there's always a better option, or,
you know, you're here because of this, this, this, not
because of that. But I think you've just got to
push past the fact that it's a disability thing, because
(02:00):
it doesn't necessarily have to be. There are people that
are fully able that live with these issues as well. Like,
you know, imposter syndrome is everywhere. So I think it's
just one of those things where you've got to tell yourself,
this is in my head, and I'm my biggest enemy
right now, and I need to be my biggest fan.
S1 (02:20):
And following on from that, Karen, have you ever felt
like the token blind person, quote unquote, at work?
S2 (02:26):
I've definitely felt like the token disabled person. I've not
met organizations or people that have employed blind people that much.
It's only a recent thing that I've noticed. So I've
definitely felt like the token disabled person. And it can
get quite frustrating because you can tell anytime there's like
an annual report photo shoot, they want you right at
the front, and it's not because you're so good looking,
(02:48):
it's because you have a disability and they want to
see that. So yeah, I mean, I've definitely felt like
the token disabled person for sure.
S1 (02:55):
Um, and there's a couple of other things that people
have to deal with in the workplace. You know, everybody
makes mistakes. But what strategies are available that can turn
workplace mistakes into opportunities for growth.
S2 (03:09):
Look, it depends on the person. Like for me, without
giving the name away, I did work for a German
company several years ago. My eyesight was a little better,
but that was the last marketing job I had as such,
where I felt like it was the. It was at
the end of that job that I realized that I
can't do this professionally anymore. And what I started to
(03:31):
feel like was this sense of pressure that I was
putting on myself, because German work ethic and culture is
quite strong. And I started I felt like I had
to constantly prove to them that, you know, just because
I'm blind, I'm not second rate or I'm not, you know,
I'm not a damaged good. So I would work extra
(03:52):
hard and I would be the first one in the
last one out. And they weren't asking me to do it.
But I started to do that because I had a
point to prove. But that then becomes dangerous as well,
because then you're setting that expectation that, oh, this guy
comes in first thing in the morning, he's the last
one to go. So your workload just piles up and
up and up and you've just got to you reach
(04:13):
a stage where you're like, okay, now I'm just being exploited,
you know, just because I'm putting my heart and soul
into this, because I have a mission that I want
to prove that, you know, being a blind marketing manager
does not mean I'm a second rate one. So, yeah,
it's a double edged sword because the one side, the
way I look at it, it pushes you to be
better and then you're opening yourself up to being exploited.
S1 (04:37):
Tied in with that. There's quite a few expectations either
you know, self-imposed on yourself or perhaps implicit through work,
or sometimes you get them outlined explicitly, which I guess
does help. But how can somebody with vision loss manage
workplace expectations while still advocating for their needs? And is
(04:58):
that any different to how sighted people would do you think?
S2 (05:02):
Look again as someone who works quite hard and I
know you work hard as well, I would really not
be happy if I am a fully sighted person and
I've employed someone with a disability and their attitude is, oh,
I'm a disabled person, I can get away with this,
you know? That would piss me off as an advocate.
But I feel like if you are ambitious, if you're
(05:25):
hard working and you have a disability and you're genuine
about your work ethic, it comes across. And I think
when that comes across, your employers will love you and
respect you even more. So you wouldn't really be put
in that position as often where you've got to tell yourself, like, okay,
now I'm being too hard on myself, or they're being
(05:45):
too hard on me. I feel like it does come
down to a balance, but your intentions have to be good.
S1 (05:51):
And Karen, you've spoken about advocating for yourself. And as
people know, you're a fantastic advocate for so many out
there in the blind and low vision community. But other
people can be self-advocates too. So how can employees with
vision loss confidently advocate for accessibility and showcase their strengths?
S2 (06:14):
Look, I think disability can be quite a heavy subject
for people that aren't disabled. You know, there's this sense of,
oh my God, am I going to offend them? Oh
my God, is this rude? So I feel like if
you lighten the mood a little bit, like, you know,
talk about your disability in a, in a natural, organic manner,
not as something that's, you know, constantly a downer. I
(06:34):
feel like that creates like an atmosphere where they feel
like they can talk about it and ask questions, and
that will automatically make you a good advocate. Controversial opinion.
