April Newsletter

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Another Milestone
Every few years, the TIE THAT BINDS passes another milestone. This issue, besides being the annual April Fools issue is also the 150th issue. I like to celebrate these milestones by taking the month off and re-printing articles that stirred responses from the readers.
Burnout
Job coaching is difficult. There is weekend work, evening work, isolation, high skill requirements and low pay. The rewards are often slow in coming and not recognized by others. Supervisors of job coaches need to keep things in mind:
· Personally provide back up support and show that you care.
· Communicate with staff what job coaches are doing.
· Send coaches to training.
· Look for ways to suggest they use the compensatory time they have earned.
· Attend networking meetings.
· Give coaches responsibility.
Zeal is a characteristic that all good job coaches share. When zeal fades, supervisors will need other tools to keep their staff from turning over.
Originally published November 1996
Quota Law
French law requires that businesses of more than 20 employees have 6% representation of workers with disabilities or face a penalty. In 1992, 40% of the businesses paid the tax. The money collected went to a fund to advance the employment opportunities of people with disabilities.
Originally published December of 1996
Ivory Soap
Many of you may remember that Ivory Soap advertised that it was 99.9% pure. It was so pure it floated. Many companies adopted that rule of thumb. We can’t be perfect but we are as good as it can get. If 99.9% is good enough, then…
· 12 newborns will be given to the wrong parents…daily
· 2.5 million books will have the wrong
covers on them.
· 291 pacemaker operations will be
performed incorrectly
· 6 words on the front page of the Knoxville News Sentinel will be misspelled.
· 2.5 million cases of Coke produced will be flat.
· HOW MANY PEOPLE WILL BE PLACED IN INAPPROPRIATE JOBS?
This was adapted from an idea from Joel Barker’s book Future Edge.
Originally published August 1997
My Job Coach
As I travel around East Tennessee I enjoy the hospitality of the agencies I work with and am invited in to meet with some job seekers. One of the first questions I ask the job seeker is how their job coaches help them. Some responses are that the job coach understands the meaning of work for me, does not place me on a job, and helps me become connected, not dependent.
Many times we do not hear the thanks and gratitude for the job we do. But, we are making a difference in people’s lives.
Originally published September 1997
HOPE
From the book, Hope For the Terminal Generation a person can live 40 days without food, 3 days without water and 8 minutes without air.
This got me thinking about my work, your work and work in general. The one thing that all of us provide in supported employment is “hope.” What happens to those that do not have hope or we cannot reach?
My other thought about hope is related to the mindset of many of our programs and agencies. Do we exist without hope? Is work becoming a daily grind of existing and not providing hope? Do we see the future and there is no hope in it?
We need to continue to work and provide services to people, trusting that what we do is the correct thing to do and valued by others.
Originally published January 2000
Cost Effective
The American Society for Training and Development estimates that the cost of training a new employee is $150,000 (that’s not a mistake by me). The average cost for providing a mentor is somewhere near $500 per employee. The drawback is time involved by the mentor. The advantage is a valued relationship is created. Mentors give corporations visibility to mentees and mentors get to showcase their knowledge and experience.
Originally published April 2000
Informed Choice
How can people make good choices about work, if they don’t have adequate information?
Here is a little quiz to pick the next leader of the country.
Candidate A: Consults astrologers, has 2 mistresses, chain smokes and drinks 8 to 10 martinis a day.
Candidate B: Kicked out of college twice, sleeps until noon, used opium in college and drinks a quart of brandy each evening.
Candidate C: Decorated war hero, vegetarian, doesn’t smoke, has an occasional beer and married his lover.
Without adequate information you may make the wrong choice. The same thing happens when we assist people in finding jobs. Without adequate information, they could choose the wrong one.
Originally published February 2001.

A. FDR B. Churchill C. Hitler
Bill Gates Speaks
From his book Business@The Speed of Thought, Bill Gates talks about the eleven rules of business that are not taught in high school or college.
1. Life is not fair, get used to it.
2. The world doesn’t care about your self esteem. The world will expect you to accomplish something before you feel good about yourself.
3. You will not earn $40,000 right out of high school. You won’t be a vice-president with a car phone, until you earn both.
4. If you think your teacher was tough, wait until you meet your boss. Your boss does not have tenure.
5. Flipping burgers is not beneath your dignity. Your grandparents had a different word for burger flipping, they called it opportunity.
6. Your school may have done away with winners and losers, but life has not.
Originally published in November 2001
HOWI
Cary Griffin from Montana talks about HOWI. That is Hanging Out With Intent. The intent is to get to know the individual in an environment they are the most comfortable in. We may call it Discover or the Discovery Process, but you are getting to know the individual better.
Some providers have a formal intake process and get to know the person in that setting. Others have a computer generated form and the staff and individual work together to fill it out.
Can you get the same information in a clearer, concise picture by hanging out and conversing, the same way you would with a friend? We don’t meet new friends by sitting down with a clipboard and pen, filling out a form.
We should have an idea of questions we want to ask and interweave those questions in the conversation we are having with the job seeker.
Originally published December 2003

