It is becoming known that mental illness is a major public health issue. Psychological and emotional disorders are second highest in filings for Social Security Disability, with back trouble being first. 20 percent of all people in the US will experience a diagnosed mental illness within their lifetimes. Work associates, families, and friends of people with psychological disorders are also majorly affected.
There is general lack of awareness of how to protect one's mental health. So much anguish could be avoided -- in the family and in the workplace, which are the two places most of the problems occur -- if more were known about how to protect our own mental health. One way to make workplaces safer for mental health is by having Harassment-Free Policies which work. Regular, trainings which are required for all workers in the workplace. That's 100%, and would include managers, all staff, professionals, business owners, independent contractors, full- and part-time workers. Every person and locale where the organization does business is included in the trainings and harassment free coverage. Trainings are major part of making these policies work. Threat of changing departments, jobs, or being fired are the other part. As the workplace becomes more benign over the years, I believe that people will begin to accept this as "the way things are," as now our society accepts the drunk driving and indoor clean air laws, which some 20 years ago were so adamantly resisted.
Another way an oppression-free life would be for people to choose the jobs that they like to do. Two things that could make this possible are freedom of choice, plus the skill and information about how to find or create appropriate work.
Everyone wants a life of "freedom." To many, this means freedom from oppression. Oppression is rampant in dysfunctional families and dysfunctional workplaces.
Oppression boils down to three basic things: physical and emotional pain; and untimely or unjust death. Threat or fear of these things can lead to psychological disorders. Therefore, job safety, and people feeling safe, trusting that they are safe, is extremely important in protecting our mental health.
In order to avoid the pain of oppression, we need to have basic needs met. This means in the workplace, too. Some of these are, of course, health-giving food, water and shelter. Others are loving and safe relationships. Freedom of choice and to be ourselves. Ability to express our emotions in safe ways, such as the creative arts. An understanding of Nature and how the Earth's processes work.
We hear of other countries' providing gyms and games for their workers' lunch hours and breaks. I've had the privilege of working in a few places where friends got together and played cards for fun, or did handwork together like knitting, crocheting or embroidery.
Activities like these form great friendships, and can serve to prevent workplace abuse such as bullying, forced overtime, impossible workloads, and speedups. They're inexpensive, too. They're alcohol- and tobacco-free and leave evenings open for families and off-work friends and activities so people don't become "married to their job."
So, is it really possible for people to choose their own jobs? I think it is. This can be accomplished by having trained job developers and job coaches to help people identify what they are best suited for and enjoy.
Job developers and coaches have been working successfully with disabled people for many years. But the general public is unaware of what these people can do! If everyone had access to one, we'd all have the job of our dreams. I have had the great privilege of working with two job developers/coaches during the past five years. As a result I have found a workplace and a job I can do with great pleasure and enthusiasm.
Some people might ask: "But what about somebody who wants to be an astrophysicist and doesn't know how to do math?" Let me tell you an example of something like that, which worked out beautifully.
A job developer had a new client who wanted to be an airline pilot. The man was developmentally disabled. But the job developer did not express dismay or embarrassment when the man told him of this dream job. The job developer invited his client to visit the airport with him. Of course, they had a wonderful time!! They walked all around, rode the escalator, walked many places at the airport and discussed what they saw. After a few such visits, the job developer figured out that his client just wanted to be around airplanes .
From there, it was easy. The job developer talked to the personnel department at the airport, and described his client's strengths, and together they found him a job -- washing airplanes. Washing the wheels was his favorite thing to do. He worked there for many years, and for all I know he still works there!
In my own case, I found that being an employee is not for me. I get stifled, and absolutely cannot handle the inter-personal political stuff in an organization. So I am a consultant -- an independent contractor. I am fortunate that I have two degrees and a lot of experience and training. I have been able to swing myself several great jobs. If one ends, no big deal -- I can always find another small job.
I also won't fill out job applications or write resumes. Even though when I used to do that, I would go over the top in the list of candidates. There are other ways to the same goal of getting meaningful work done. I love writing prospectuses, bids, small grant proposals, will gladly put together a portfolio, do an on-site evaluation or trial work day.
In my case, this was not an easy task to figure out. It took years of experimentation, and quitting jobs. It seemed like everywhere I went, it was like trying to fit a square peg into a round hole. But now, I am thriving, working many hours on my home computer, coming and going at work on my own schedule, setting up appointments as convenient for people, writing quarterly reports, and working successfully to expand my work into a much bigger department. We anticipate more independent contractors, and some employees, working in the same area of consulting I do in the organization. Had I not figured out what I love to do, these other people would not have jobs, or contract work, either.
There are so many possibilities, but I never could have done this without a job developer.
I have seen this sort of thing work over and over. Once when I taught Kindergarten, and each child chose their own classroom task on a biweekly basis. Some chose Class President, others chose Building Blocks Manager. Some chose Librarian, which was putting the books neatly away every day. One Librarian never deviated from her job. For the entire year, every other week, she was class Librarian.
One boy who was Building Blocks Manager for 9 months, decided in the last week of school, that he wanted to be Class President. This amounted to facilitating the Show and Tell time, and ringing my pretty little brass bell to keep order. He was a very emotionally fragile child, who almost never spoke, and would occasionally back-hand another child for no apparent reason. But I loved him, and the kids respected him and treated him with kindness.
The week he chose Class President, each morning I asked if he wanted to do his job by himself, or if he would like some help. For the first four days, he wanted help, and chose the smartest, most outgoing boy in the class to sit by him in Show and Tell. Still the official Class President did not speak, but he rang the little bell.
The fifth day, he led the Show and Tell alone. He spoke, calling on the other kids to get up and tell their news, like he had always done it. Remembering the admiration the other kids gave him that day still brings tears to my eyes. They were silent and respectful, never interrupted, and stood up right "on key." They made it plain they knew how much this meant to him, and how hard he worked to achieve this in his life, and how proud they were of him. I bet the courage of this five year old boy taught us all a lot, that day.
Adults can do it, too. There is always something new to try.
So finding Job Developers and making them available throughout communities to help people identify what they love, and create it for themselves, is a major first step towards freeing our people from oppression, and protecting our own mental health.