And quite honestly, I don't care if people attack me
for saying this, because this really does piss me off
when I see other people that claim to be advocates,
and all they're doing is getting offended by what people
(06:55):
are doing, and I'm like, okay, so you're someone who's
just looking to get offended so you can complain and
feel good about yourself or be on this high road
or this, you know. Oh, that is offensive. Oh, that's rude.
And not everything that someone says is meant to be
offensive or rude. You know, you can tell when that
person is coming from a place of love or it's
(07:16):
just a little joy, a little sense of humor. But yeah,
I mean, don't take being an advocate that seriously, because
if you do, it's going to bring you down. I mean,
I've been doing this for a couple of years now,
and I still go through phases where I need to
just completely disconnect from social media and I'll say no
to events because I need to put my mental health first,
because it's hard work when you're constantly fighting or advocating.
(07:39):
And for me, I guess I try so hard to
not give out this, aw, poor guy, he's blind. Or,
you know, I don't want to come across as someone
who looks miserable because I'm not. And I feel like
there's this misconception or this stereotype that blindness means your
life is dark and blindness means you have no friends.
Blindness means you have no fun. Blindness means you can't
do anything. Hence this person is miserable. Pity party, which
(08:03):
is anything but true, and some of the happiest people
I know are blind. So I just feel like we
really need to put that out there as well. So
if you are advocating, my tips would be to just,
you know, lighten the mood a little bit, because when
you're going to come across as a serious advocate, you're
going to scare people off.
S1 (08:21):
Let's keep on that theme of mental health and wellbeing.
That's a super important theme for, you know, not only work,
but life in general. So maintaining mental and physical wellbeing
is essential for long term success, especially when managing the
unique challenges of vision loss in the workplace. So how
(08:42):
can prioritizing self-care and mental health help people with vision
loss to thrive in their careers?
S2 (08:50):
I think the biggest thing here would be to be realistic.
Don't take on projects where you're like, oh, this is
way bigger than I can take on. You know, I
know you've got ambition inside you. You want to prove
people wrong, but if you know you've got limitations, Respect that.
So that would be the biggest thing, because there's nothing
worse than taking something on and then having to tell someone,
I can't do this. And if it happens to be
(09:12):
because you can't do it because of your disability, it
makes it even worse. You know, like, it really affects
your mental health. So yeah, that's the main thing is
don't take on things that you can't deal with. Put
your mental health first.
S1 (09:24):
Yeah, absolutely.
S2 (09:26):
At the same time though, Sam, it's always good to
push yourself. It is. So don't don't always pick the
easy option or something that's safe. Yeah.
S1 (09:34):
Because, you know, you get outside your comfort zone. You can,
you know, learn something new and you can surprise yourself sometimes.
S2 (09:40):
Yeah.
S1 (09:41):
And, you know, the people out there who may be
experiencing vision loss, they might think, oh, wow, I can't
believe I can do that. And it gives you so
much confidence.
S2 (09:50):
Yeah, absolutely.
S1 (09:51):
All that sort of thing. But let's go back to
what we were talking about a little bit earlier in
the chat, managing perceptions. So you know, you're talking about
oh am I going to make a mistake? What are
people going to think about me? All that sort of thing.
How can somebody navigate perceptions and build strong, authentic and
(10:12):
natural relationships with colleagues? Removing that feeling of not fitting in.
S2 (10:17):
The simplest answer here is don't think of yourself as
that person with a disability in the workforce. Think of
yourself as you know. Hi, I'm Sam, I'm in the
office today with my colleagues. I'm not all that blind.
It's funny because my alias is that blind guy. But,
you know, don't think of yourself as less. Don't think
of yourself as more either. Just think of yourself as
(10:40):
a regular person. And that's the best way to build
relationships with people. Because and it goes back to what
I was saying to you earlier, if you're making disability
quite a heavy subject, people are going to walk on
eggshells around you and you want people to relax. In fact,
I encourage you to relax people around you so they
can ask you more about blindness because people don't know
(11:00):
that much about blindness.
S1 (11:02):
Mhm. That's true. And this is where this next question
comes in. It's quite relevant for that deciding when and
how to disclose vision loss. You know that can feel
intimidating when you're disclosing that to an employer. But it's
often key to ensuring workplace success. So how can employees
with vision loss navigate the timing and the process of
(11:26):
disclosing their needs to an employer?
