June 18, 2025 • 19 mins
Career myths cause unnecessary stress and anxiety for job seekers, who feel as if they limit career options and damage their confidence.
Listen on as we debunk those myths with someone who really gets it, and discover how to take back control of your career.
Special guest speaker: Vildana Praljak, Vision Australia national employment manager.
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 going to break down those
career myths that cause stress and anxiety, those myths that
can stop us from feeling confident and secure in the workplace.
I'm Sam Culley, your host and Vision Australia Radio's community
(00:27):
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 for you. You can
(00:49):
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 Vildana Praljak. Welcome Vildana.
S2 (01:02):
Thank you Sam and well done on pronunciation of my
last name.
S1 (01:06):
No problem at all. Spot on. It's important to get
people's names right, I think. Definitely. So good to hear. Now, firstly, Vildana,
how can we break the myth that vision loss limits
career options and help everyone to see the endless possibilities
across industries like technology, finance and creative arts?
S2 (01:27):
Awesome. Not a big question at all. Do we have
three hours? How do we break those myths? It is
quite tricky, I think. Tricky in a way, to kind
of there's not a simple solution to say, yes, we
can do this by following these steps one, two and three.
I think it comes down to some of the societal
stereotypes that have been misapplied to people who are blind
(01:49):
or have low vision historically, sometimes at the employer attitudes
as well. And how could we do that? I'd say
by probably showcasing some good stories. Employers where the placement
into job for a person who's blind has low vision,
has been quite successful, has worked well and helped employer
(02:10):
to position themselves as an inclusive employer and to be honest,
really increased their competitive advantage. I'd say it would be
around us as a community of people who are blind
or have low vision, really making sure that we have
all of our education technology skills or what we call
job readiness really up to date, because that really helps
(02:33):
us to kind of showcase our talents and who we
are really as a person. So that means if you're
using screen readers being quite good and practicing and having
enough experience in navigating computers or getting good skills and
strategies in getting around the community and public transport, as
well as some of those independent living skills around, even
(02:54):
just like, how are you going to make a cup
of tea in the office? Just all of that, I'd say,
would probably come under that big umbrella of job readiness.
I'll try and summarize it in a very, um, it's
kind of both way work. The societal and employer attitude
needs shifting, but also we have to, as a community,
be able to showcase our talents and our possibilities in
(03:14):
the best possible light and be job ready.
S1 (03:17):
There are a few myths out there. For example, people
might think, oh, there's only a few jobs I can
do as someone with vision loss. So how can we
challenge that belief, that vision loss limits career choices and
inspire people to pursue diverse roles?
S2 (03:33):
Again, it comes back to connecting and being a part
of community of people who are blind or have low
vision and really looking out for those positive role models
and to be honest, just approaching them, having a conversation
with them and seeing, you know, how did you get there?
What did you do? What worked? What didn't work? What
is some of the advice that you can share? It's
not a linear path. Absolutely. And there's a lot of
(03:55):
ups and downs in anyone's journey, but I think it's
just kind of connecting and being quite proactive with the
broader blindness and low vision communities, because there are some
exceptional leaders in those spaces. In my day to day job,
I have had the opportunity to get to know quite
a few different people that are working in all sorts
of jobs everything from administrative roles, warehousing jobs all the
(04:18):
way through to executive jobs in the government and large
corporations like banks. Cybersecurity in community services in financial sector. Honestly, yeah.
Where they say where there's an internet connection, there is
a job for someone who's blind or has low vision.
But again, not to say that everyone has to have
a job in the office. Absolutely. There are an incredible
technologies now put in different environments that you can do
(04:42):
some more hands on type jobs as well. I can't
see us really driving airplanes for now, but the way
technology is going, you know, why not?
S1 (04:50):
Yeah. Who knows? One day.
S2 (04:51):
See, that is one of the options.
S1 (04:52):
Absolutely. Yeah. And people who are blind or have low vision,
they often face a few issues with perhaps self-esteem or confidence.
