Are there any jobs for a paralyzed or disabled person?

 

 

 

As a Physical Therapist I meet some amazing people who overcome obstacles and adversity living life to the fullest.

I see a common theme when a person sustains a tragic accident resulting in a disability.  As the medical bills pile up the person gets more and more sick to their stomach wondering how in the world they will earn income to simply survive.

I can remember working at a hopital as a Physical Therapy Doctoral student with an awesome young Marine who is paralyzed.  For privacy I’ll call him Mike.  Mike had the coolest hospital room in the whole building.

He had the big flat screen TV, sporst jerseys were hanging on the wall.  The bikini clad models were eyeing him from his walls and his friends and family smiled at him from pictures adorning his TV stand.

He hated the hospital smells and anyone entering his room would be greeted be pleasant aromas from air fresheners.

I loved working with Mike and anytime I would have to pass by his room I would pop in to say hello and share some laughs or just listen.

One question Mike had to answer for himself was probably the toughest question he ever had to face.

“Now what?”

As a Doctor of Physical Therapy that question was the hardest one.  Harder than any exam question, harder than any question from a professor during a presentation, harder than my licensing exam.

It was harder because I had no good answer.

How could I answer a question when I was not in that situation.  I could only imagine the feeling of having your whole life planned out and in the blink of an eye having the rug ripped out from underneath you and being left to wonder, “Now what?”

Mike, had been an amazing athlete and was attending college on scholarships.

Mike had served our country proudly in Afghanistan as a Marine and came home safe and sound.

Unfortunately one day during his Christmas break he was driving down the road.  He hit a patch of sand which sent his car out of control.  He was not wearing a seatbelt and he came off the seat hitting his head on the interior roof of the car fracturing his C5 and C6 vertebrae.

Now Mike who had plans to complete college and continue playing sports was paralyzed and he had to make some new plans.

I wanted to help Mike so bad and didn’t know how.  He was concerned about his increasing medical bills, his care when leaving the hospital, how he would get around, how he would pay for continued care and medications.

Something clicked for me when I saw a common sight upon entering his room each day.

I would hear the sports casters or movies being played on his big screen TV but when I entered he would not be watching.  It was usually on as background noise to drown out the often scary sounds of a hospital.

When I would walk in he would be on his laptop surfing the internet.

He had difficulty with fine motor tasks and had trouble moving his arms so he was using an amazing software that used voice recognition to move his mouse around the screen, type emails, surf the web and anything else he needed to do on his computer.

Being involved in network marketing I realized that he had everything in that little hospital room he needed to build a million dollar business a phone and a computer.

Most importantly he had the motivation.

I stayed in contact with Mike when he left the hospital and when I shared with him, how he could build a million dollar business with a computer and a phone he was amazed.

He realized it was not a get rich quick opportunity but through training and mentoring from me and my team’s awesome leaders he could be financially free.

The satisfaction I received from working with Mike opened my eyes to the huge need in helping people with disabilities of any kind to provide for themselves and their families.

A mother or father who sustains a tragedy can continue to provide for their family.  They can earn 5 even 10 times the income they were earning before as long as they have four things.

1. Computer

2. Phone

3. Determination

4. Mentoring

It is now my mission and passion in life to combine my Business Degree and my Physical Therapy degree and guide people with disabilities to achieve financial freedom.

I tell everyone who asks for guidance and mentoring that the journey they are about to embark on is not a get rich quick opportunity.  It will require determination, hard work, persistance and a no quit attitude.

To find out what a computer, phone, determination and mentoring can give you, click the picture below with my buddy Jason OTToole and his $1 million dollar bonus to see what anyone can achieve with the right leadership.