S2 (11:29):
So I think it comes down to your level of blindness. Now,
if you're a blind person that's not using a cane
or a guide dog, you need to realize you are
going to confuse people. And not every blind person uses
a cane or a guide dog. But if you are
one of those people, you need to let them know that, look,
I don't use these tools, but I'm still legally blind.
This is what I see. So keep that in mind. So,
(11:50):
for example, with my condition, I live with usher syndrome
that causes blindness and hearing loss. As you would know,
I have only three degrees of central left. So I
made these glasses that I take with me. And for example,
if I was going to an event, I will bring
those glasses out and I'll tell people as they're talking
to me, like, put him on. This is what I see.
And that's how they realize that, okay, so if I'm
(12:12):
to his left or to his right, he can't see me.
You know, I think it's little things like that. Don't
assume that someone knows what you see. And at the
same time, to the people that see you, don't assume
that this person sees absolutely nothing.
S1 (12:27):
And finally, Karen, I'd love to just touch on the
topic of, you know, mentors and support networks that can
be so important for not only people who are blind
or have low vision, but people more broadly. It just
develops these fantastic relationships. And, you know, finding mentors and
building a supportive network can provide invaluable guidance and encouragement
(12:49):
for all employees. And I don't know about you, but,
you know, I've had a couple of mentors in my
time and they've just meant the world to me, and
it's just helped me so much. So how can Mentorship
and peer support empower people to overcome challenges and achieve
their career goals.
S2 (13:07):
Again, I'm going to give you an answer that might
sound silly, but it's not. I don't think I've ever
had a mentor like that. Like, for me, mentorship is
different for me. I would listen to a Taylor Swift
song and the words would resonate with me and I
would be like, damn, that's how I feel. Or I
would watch a certain show and I'll be like, so
I watched RuPaul's Drag Race all the time, and I
(13:28):
feel like RuPaul is one of the most. He's one
of the wisest people because every time he talks, I'm like, ah,
that makes so much sense. Or like for some people
it's Oprah. So I guess what I'm saying is it
doesn't necessarily need to be a person that, you know,
if you adore someone, if whether it's an artist or
someone you follow on Instagram and if you feel like
(13:50):
the way they're living their life resonates with you, they
could be your mentor, and you don't necessarily have to
meet them to know that you can just see their work.
And I guess what I'm trying to say is that
I never had a mentor as such. As I got blinder,
I felt lonelier and lonelier because I felt like I
couldn't talk to anyone. And I'm not saying there are
(14:12):
no options out there personally for me. I started to
shut down. I was just like, no one's going to
get it, blah blah, blah, blah blah. And then it
took a lot of work on myself. And, you know,
when I, when I speak at events, it's one of
the things that I say that and I don't say
this lightly, you know, you will be your biggest enemy.
You will also have to be your biggest fan. You
(14:32):
need to be your own best friend. But the most
important thing is you need to learn to hold your
own hand. And what I mean by that, from personal experience,
when you hit rock bottom and you're down there. No doctor,
no family, no friends, no medication can lift you up
the way you can lift yourself up. So be your
own best friend. Learn to hold your own hand.
S1 (14:50):
I understand you haven't had mentors as such, but let's
talk about the importance of support networks and what those
can do, because you know that just can help so much.
S2 (15:02):
Absolutely. So support is extremely important. But having said that,
it's important to connect with people that genuinely know what
it is that you're going through. So I remember I
did this thing with the ABC once where the entire
article was about how we need more blind psychologists, because
when I was struggling with mental health in the past,
(15:23):
I would speak to psychologists and counselors and they weren't blind.
And I just felt like no matter what I say
to this person, they're not going to really get what
I'm getting or what what I'm experiencing. So it's extremely
important to find your squad and find people that really
get you. Sometimes this might be a partner who may
not be blind, who'll be there for you emotionally, but
(15:46):
then at the same time, those days when you're so
angry because you're going blind, you know something ridiculous could happen.
Like you, you have misplaced something and you just lose
your cool. Like for me, for example, I could be
in the best mood and then something will happen related
to my blindness. And I just get all grumpy and I'm.
S3 (16:03):
Like, oh, I can't believe this is happening, you know?