Or can I do the job? Am I capable? And
they have this nagging feeling in their brain, oh, you know,
I'll always be at a disadvantage in the workplace, but
how can we embrace the strengths that come with living
(05:16):
with vision loss, such as adaptability and resilience, and use
those to excel in the workplace?
S2 (05:23):
You're spot on. So as someone who is blind or
has low vision and I absolutely, I am legally blind myself.
I've acquired vision loss and I absolutely can kind of
tell a bit of a difference between the life before
and after vision loss. And like you said, Sam, the adaptability,
the flexibility, just the workarounds and the practicalities that come
with vision loss. I'd absolutely say that's been a huge
(05:45):
advantage for my own career progression. I think it's not
a one size fits all approach, but I'd say celebrating
some of the strengths that you have and absolutely like
that sense of feeling like an imposter or this is
not where I belong, or I feel like someone has
just given me this role because of XYZ, z. Not
(06:06):
because I'm talented, I've been there. So I think it's
just making the most out of any opportunity. And the
confidence will be built by sense of achievement. I'd say
just if you are starting really small, volunteering in your
local community, or even if you like, for Vision Australia,
and contributing and seeing the impact of your work and
slowly kind of starting to work towards your first job,
(06:28):
that all helps to flex those muscles of confidence and self-esteem.
So just trying to build as many as you can,
those opportunities where you can contribute and feel like you
are a part of something. And again, having all the skills, knowledge, education,
you know, right up your sleeve. I think that absolutely
helps when you step your foot in the workplace, you
(06:50):
know your jaws, you know your zoom text, you know
your white cane, how to get around you just feel
confident in that way. And no one can take that
away from you. And you know, I always say vision
loss is not the most exciting thing about me. There's
so much I can do and stuff that I've done
and the achievement of failures as well. But I'd say
having all of those definitely being quite familiar with the technology,
(07:13):
getting around and living independently, I think that's the biggest,
biggest catalyst to anyone's good, healthy confidence.
S1 (07:20):
And following on from that Vildana, there's a related kind
of thought that people might have where they might think, oh,
employers won't want to hire me because of my vision loss,
but how can we shift that narrative and help employers
recognize that talent and diverse perspectives, not eyesight, are what
(07:41):
drives success.
S2 (07:42):
It's a complex one, and different employers or even industries
are at different stages of their sort of inclusive hiring practices.
In the employment services at Vision Australia, we partner with
several different employers and some are very much advanced in
their journey of inclusive hiring. We have a pipeline pretty
(08:03):
much with some employers. I hope they will not mind
me naming them like Apple for example. We work very
directly with the talent acquisition team and they are very,
very open to accommodate. But they also want to see
the talent as they say. They really want to see
the people being hungry for the work and really wanting
to get out there and achieve. And I think it's
really building on that, showcasing those stories, but also allowing employers,
(08:27):
because often the attitudes from my experience really comes from
ignorance and not knowing what to do, what's the right
thing to do. So people do two things. Either they
say or do something inappropriate or disengage completely. What are
we trying to do? I'd say would be, can we
have a very open and confidential conversation with employers? What
(08:49):
is it that concerns you? And sometimes I know some blind,
low vision peers would go and show them how they
use technology. And it's like, this is just how I
do things. If that's what's going to change the levels
of confidence for the employer, sometimes you can point them
to different success stories or have a conversation. Arrange a coffee,
catch up with that potential employer or recruiter, and invite
(09:10):
a colleague that's really successful and has done it in
their career. There's just different ways of thinking outside of
the box, but I think as a community, I'd say
we'll have to be just open and prepared for that
conversation where people may ask a lot of potentially awkward questions,
but I think it really comes from ignorance more than anything.
S1 (09:29):
Vildana what would you say to somebody who might be thinking, oh,
I can't pursue a career in technology or fast paced industries?
