Speaking About Work

 

This guy again

Earlier this week, I spoke as a panelist with others from LiveWorkPlay for a presentation called "Learning From Our Mistakes: Moving Towards Real Inclusive Employment" for the Disability and Work in Canada virtual conference.

I'd been invited to be a speaker a few months ago when I attended LiveWorkPlay's end-of-summer barbecue. 

Over the past month, I'd been in touch with people from LiveWorkPlay, learning more about the event and what they wanted me to talk about, then doing a practice run last week. The practice went well, with the only critique being that I could include more about my background and work history.

The day of the event, there were nerves, but not as much as with past presentations (the virtual format helped a little). There were also technical difficulties with Zoom, which were a little annoying. But, everything settled and corrected itself just in time for the panel to start.

The first presenter was one of the leads of LiveWorkPlay's employment program, and spoke a little about their history, practices, and the relationship between clients, employers, and the organization in respect to accommodations. Very interesting and informative, and nice to hear as a client.

I was up next. 

I was asked to give some examples of times during my employment journey when I've received help from LiveWorkPlay and the job coaches. I spoke about wanting help to ask for more hours with PSPC, landing the job with CanNor, and how LiveWorkPlay helped me get my contract extended to CanNor's Communications branch, emphasizing how much I enjoy the position, and how it is a much better fit with my talents and background. 

As soon as I was done speaking, I immediately thought of something I should've lead with, but that happens...

Other panelists spoke about accommodations, hiring processes, and moving towards better inclusion. Afterwards, there was a brief Q&A with some pretty interesting questions.

The following day at work, I learnt that my manager sent a couple notices about the presentation around CanNor, catching the welcome attention of several senior staff members, which I thought was nice. I was also able to brag a little on a team meeting later in the morning.

A couple little bumps, but things went really well for my first time speaking in almost five years. A huge thanks to the folks at LiveWorkPlay for inviting me to share.

Cheers!