S2 (16:05):
So and that time someone who's not blind will be like,
just calm down. Just calm down. And like, you don't
want to calm down. And the only person who'll get
that is another blind person who's experienced that themselves, you know.
So I feel like in terms of support, the more
the better. But always have that at least one person
that you know is blind as well. So you can
(16:28):
and you know, the beauty of, uh, Instagram, that's where
I do my work is like the online. The blind
community is so small. So like, I feel like I've
got best friends all around the world now because of Instagram,
because the way we connect, we message, we share stories,
we laugh at the silly little things. And I think,
(16:49):
you know, this is again contradicting what a lot of
people say. I feel like having online friends doesn't necessarily
mean you're going to be lonely. So not a lot
of blind people know a lot of blind people. So
what I'm saying to you is if you don't have
one next to you, connect with other blind people online.
S1 (17:08):
A huge thank you to Karen for joining us today.
What an insightful session packed with some really valuable tips.
We hope you've walked away with a few new strategies
to help shake off that pesky imposter syndrome, and feel
more confident than ever. This podcast is accessible on all
major podcast platforms, so remember to like, subscribe, and share
(17:31):
it with your friends. Simply search for Vision Australia's The
Career Path to find this episode and the rest of
the series. The Career Path has been funded by the
Department of Social Services. Karen, thank you so much as
always for appearing on Vision Australia Radio. It's been an
absolute pleasure to chat with you.
S2 (17:52):
Thank you so much for having me. And listeners. If
I answered your questions, that's on me. And if I didn't,
that's on Sam.
Hi and welcome to season two of the Vision Australia podcast,
The Career Path. Today we're diving into something a lot
of us can relate to in life imposter syndrome. We'll
be talking about how we can conquer those nagging negative
feelings in the workplace. I'm Sam Colley, your host and
(00:25):
Vision Australia radio community assistant for national programs. I'm thrilled
to be part of this series where we'll be helping
people in the blind and low vision community feel confident,
capable and ready to crush it in their careers. This
episode will be recorded, so feel free to hit pause,
take a breather, and come back to it whenever works
(00:48):
for you. You can find all the episodes by searching
Vision Australia's The Career Path on your go to podcast platform.
Today I'm excited to be joined by Karen Negrini, otherwise
known as that blind guy. Karen's a disability advocate and
all around awesome human and someone who knows firsthand what
(01:11):
it takes to push past imposter syndrome. Welcome, Karen.
S2 (01:16):
Thanks for having me, Sam. And you sound so calm
and professional. It just means I've got to lift my
game today.
S1 (01:22):
Oh, well, see how we go now. First up, let's
just chat a bit about imposter syndrome itself. How can
someone with vision loss overcome feelings of imposter syndrome and
build confidence in their abilities at work?
S2 (01:38):
That's a really loaded question, because it's hard to summarize
in just a couple of sentences, but it's something that
I've lived with for a long time because you just
always feel like, oh, there's always a better option, or,
you know, you're here because of this, this, this, not
because of that. But I think you've just got to
push past the fact that it's a disability thing, because
(02:00):
it doesn't necessarily have to be. There are people that
are fully able that live with these issues as well. Like,
you know, imposter syndrome is everywhere. So I think it's
just one of those things where you've got to tell yourself,
this is in my head, and I'm my biggest enemy
right now, and I need to be my biggest fan.
S1 (02:20):
And following on from that, Karen, have you ever felt
like the token blind person, quote unquote, at work?
S2 (02:26):
I've definitely felt like the token disabled person. I've not
met organizations or people that have employed blind people that much.
It's only a recent thing that I've noticed. So I've
definitely felt like the token disabled person. And it can
get quite frustrating because you can tell anytime there's like
an annual report photo shoot, they want you right at
the front, and it's not because you're so good looking,
(02:48):
it's because you have a disability and they want to
see that. So yeah, I mean, I've definitely felt like
the token disabled person for sure.
S1 (02:55):
Um, and there's a couple of other things that people
have to deal with in the workplace. You know, everybody
makes mistakes. But what strategies are available that can turn
workplace mistakes into opportunities for growth.