How can we encourage people with vision loss to embrace
those sorts of careers? Fast paced industries like technology, finance, healthcare,
where assistive tools can level the playing field?
S2 (09:52):
Absolutely. And I've heard few senior leaders who are blind
or have low vision saying there's never been a better
time to be blind than now. And they're probably referring
to the times when they would go to blind school
versus to what it is today where the whole world
is sitting in our pocket. I'd say technology is the
biggest enabler for employment and careers. For someone who has
(10:14):
blindness or low vision. Again, be curious. Just play with
those different software applications. I mean, there's a lot of
talk around it in the community, but it's just incredible
what it can do and the way it's going to
be used in the workplace. You know, just stay on
top of that. Read, educate yourself, have a go. If
it's your first employment, try in a voluntary capacity first
(10:37):
and see how you go. There's just different ways of
cracking that tech world, but I'd say there are some
fantastic examples of people who are blind or have low vision.
Even at Vision Australia, for example, we have blind developers
or companies like Microsoft or Apple as well. Optus as well.
They some of their senior executives are people with lived
(10:57):
experience of blindness and low vision. Westpac, like all these
big banks? Absolutely. It is very possible. But it comes
back to like, what is my bag of tricks and
my bag of tools that I can use? And obviously
knowledge and those skills. Curiosity and having fun. I would
say would be probably the number one that I would
say that would be my bag of tricks.
S1 (11:16):
What about those people who might be thinking, I don't
have the confidence to go for my dream job? What
steps can be taken to build that sort of confidence?
Focusing on strengths and feeling ready to pursue a dream
job with support from career coaching and skills training.
S2 (11:36):
It's kind of chicken or egg. I don't think that
any of us go into employment super confident. I remember
when I was first starting and, you know, manager would
ask me to do something like, what the hell? And
I would just Google it. I think we partially would
have to accept to be uncomfortable with uncertainty and not
knowing that we don't know everything. I'd say, again, like
(11:56):
practicing on a smaller kind of project, let's say at
school or university or TAFE or volunteering, just flex those
muscles there. Just see how you go. It's a safe
environment for you to trial and get some feedback. Work placements, internships,
graduate programs they're all fantastic environments for someone to grow.
And there are wonderful, wonderful mentorship programs out there as
(12:19):
well that I can think of that really create that
safe space to have a conversation and trial things and
hear from different perspectives. I'd also say the dream job
is not a linear path to get to it. It's
rarely really that, yeah, I want to be a CEO
or I want to be an expert or an executive
in a bank. It's a bit of a jungle gym.
You go a bit left and right and one step
(12:41):
forward and two backwards, and then three steps ahead. And
it's never really a straight, but I think as long
as you kind of embrace it with a bit of,
like I said, a curiosity and fun and exploring and
desire to learn, I think everything will fall into place naturally.
S1 (12:56):
People perhaps might be feeling the not job ready because
they don't understand assistive technology or have independent living skills.
How can support programs and assistive technology training empower people
with vision loss to build job readiness and confidence in
both personal and professional settings, especially when they're just getting
(13:20):
their head around living with vision loss.
S2 (13:23):
It was a given.
S1 (13:24):
Yeah, no.
S2 (13:26):
It was a given. No, I absolutely agree. I'd say
with the technology, obviously there's different screen readers and magnifications. Again,
there's different programs and types of training that you can
access to help you get your skills up. Obviously you
can just YouTube things. You can also ask your best
friend AI assistant, because they can also point to and
(13:46):
give you some really good tips around the access technology.
But what it comes down to that it can. Absolutely.
For example, if you're looking for an office type job,
you can still use pretty much the same level as
your sighted peers. The computer navigate entire Microsoft Suite via voice,
and that means you can still produce those reports. So
you can analyze spreadsheets purely because it's a different way
(14:10):
of doing things. But it's absolutely possible. And it opens
up doors of million new opportunities. That would be something
that I would absolutely encourage anyone. But also I've had
clients would say, I'm not looking for an office type job.