Dr. Spock, Mr. Spock and SPOC
Some of us grew up and were influenced by Dr. Spock. He spoke and we listened. Later on in life there was Mr. Spock on Star Trek. He spoke and we all listened to his well thought out logic. Now there is SPOC- Single Point Of Contact, a term we knew about but never put the letters together to spell out a word of significance.
Now the business leaders through their Business Advisory Councils, Placement Consortia and Leadership Networks are saying they want one point of contact. Are the community rehabilitation providers (CRPs) listening? Can they get their act together and provide a unified front and approach? Can they provide a unified service, a service that the business will feel comfortable in using? Contact your Corporate Connections Account Representative to see what is happening in your area on this issue.
Originally published in July 2004
Survey Says
At the APSE Conference in July 2005, Neil Romano of America’s Strength Foundation talked about disabilities and the community’s perception. So what do we know about the general population’s beliefs about disabilities?
v 44% believe they have a family member with a disability.
v 71% have worked with a person with a disability.
v 73% have been served or waited on by a person with a disability.
v 99% were satisfied with the service. This is way above the norm.
v 88% say they do business with businesses that hire people with disabilities.
Originally published August 2005
Supportive or Supported
During an interview, an applicant for a consultant position made it clear to me the difference between Supportive Employment and Supported Employment.


Supportive Employment usually includes:
I am behind you all the way.
Call me, if you need me.
You can use me as a reference.
Supported Employment usually includes
establishing a mentor on the job site,
procuring necessary adaptive equipment,
helping a person write a resume and.
helping a person arrange transportation.
As you look at the differences, it is apparent that Supported Employment is more action oriented and involved in the employment process. Supportive Employment is more like giving lip service to the person and the process.
Originally published February 2006

What’s It All About?
You are a job developer, what’s it all about?
It’s all about the community. Or at least who you know and who knows you.
It’s all about integrity. Don’t make promises you can’t keep.
It’s all about opportunity. Get your foot in the door.
It’s all about knowledge. Make sure you know the job seeker and the employer.
It’s all about your attitude. High expectations are contagious.
It’s all about the job seeker. You need to present the skills and abilities of the job seeker.
It’s all about the support. This can be support at work or support surrounding employment.
It’s all about long term success. Do you have an exit plan that enables the job seeker to accommodate changes?
Originally published January 2007
Mike Sass
531 Henley Street
Suite 520
Knoxville, TN 37902
865-594-6720 Ext 1150
Fax: 865-594-6535
Email: mikesass@utk.edu
www.cde.tennessee.edu.

The University of Tennessee is an EEO/AA/Title VI/Title IX/ Section 504/ADA/ADEA institution in the provision of its education and employment programs and services. This publication is sponsored in part by contract # ED-09-25258-00 from the TN Division of Rehabilitation Services to The University of Tennessee. Conclusions and opinions in this newsletter do not necessarily reflect those of the TN DRS or the University.

The Danger of Thinking
It started out innocently enough. I began to think at parties now and then to loosen up. Inevitably one thought led to another and I became more than a social thinker.

I began to think alone, you know to relax. I knew that wasn’t true. Thinking became more and more important to me. Finally I was thinking all the time.

I began to think on the job. I know thinking and employment don’t mix, but I couldn’t stop.

I began to avoid friends at lunch, so I could read Thoreau or Emerson. I would return to my cubicle dizzy and confused. I began to question, “What am I doing here?”

Things weren’t going well at home, either. One night I turned the TV off and asked my wife about the meaning of life. She spent the night at her mother’s.

I soon had a reputation as a heavy thinker. One day my boss called me in. He said that I had a real thinking problem. If I didn’t stop thinking I was going to have to find work elsewhere. This really gave me something to think about!!

I went home early. “Honey, I confess, I’ve been thinking….”
“I know you’ve been thinking and I want a divorce,” she replied.
“It can’t be that serious,” I replied.

“It is serious,” she said, with her lower lip quivering. “You think as much as college professors and they don’t make much money. If you keep thinking, we won’t have much money, either.”
“That’s faulty syllogism,” I said impatiently. I got in my car and headed for the library. I was in the mood for some good Nietzche. The PBS radio station had some lively commentary.

The library was closed. To this day I believe it was because of a Higher Power. As I sank to the ground whimpering for Zarathustra, a poster caught my eye. “Friend, is heavy thinking ruining your life?” You may recognize that line from the standard Thinkers Anonymous poster.

That’s why I am here today, a recovering thinker.
I never miss a TA meeting. At each meeting we have a non-educational video. Last week the movie was “Porky’s”. Then we share our experiences and how to avoid thinking.

I still have my job and my life at home is a lot better. Life just seems... easier, somehow, since I stopped thinking.

Originally published in August of 1997