S2 (03:09):
Look, it depends on the person. Like for me, without
giving the name away, I did work for a German
company several years ago. My eyesight was a little better,
but that was the last marketing job I had as such,
where I felt like it was the. It was at
the end of that job that I realized that I
can't do this professionally anymore. And what I started to
(03:31):
feel like was this sense of pressure that I was
putting on myself, because German work ethic and culture is
quite strong. And I started I felt like I had
to constantly prove to them that, you know, just because
I'm blind, I'm not second rate or I'm not, you know,
I'm not a damaged good. So I would work extra
(03:52):
hard and I would be the first one in the
last one out. And they weren't asking me to do it.
But I started to do that because I had a
point to prove. But that then becomes dangerous as well,
because then you're setting that expectation that, oh, this guy
comes in first thing in the morning, he's the last
one to go. So your workload just piles up and
up and up and you've just got to you reach
(04:13):
a stage where you're like, okay, now I'm just being exploited,
you know, just because I'm putting my heart and soul
into this, because I have a mission that I want
to prove that, you know, being a blind marketing manager
does not mean I'm a second rate one. So, yeah,
it's a double edged sword because the one side, the
way I look at it, it pushes you to be
better and then you're opening yourself up to being exploited.
S1 (04:37):
Tied in with that. There's quite a few expectations either
you know, self-imposed on yourself or perhaps implicit through work,
or sometimes you get them outlined explicitly, which I guess
does help. But how can somebody with vision loss manage
workplace expectations while still advocating for their needs? And is
(04:58):
that any different to how sighted people would do you think?
S2 (05:02):
Look again as someone who works quite hard and I
know you work hard as well, I would really not
be happy if I am a fully sighted person and
I've employed someone with a disability and their attitude is, oh,
I'm a disabled person, I can get away with this,
you know? That would piss me off as an advocate.
But I feel like if you are ambitious, if you're
(05:25):
hard working and you have a disability and you're genuine
about your work ethic, it comes across. And I think
when that comes across, your employers will love you and
respect you even more. So you wouldn't really be put
in that position as often where you've got to tell yourself, like, okay,
now I'm being too hard on myself, or they're being
(05:45):
too hard on me. I feel like it does come
down to a balance, but your intentions have to be good.
S1 (05:51):
And Karen, you've spoken about advocating for yourself. And as
people know, you're a fantastic advocate for so many out
there in the blind and low vision community. But other
people can be self-advocates too. So how can employees with
vision loss confidently advocate for accessibility and showcase their strengths?
S2 (06:14):
Look, I think disability can be quite a heavy subject
for people that aren't disabled. You know, there's this sense of,
oh my God, am I going to offend them? Oh
my God, is this rude? So I feel like if
you lighten the mood a little bit, like, you know,
talk about your disability in a, in a natural, organic manner,
not as something that's, you know, constantly a downer. I
(06:34):
feel like that creates like an atmosphere where they feel
like they can talk about it and ask questions, and
that will automatically make you a good advocate. Controversial opinion.
And quite honestly, I don't care if people attack me
for saying this, because this really does piss me off
when I see other people that claim to be advocates,
and all they're doing is getting offended by what people
(06:55):
are doing, and I'm like, okay, so you're someone who's
just looking to get offended so you can complain and
feel good about yourself or be on this high road
or this, you know. Oh, that is offensive. Oh, that's rude.
And not everything that someone says is meant to be
offensive or rude. You know, you can tell when that
person is coming from a place of love or it's
(07:16):
just a little joy, a little sense of humor. But yeah,
I mean, don't take being an advocate that seriously, because
if you do, it's going to bring you down. I mean,
I've been doing this for a couple of years now,
and I still go through phases where I need to
just completely disconnect from social media and I'll say no
to events because I need to put my mental health first,
because it's hard work when you're constantly fighting or advocating.
(07:39):
And for me, I guess I try so hard to
not give out this, aw, poor guy, he's blind. Or,
you know, I don't want to come across as someone
who looks miserable because I'm not. And I feel like
there's this misconception or this stereotype that blindness means your
life is dark and blindness means you have no friends.
Blindness means you have no fun. Blindness means you can't
do anything. Hence this person is miserable. Pity party, which
(08:03):
is anything but true, and some of the happiest people
I know are blind. So I just feel like we
really need to put that out there as well. So
if you are advocating, my tips would be to just,
you know, lighten the mood a little bit, because when
you're going to come across as a serious advocate, you're
going to scare people off.
S1 (08:21):
Let's keep on that theme of mental health and wellbeing.