You still have to communicate. You still have to, you know,
reply to messages, emails, register with myGov websites and whatnot.
(14:32):
So having those technology skills up your sleeve, I think
it's the best way forward in life to stay connected
as well. And I get it's a huge change. And
I'll never forget when I started losing my vision. Like
just a change from a regular book, like a paper
book through to audio book was a huge thing for me. Like,
how do I even enjoy something? But then you start slowly.
(14:53):
And I started with stories, listening to stories, and then
progressed to a book and novels and who's to stop
me now? And I'm multitasking, you know, I'm having my
audiobook on the go, and I'm preparing meals for my
family or just on the train. and I think it's
just embracing the technology that's available and is rapidly becoming
more and more available there, and independent living skills like,
(15:14):
oh my God, I'm fiercely independent, but I'd say it's
something that I would love for all of our community
to strive for. And going back to that question of confidence, right.
So you're having, you know, a tea break with your
colleagues at work. Everyone made themselves a cup of tea. Absolutely.
Why would you ask for help? Because you are perfectly
capable to do that with the right tools or strategies.
You can absolutely do it. Or getting to and from work.
(15:36):
It's a good way also to kind of leave the
day behind. I know when I catch the tram home,
it's a good day to leave a day behind and
observe people and listen out for people on the tram
and just get ready for the next installment of my day,
which is the family life. So I'd say anything that
would allow you or enable you to take agency back
that power back, just make the most out of it.
(15:57):
Really just make the most out of it. Use it,
learn it, educate yourself, be curious, have fun, play. And
I think Yeah, that would really take you to that
place where you see yourself fondly.
S1 (16:09):
Vildana what would you say for people who might think
I need perfect vision to lead or manage a team,
how can we inspire people with vision loss to see
themselves as effective leaders, showing that skills like communication, motivation
and strategy matter more than perfect eyesight?
S2 (16:29):
Absolutely and honestly, employers, they say the people they always
look for a person with a right attitude rather than
incredible resume and qualification. Because if you think about it,
we're moving into the time where there's a lot of specialization,
but also there's a lot of certain things or certain
professions that are required to do only certain tasks. But
a lot of technologies making it to be streamlined or automated,
(16:52):
and where the real shortage is coming into that sort
of strategic generalist type roles. And I think if you
think about it like having that strategic foresight, learning how
to communicate, and I think Linus should never really get
in the way of striving for bigger and better. I
know often we've seen that people who are blind or
(17:13):
have low vision are usually given entry level roles, and
it's difficult to progress through career, but I honestly say
absolutely work towards it if that's what you want to do.
And if you want to get into the leadership positions,
executive positions, go for it. There's a lot of, I'd say,
perceived barriers, but there's also a lot of open places
that are willing to kind of embrace diversity and disability.
(17:36):
And I'd say, yeah, just make the most out of
it and strive and dream for big. It's a tricky
one because I always think, like, how do you say
something to people? And I'm thinking like, oh, will this
kind of sound that we are positioning or shifting all
the blame or the all the ways of employment or
unemployment is sitting now with people who are blind or
(17:56):
have low vision. It's like that social model of disability.
Like how do you challenge that? And yeah, is it
controversial to say that we also have to do hard
work to advocate for change and showcase who we are,
not just to sit and not feel good about the
employers or the world out there. So that's where I
struggle with.
S1 (18:14):
Yeah, no, that's certainly something to think about. And a
really interesting note to end on. So a huge thank
you to Vildana for joining us today. Sometimes we just
need to hear from somebody else that a myth is
just that a myth. And we're strong enough to beat them.
This podcast is accessible on all major podcast platforms, so
(18:37):
remember to like, subscribe and share it with your friends.
Simply search for Vision Australia's The Career Path to find
this episode and the rest of the series. Career path
has been funded by the Department of Social Services. Vildana
thank you so much for your time today. It was
great to catch up with you and dispel all the
(18:58):
different range of myths faced by the blind and low
vision community in the workforce.
