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Success Stories in Self-Employment
Participant One
Russ Charnell had been a construction worker prior to his vision loss. When he applied for services, he already had a kernel of an idea about being a massage therapist. To prepare for the training, he started a regimen of reading books on tape, getting extra time to take tests, tutoring, etc. He also had to take his GED test. Happily, he passed his GED with flying colors, and that success really encouraged him.
He wanted to work with people; he wanted to work with his hands; and he wanted to work as a professional. He felt that growing up he had never been encouraged and supported in getting an education, or in looking at anything other than construction work as an employment option.
Then Russ entered the massage therapy training program at Seattle Massage School and got excellent grades and reviews. His family was very supportive of the idea of him opening his own business and was willing to provide capital for setting up a clinic. (The family gave funds for renovating a site and buying furnishings. DSB provided a massage table, a computer with access for tracking his appointments and charting his patients’/clients’ records, related software, and a CCTV.)
Many things helped Russ succeed. First of all, Russ had a real entrepreneurial spirit. He really wanted to own his own business, and he was willing to put a lot of legwork into researching the market. (Russ and his counselor spent a lot of time talking about the fact that the job market for massage therapists in the Seattle area was really swollen with people, and that competition for those few good jobs was really intense. Russ knew that he would have to look at his potential market carefully.)
He then built his customer base and increased his exposure by offering free massages for the first month he was open. He joined the Chamber of Commerce, attended meetings religiously, and handed out his business card. He figured out a way to be the massage therapist for several tennis tournaments that came to Seattle. In short, he had an instinctive grasp of marketing and of how to develop a business. About 18 months later, he was employing two part-time massage therapists, and he had moved to larger, more centrally located quarters.
Participant Two
Susan Phillips wanted a self-employment plan to expand a small business that she was already involved in. She was teaching ESL classes to Japanese businessmen and their wives and families from her home. Susan had lived with her husband in Japan for several years and spoke Japanese quite well. In addition to teaching English, she also taught her students about American culture, American business etiquette, etc. She wanted to expand her business, do more marketing, develop better marketing materials, and track her students’ progress more effectively. To do this she felt she needed a computer with access.
Her self-employment plan included taking some additional computer courses, taking classes in small business management at the local community college, and brushing up on some of her adaptive skills. She completed her plan, and the last we heard she was still successful in her business.
Participant Three
Betty Wason, a former war correspondent, came to DSB for support of her work toward publishing a book about Macular Degeneration. Betty had authored 24 books over a career of 60-some years, but she had recently been diagnosed as legally blind and was left in a new situation. She had a completed prospectus of the book and a contract with the publishing company, Hunter House. She not only had a complete business plan but showed strong initiative by getting support from another organization. DSB granted her request for reader/driver funding as she finished her research, writing and marketing of the book after publication. Betty Wason also appeared in a Seattle Times feature article.
Narrative Television Network (NTN)
NTN was launched in 1988 from a makeshift sound booth in James Stovall’s basement. The Tulsa, Oklahoma company creates soundtracks describing actions, settings, and other visual elements of film and television programming to make these media accessible to persons who are blind or visually impaired. Stovall conceived the idea for audio-described programming after he lost his sight at age 29 and found that he could no longer follow a favorite movie.
Stovall consulted technical experts, who discouraged him from pursuing what they regarded as an impossible venture. Stovall persevered, using equipment borrowed from a local company and the limited eyesight of partner Kathy Harper, who is legally blind. Harper labored to watch the television monitor and to write the scripts for each production. From the scripts, she recited lines to Stovall, who narrated them between sets of dialogue.
Today, a staff of seven operates NTN, which reaches 25 million homes around the globe. The network has achieved annual sales in excess of $6 million.
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