• Intro to Vocational Rehabilitation
  • How VR Helps in Employment
  • What is section 121
• Vocational Counseling
  • Tips from the Field
  • Counselors as Leaders - 7 Traits
  • 7 Critical Traits (continued)
• School to Work Transition
  • The Beginning
  • Preparing Youth for VR
  • Writing a Transition Plan
  • Transition Plan Specifics
  • Academic Instruction
  • Transition Links
• Individual Plan of Employment
  • Setting a Goal
  • Factors to Consider
  • Services on the IPE
  • Developing Job Skills
  • Work & Professionalism
• Services Under IPE
  • Soft Skills: Becoming employable
  • Job Analysis & Job Carving
    • Job Analysis Example # 1
    • Mary's Job
    • Job Analysis Example #2
    • Job Carving
  • Occupational Therapy
  • Spectrum of Services
• Difficult Clients
  • Understanding Difficult People
  • Non-working lifestyle
  • Fear & Hopelessness
  • Fear, Hopelessness & VR
  • Fear & Hopelessness (cont.)
  • Fear & Hopelessness, Part III
  • Clients Don't Want to Work
• Legal Rights
  • Individuals with Disabilities Education Act
    • Legal Rights - IDEA
    • Allan's Story
    • IDEA - Later Changes
    • IDEA links
  • Section 504
    • Accommodations & Modifications
    • Accommodations VS Modifications
• Self-Advocacy
  • Steps to Self-Advocacy
  • Tools of the Trade
• Resources
  • Spirit Lake Resources
  • Under-used Resources
  • VR Links

Fear, Hopelessness and VR (continued)

2. They are scared.
Another book we strongly recommend, although it is somewhat depressing, is "The Working Poor: Invisible in America". The author gives an example of a young woman whose case worker has set up an interview for her as a sales clerk. The young woman does not go to the interview because she did not know the bus schedule, was sure they would not hire someone like her, didn't think she could get to work on time and besides she was sure you wouldn't like sales. The author, David Shipler, states it plainly. Many people who are chronically unemployed "are terrified". Whether people admit it or not, we find that to be true. Change is always scary and even more frightening if it involves working around people of another race, with whom you are really not comfortable, if you are sure you will fail, that people won't like you, that your co-workers will look down on you, that you won't know what to do, where to go, who can help you - I am getting nervous just thinking about it.

WHAT TO DO:
On the job, a job coach working with the individual for the first week or so can be helpful. Here is a designated person she knows who can help her. Include individual counseling on the IPE, if possible.

A supportive job training program may help. As a VR counselor, get to know the programs to which you refer people. If you have a program like the one described in Shipler's book, where instructors are committed to seeing that students "have a success a day", that would be perfect. One where the instructors are proud of how tough they are and are comfortable stating that they have a high dropout rate as proof of their high standards is not a good choice.

Write small steps into the IPE and reinforce the client with every success.

For individuals who have a substance abuse problem, a licensed addiction counselor may help with counseling to develop self-esteem as well as other issues. For the addiction counseling program on the Spirit Lake Nation call (701) 766-4285.