S2 (19:05):
Thank you Sam. Thanks for the opportunity.
Hi and welcome to season two of the Vision Australia podcast,
The Career Path. Today we're going to break down those
career myths that cause stress and anxiety, those myths that
can stop us from feeling confident and secure in the workplace.
I'm Sam Culley, your host and Vision Australia Radio's community
(00:27):
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 for you. You can
(00:49):
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 Vildana Praljak. Welcome Vildana.
S2 (01:02):
Thank you Sam and well done on pronunciation of my
last name.
S1 (01:06):
No problem at all. Spot on. It's important to get
people's names right, I think. Definitely. So good to hear. Now, firstly, Vildana,
how can we break the myth that vision loss limits
career options and help everyone to see the endless possibilities
across industries like technology, finance and creative arts?
S2 (01:27):
Awesome. Not a big question at all. Do we have
three hours? How do we break those myths? It is
quite tricky, I think. Tricky in a way, to kind
of there's not a simple solution to say, yes, we
can do this by following these steps one, two and three.
I think it comes down to some of the societal
stereotypes that have been misapplied to people who are blind
(01:49):
or have low vision historically, sometimes at the employer attitudes
as well. And how could we do that? I'd say
by probably showcasing some good stories. Employers where the placement
into job for a person who's blind has low vision,
has been quite successful, has worked well and helped employer
(02:10):
to position themselves as an inclusive employer and to be honest,
really increased their competitive advantage. I'd say it would be
around us as a community of people who are blind
or have low vision, really making sure that we have
all of our education technology skills or what we call
job readiness really up to date, because that really helps
(02:33):
us to kind of showcase our talents and who we
are really as a person. So that means if you're
using screen readers being quite good and practicing and having
enough experience in navigating computers or getting good skills and
strategies in getting around the community and public transport, as
well as some of those independent living skills around, even
(02:54):
just like, how are you going to make a cup
of tea in the office? Just all of that, I'd say,
would probably come under that big umbrella of job readiness.
I'll try and summarize it in a very, um, it's
kind of both way work. The societal and employer attitude
needs shifting, but also we have to, as a community,
be able to showcase our talents and our possibilities in
(03:14):
the best possible light and be job ready.
S1 (03:17):
There are a few myths out there. For example, people
might think, oh, there's only a few jobs I can
do as someone with vision loss. So how can we
challenge that belief, that vision loss limits career choices and
inspire people to pursue diverse roles?
S2 (03:33):
Again, it comes back to connecting and being a part
of community of people who are blind or have low
vision and really looking out for those positive role models
and to be honest, just approaching them, having a conversation
with them and seeing, you know, how did you get there?
What did you do? What worked? What didn't work? What
is some of the advice that you can share? It's
not a linear path. Absolutely. And there's a lot of
(03:55):
ups and downs in anyone's journey, but I think it's
just kind of connecting and being quite proactive with the
broader blindness and low vision communities, because there are some
exceptional leaders in those spaces. In my day to day job,
I have had the opportunity to get to know quite
a few different people that are working in all sorts
of jobs everything from administrative roles, warehousing jobs all the
(04:18):
way through to executive jobs in the government and large
corporations like banks. Cybersecurity in community services in financial sector. Honestly, yeah.
Where they say where there's an internet connection, there is
a job for someone who's blind or has low vision.
But again, not to say that everyone has to have
a job in the office. Absolutely. There are an incredible
technologies now put in different environments that you can do
(04:42):
some more hands on type jobs as well. I can't
see us really driving airplanes for now, but the way
technology is going, you know, why not?
S1 (04:50):
Yeah. Who knows? One day.
S2 (04:51):
See, that is one of the options.
S1 (04:52):
Absolutely. Yeah. And people who are blind or have low vision,
they often face a few issues with perhaps self-esteem or confidence.