That's a super important theme for, you know, not only work,
but life in general. So maintaining mental and physical wellbeing
is essential for long term success, especially when managing the
unique challenges of vision loss in the workplace. So how
(08:42):
can prioritizing self-care and mental health help people with vision
loss to thrive in their careers?
S2 (08:50):
I think the biggest thing here would be to be realistic.
Don't take on projects where you're like, oh, this is
way bigger than I can take on. You know, I
know you've got ambition inside you. You want to prove
people wrong, but if you know you've got limitations, Respect that.
So that would be the biggest thing, because there's nothing
worse than taking something on and then having to tell someone,
I can't do this. And if it happens to be
(09:12):
because you can't do it because of your disability, it
makes it even worse. You know, like, it really affects
your mental health. So yeah, that's the main thing is
don't take on things that you can't deal with. Put
your mental health first.
S1 (09:24):
Yeah, absolutely.
S2 (09:26):
At the same time though, Sam, it's always good to
push yourself. It is. So don't don't always pick the
easy option or something that's safe. Yeah.
S1 (09:34):
Because, you know, you get outside your comfort zone. You can,
you know, learn something new and you can surprise yourself sometimes.
S2 (09:40):
Yeah.
S1 (09:41):
And, you know, the people out there who may be
experiencing vision loss, they might think, oh, wow, I can't
believe I can do that. And it gives you so
much confidence.
S2 (09:50):
Yeah, absolutely.
S1 (09:51):
All that sort of thing. But let's go back to
what we were talking about a little bit earlier in
the chat, managing perceptions. So you know, you're talking about
oh am I going to make a mistake? What are
people going to think about me? All that sort of thing.
How can somebody navigate perceptions and build strong, authentic and
(10:12):
natural relationships with colleagues? Removing that feeling of not fitting in.
S2 (10:17):
The simplest answer here is don't think of yourself as
that person with a disability in the workforce. Think of
yourself as you know. Hi, I'm Sam, I'm in the
office today with my colleagues. I'm not all that blind.
It's funny because my alias is that blind guy. But,
you know, don't think of yourself as less. Don't think
of yourself as more either. Just think of yourself as
(10:40):
a regular person. And that's the best way to build
relationships with people. Because and it goes back to what
I was saying to you earlier, if you're making disability
quite a heavy subject, people are going to walk on
eggshells around you and you want people to relax. In fact,
I encourage you to relax people around you so they
can ask you more about blindness because people don't know
(11:00):
that much about blindness.
S1 (11:02):
Mhm. That's true. And this is where this next question
comes in. It's quite relevant for that deciding when and
how to disclose vision loss. You know that can feel
intimidating when you're disclosing that to an employer. But it's
often key to ensuring workplace success. So how can employees
with vision loss navigate the timing and the process of
(11:26):
disclosing their needs to an employer?
S2 (11:29):
So I think it comes down to your level of blindness. Now,
if you're a blind person that's not using a cane
or a guide dog, you need to realize you are
going to confuse people. And not every blind person uses
a cane or a guide dog. But if you are
one of those people, you need to let them know that, look,
I don't use these tools, but I'm still legally blind.
This is what I see. So keep that in mind. So,
(11:50):
for example, with my condition, I live with usher syndrome
that causes blindness and hearing loss. As you would know,
I have only three degrees of central left. So I
made these glasses that I take with me. And for example,
if I was going to an event, I will bring
those glasses out and I'll tell people as they're talking
to me, like, put him on. This is what I see.
And that's how they realize that, okay, so if I'm
(12:12):
to his left or to his right, he can't see me.
You know, I think it's little things like that. Don't
assume that someone knows what you see. And at the
same time, to the people that see you, don't assume
that this person sees absolutely nothing.
S1 (12:27):
And finally, Karen, I'd love to just touch on the
topic of, you know, mentors and support networks that can
be so important for not only people who are blind
or have low vision, but people more broadly. It just
develops these fantastic relationships. And, you know, finding mentors and
building a supportive network can provide invaluable guidance and encouragement
(12:49):
for all employees. And I don't know about you, but,
you know, I've had a couple of mentors in my
time and they've just meant the world to me, and
it's just helped me so much. So how can Mentorship
and peer support empower people to overcome challenges and achieve
their career goals.
