Who We Are
It has become evident over the years that in many situations in life that person's living with a disability have often been overlooked, particularly in employment opportunities. Since April 1st of 2007 Career & Employment Youth Services has become the service delivery provider for the Abilities Project, and we have been working with people from Brandon and the surrounding rural communities within the Southwest Region of Manitoba in providing opportunities of where getting back into the workforce within their own communities is the priority.
Our services under this project are not limited to any catchment age category, and we strive to offer our employment assistant services free of charge throughout the surrounding Southwestern Region of Manitoba.
The Abilities Project for persons with disabilities is an employment-based program geared to assist clients in pursuing an active goal within the workforce. The objective of the Abilities Project is to generate innovative activities that help person's living with a disability prepare for, obtain and keep employment or self-employment.
For more information or to find out how you can be involved with the Abilities Project, please call Jason at 571-8804.
Whats New
Remember to check out the Upcoming Events news on the Resources Screen for interesting workshops and opportunities.
Strategic Job Search Tip:
Change your approach from "seeking work" to "hiring yourself the right employer"!
Deciding to take a job is a huge commitment because it requires an investment of your most precious resources - your time and your talent. The ways in which you might apply your skills and abilities are as varied as the contexts and environment in which you see them. There is no way you could comprehend at this point the possible number of scenerios or avenues in which you might put your gifts to work in the world. Obviously, those possibilities will be filtered by the way in which you approach looking for work. Some will limit themselves to what they find advertised in the newspaper or posed on the web, others will work to uncover the many opportunities that lie in the "hidden job market". Some will target specific employers for whom they have a keen interest, while others will do mass mailings and await response from whomever finds interest in them. Regardless of the way you go about looking for work, it is important to realize that as you open one door by accepting a job offer, you are closing the door on countless other potential opportunities. This is no small decision, and it should be treated as on.
In order to increase your chances of making a good employment decision, you need to have a sold grasp of what "good" means to you! Depending on your situation, the "right job" may be all about getting your foot in the door of the industry of your dreams, or it may be about getting income in your pocket in order to make next month's rent. For some, it is about the opportunity to learn certain skills or to be trained in a particular capacity, while for others it is about the social or cultural environment. Being within walking distance to where you live could be your top priority, but maybe it's more about being about to connect with people in your neighbourhood.
Before you begin targeting and interviewing with employers, identify what you really need and want most in a position and in an employer. Ask questions which help you determine whether or not you would want to hire this company as your employer. Until you have identified your priorities and know your bottom lines, you are not in a good position to negotiate or to make good employment decisions. You're not a beggar on the street with cap in hand, erady to take any job that someone happens to toss your way. You are a person with a unique set of abilities, gifts, and attributes and it matters where you decide to invest your time and talent. From that perspective, you are not simply seeking work, you are out to hire yourself the right employer!