Or can I do the job? Am I capable? And
they have this nagging feeling in their brain, oh, you know,
I'll always be at a disadvantage in the workplace, but
how can we embrace the strengths that come with living
(05:16):
with vision loss, such as adaptability and resilience, and use
those to excel in the workplace?
S2 (05:23):
You're spot on. So as someone who is blind or
has low vision and I absolutely, I am legally blind myself.
I've acquired vision loss and I absolutely can kind of
tell a bit of a difference between the life before
and after vision loss. And like you said, Sam, the adaptability,
the flexibility, just the workarounds and the practicalities that come
with vision loss. I'd absolutely say that's been a huge
(05:45):
advantage for my own career progression. I think it's not
a one size fits all approach, but I'd say celebrating
some of the strengths that you have and absolutely like
that sense of feeling like an imposter or this is
not where I belong, or I feel like someone has
just given me this role because of XYZ, z. Not
(06:06):
because I'm talented, I've been there. So I think it's
just making the most out of any opportunity. And the
confidence will be built by sense of achievement. I'd say
just if you are starting really small, volunteering in your
local community, or even if you like, for Vision Australia,
and contributing and seeing the impact of your work and
slowly kind of starting to work towards your first job,
(06:28):
that all helps to flex those muscles of confidence and self-esteem.
So just trying to build as many as you can,
those opportunities where you can contribute and feel like you
are a part of something. And again, having all the skills, knowledge, education,
you know, right up your sleeve. I think that absolutely
helps when you step your foot in the workplace, you
(06:50):
know your jaws, you know your zoom text, you know
your white cane, how to get around you just feel
confident in that way. And no one can take that
away from you. And you know, I always say vision
loss is not the most exciting thing about me. There's
so much I can do and stuff that I've done
and the achievement of failures as well. But I'd say
having all of those definitely being quite familiar with the technology,
(07:13):
getting around and living independently, I think that's the biggest,
biggest catalyst to anyone's good, healthy confidence.
S1 (07:20):
And following on from that Vildana, there's a related kind
of thought that people might have where they might think, oh,
employers won't want to hire me because of my vision loss,
but how can we shift that narrative and help employers
recognize that talent and diverse perspectives, not eyesight, are what
(07:41):
drives success.
S2 (07:42):
It's a complex one, and different employers or even industries
are at different stages of their sort of inclusive hiring practices.
In the employment services at Vision Australia, we partner with
several different employers and some are very much advanced in
their journey of inclusive hiring. We have a pipeline pretty
(08:03):
much with some employers. I hope they will not mind
me naming them like Apple for example. We work very
directly with the talent acquisition team and they are very,
very open to accommodate. But they also want to see
the talent as they say. They really want to see
the people being hungry for the work and really wanting
to get out there and achieve. And I think it's
really building on that, showcasing those stories, but also allowing employers,
(08:27):
because often the attitudes from my experience really comes from
ignorance and not knowing what to do, what's the right
thing to do. So people do two things. Either they
say or do something inappropriate or disengage completely. What are
we trying to do? I'd say would be, can we
have a very open and confidential conversation with employers? What
(08:49):
is it that concerns you? And sometimes I know some blind,
low vision peers would go and show them how they
use technology. And it's like, this is just how I
do things. If that's what's going to change the levels
of confidence for the employer, sometimes you can point them
to different success stories or have a conversation. Arrange a coffee,
catch up with that potential employer or recruiter, and invite
(09:10):
a colleague that's really successful and has done it in
their career. There's just different ways of thinking outside of
the box, but I think as a community, I'd say
we'll have to be just open and prepared for that
conversation where people may ask a lot of potentially awkward questions,
but I think it really comes from ignorance more than anything.
S1 (09:29):
Vildana what would you say to somebody who might be thinking, oh,
I can't pursue a career in technology or fast paced industries?
How can we encourage people with vision loss to embrace
those sorts of careers? Fast paced industries like technology, finance, healthcare,
where assistive tools can level the playing field?