S2 (13:07):
Again, I'm going to give you an answer that might
sound silly, but it's not. I don't think I've ever
had a mentor like that. Like, for me, mentorship is
different for me. I would listen to a Taylor Swift
song and the words would resonate with me and I
would be like, damn, that's how I feel. Or I
would watch a certain show and I'll be like, so
I watched RuPaul's Drag Race all the time, and I
(13:28):
feel like RuPaul is one of the most. He's one
of the wisest people because every time he talks, I'm like, ah,
that makes so much sense. Or like for some people
it's Oprah. So I guess what I'm saying is it
doesn't necessarily need to be a person that, you know,
if you adore someone, if whether it's an artist or
someone you follow on Instagram and if you feel like
(13:50):
the way they're living their life resonates with you, they
could be your mentor, and you don't necessarily have to
meet them to know that you can just see their work.
And I guess what I'm trying to say is that
I never had a mentor as such. As I got blinder,
I felt lonelier and lonelier because I felt like I
couldn't talk to anyone. And I'm not saying there are
(14:12):
no options out there personally for me. I started to
shut down. I was just like, no one's going to
get it, blah blah, blah, blah blah. And then it
took a lot of work on myself. And, you know,
when I, when I speak at events, it's one of
the things that I say that and I don't say
this lightly, you know, you will be your biggest enemy.
You will also have to be your biggest fan. You
(14:32):
need to be your own best friend. But the most
important thing is you need to learn to hold your
own hand. And what I mean by that, from personal experience,
when you hit rock bottom and you're down there. No doctor,
no family, no friends, no medication can lift you up
the way you can lift yourself up. So be your
own best friend. Learn to hold your own hand.
S1 (14:50):
I understand you haven't had mentors as such, but let's
talk about the importance of support networks and what those
can do, because you know that just can help so much.
S2 (15:02):
Absolutely. So support is extremely important. But having said that,
it's important to connect with people that genuinely know what
it is that you're going through. So I remember I
did this thing with the ABC once where the entire
article was about how we need more blind psychologists, because
when I was struggling with mental health in the past,
(15:23):
I would speak to psychologists and counselors and they weren't blind.
And I just felt like no matter what I say
to this person, they're not going to really get what
I'm getting or what what I'm experiencing. So it's extremely
important to find your squad and find people that really
get you. Sometimes this might be a partner who may
not be blind, who'll be there for you emotionally, but
(15:46):
then at the same time, those days when you're so
angry because you're going blind, you know something ridiculous could happen.
Like you, you have misplaced something and you just lose
your cool. Like for me, for example, I could be
in the best mood and then something will happen related
to my blindness. And I just get all grumpy and I'm.
S3 (16:03):
Like, oh, I can't believe this is happening, you know?
S2 (16:05):
So and that time someone who's not blind will be like,
just calm down. Just calm down. And like, you don't
want to calm down. And the only person who'll get
that is another blind person who's experienced that themselves, you know.
So I feel like in terms of support, the more
the better. But always have that at least one person
that you know is blind as well. So you can
(16:28):
and you know, the beauty of, uh, Instagram, that's where
I do my work is like the online. The blind
community is so small. So like, I feel like I've
got best friends all around the world now because of Instagram,
because the way we connect, we message, we share stories,
we laugh at the silly little things. And I think,
(16:49):
you know, this is again contradicting what a lot of
people say. I feel like having online friends doesn't necessarily
mean you're going to be lonely. So not a lot
of blind people know a lot of blind people. So
what I'm saying to you is if you don't have
one next to you, connect with other blind people online.
S1 (17:08):
A huge thank you to Karen for joining us today.
What an insightful session packed with some really valuable tips.
We hope you've walked away with a few new strategies
to help shake off that pesky imposter syndrome, and feel
more confident than ever. This podcast is accessible on all
major podcast platforms, so remember to like, subscribe, and share
(17:31):
it with your friends. Simply search for Vision Australia's The
Career Path to find this episode and the rest of
the series. The Career Path has been funded by the
Department of Social Services. Karen, thank you so much as
always for appearing on Vision Australia Radio. It's been an
absolute pleasure to chat with you.
S2 (17:52):
Thank you so much for having me. And listeners. If
I answered your questions, that's on me. And if I didn't,
that's on Sam.
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