S2 (09:52):
Absolutely. And I've heard few senior leaders who are blind
or have low vision saying there's never been a better
time to be blind than now. And they're probably referring
to the times when they would go to blind school
versus to what it is today where the whole world
is sitting in our pocket. I'd say technology is the
biggest enabler for employment and careers. For someone who has
(10:14):
blindness or low vision. Again, be curious. Just play with
those different software applications. I mean, there's a lot of
talk around it in the community, but it's just incredible
what it can do and the way it's going to
be used in the workplace. You know, just stay on
top of that. Read, educate yourself, have a go. If
it's your first employment, try in a voluntary capacity first
(10:37):
and see how you go. There's just different ways of
cracking that tech world, but I'd say there are some
fantastic examples of people who are blind or have low vision.
Even at Vision Australia, for example, we have blind developers
or companies like Microsoft or Apple as well. Optus as well.
They some of their senior executives are people with lived
(10:57):
experience of blindness and low vision. Westpac, like all these
big banks? Absolutely. It is very possible. But it comes
back to like, what is my bag of tricks and
my bag of tools that I can use? And obviously
knowledge and those skills. Curiosity and having fun. I would
say would be probably the number one that I would
say that would be my bag of tricks.
S1 (11:16):
What about those people who might be thinking, I don't
have the confidence to go for my dream job? What
steps can be taken to build that sort of confidence?
Focusing on strengths and feeling ready to pursue a dream
job with support from career coaching and skills training.
S2 (11:36):
It's kind of chicken or egg. I don't think that
any of us go into employment super confident. I remember
when I was first starting and, you know, manager would
ask me to do something like, what the hell? And
I would just Google it. I think we partially would
have to accept to be uncomfortable with uncertainty and not
knowing that we don't know everything. I'd say, again, like
(11:56):
practicing on a smaller kind of project, let's say at
school or university or TAFE or volunteering, just flex those
muscles there. Just see how you go. It's a safe
environment for you to trial and get some feedback. Work placements, internships,
graduate programs they're all fantastic environments for someone to grow.
And there are wonderful, wonderful mentorship programs out there as
(12:19):
well that I can think of that really create that
safe space to have a conversation and trial things and
hear from different perspectives. I'd also say the dream job
is not a linear path to get to it. It's
rarely really that, yeah, I want to be a CEO
or I want to be an expert or an executive
in a bank. It's a bit of a jungle gym.
You go a bit left and right and one step
(12:41):
forward and two backwards, and then three steps ahead. And
it's never really a straight, but I think as long
as you kind of embrace it with a bit of,
like I said, a curiosity and fun and exploring and
desire to learn, I think everything will fall into place naturally.
S1 (12:56):
People perhaps might be feeling the not job ready because
they don't understand assistive technology or have independent living skills.
How can support programs and assistive technology training empower people
with vision loss to build job readiness and confidence in
both personal and professional settings, especially when they're just getting
(13:20):
their head around living with vision loss.
S2 (13:23):
It was a given.
S1 (13:24):
Yeah, no.
S2 (13:26):
It was a given. No, I absolutely agree. I'd say
with the technology, obviously there's different screen readers and magnifications. Again,
there's different programs and types of training that you can
access to help you get your skills up. Obviously you
can just YouTube things. You can also ask your best
friend AI assistant, because they can also point to and
(13:46):
give you some really good tips around the access technology.
But what it comes down to that it can. Absolutely.
For example, if you're looking for an office type job,
you can still use pretty much the same level as
your sighted peers. The computer navigate entire Microsoft Suite via voice,
and that means you can still produce those reports. So
you can analyze spreadsheets purely because it's a different way
(14:10):
of doing things. But it's absolutely possible. And it opens
up doors of million new opportunities. That would be something
that I would absolutely encourage anyone. But also I've had
clients would say, I'm not looking for an office type job.
You still have to communicate. You still have to, you know,
reply to messages, emails, register with myGov websites and whatnot.
(14:32):
So having those technology skills up your sleeve, I think
it's the best way forward in life to stay connected
as well. And I get it's a huge change. And
I'll never forget when I started losing my vision. Like
just a change from a regular book, like a paper
book through to audio book was a huge thing for me. Like,
how do I even enjoy something? But then you start slowly.
(14:53):
And I started with stories, listening to stories, and then
progressed to a book and novels and who's to stop
me now? And I'm multitasking, you know, I'm having my
audiobook on the go, and I'm preparing meals for my
family or just on the train. and I think it's
just embracing the technology that's available and is rapidly becoming
more and more available there, and independent living skills like,
(15:14):
oh my God, I'm fiercely independent, but I'd say it's
something that I would love for all of our community
to strive for. And going back to that question of confidence, right.
So you're having, you know, a tea break with your
colleagues at work. Everyone made themselves a cup of tea. Absolutely.
Why would you ask for help? Because you are perfectly
capable to do that with the right tools or strategies.
You can absolutely do it. Or getting to and from work.
(15:36):
It's a good way also to kind of leave the
day behind. I know when I catch the tram home,
it's a good day to leave a day behind and
observe people and listen out for people on the tram
and just get ready for the next installment of my day,
which is the family life. So I'd say anything that
would allow you or enable you to take agency back
that power back, just make the most out of it.
(15:57):
Really just make the most out of it. Use it,
learn it, educate yourself, be curious, have fun, play. And
I think Yeah, that would really take you to that
place where you see yourself fondly.
S1 (16:09):
Vildana what would you say for people who might think
I need perfect vision to lead or manage a team,
how can we inspire people with vision loss to see
themselves as effective leaders, showing that skills like communication, motivation
and strategy matter more than perfect eyesight?
S2 (16:29):
Absolutely and honestly, employers, they say the people they always
look for a person with a right attitude rather than
incredible resume and qualification. Because if you think about it,
we're moving into the time where there's a lot of specialization,
but also there's a lot of certain things or certain
professions that are required to do only certain tasks. But
a lot of technologies making it to be streamlined or automated,
(16:52):
and where the real shortage is coming into that sort
of strategic generalist type roles. And I think if you
think about it like having that strategic foresight, learning how
to communicate, and I think Linus should never really get
in the way of striving for bigger and better. I
know often we've seen that people who are blind or
(17:13):
have low vision are usually given entry level roles, and
it's difficult to progress through career, but I honestly say
absolutely work towards it if that's what you want to do.
And if you want to get into the leadership positions,
executive positions, go for it. There's a lot of, I'd say,
perceived barriers, but there's also a lot of open places
that are willing to kind of embrace diversity and disability.
(17:36):
And I'd say, yeah, just make the most out of
it and strive and dream for big. It's a tricky
one because I always think, like, how do you say
something to people? And I'm thinking like, oh, will this
kind of sound that we are positioning or shifting all
the blame or the all the ways of employment or
unemployment is sitting now with people who are blind or
(17:56):
have low vision. It's like that social model of disability.
Like how do you challenge that? And yeah, is it
controversial to say that we also have to do hard
work to advocate for change and showcase who we are,
not just to sit and not feel good about the
employers or the world out there. So that's where I
struggle with.
S1 (18:14):
Yeah, no, that's certainly something to think about. And a
really interesting note to end on. So a huge thank
you to Vildana for joining us today. Sometimes we just
need to hear from somebody else that a myth is
just that a myth. And we're strong enough to beat them.
This podcast is accessible on all major podcast platforms, so
(18:37):
remember to like, subscribe and share it with your friends.
Simply search for Vision Australia's The Career Path to find
this episode and the rest of the series. Career path
has been funded by the Department of Social Services. Vildana
thank you so much for your time today. It was
great to catch up with you and dispel all the
(18:58):
different range of myths faced by the blind and low
vision community in the workforce.
S2 (19:05):
Thank you Sam. Thanks for the opportunity.
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