GUEST BLOGGER: Finding the Career that Can Work with Your Illness

Have you asked for flex time because of invisible chronic illness symptoms – and not gotten it? Emily, who blogs on Finding Equilibrium, did so and when she couldn’t get what she needed, she quit her job to work on her own in a virtual capacity. That was a big move for her. She regretted that her company couldn’t/wouldn’t meet her needs to work from home.

One person who commented on her blog noted he thinks that working for yourself (freelance) is becoming a “movement.” That could be true.

But only for people who meet at least two criteria:  

·    You need to have the right kind of skills that transfer to virtual work. Unfortunately, that’s not an option in many careers/jobs.  

·     You need to be able to afford or have access to health insurance (and other benefits).  

When we wrote our book, “Women Work and Autoimmune Disease: Keep Working, Girlfriend!”, we explored the multiple issues around staying employed as well as the advantages to self employment. I’m self employed, as is my co-author, Joan Friedlander.  But we know the pitfalls and we’re not suggesting that working for yourself is easy or necessarily feasible for everyone.

So, here are my suggestions before you leave your current job. Ask yourself:

1.       Have I thought about all of the ways that I could do this job differently and still get the job done?

2.  Have I talked with as many people as possible about this to get different perspectives - - maybe learn something I’ve missed -  – about doing my job differently?

3.  Have I taken my ideas with “solutions” to the right person/people to get feedback and/ or agreement?

If you’re saying yes to the above and still believe you need to make changes, then consider this:

·    Is there something else that you could do in this company/organization that might require training or a step back in responsibilities or salary but would be better for you for the long run? 

·    Is there something else that you could do in another company/organization that might require training or a step back in responsibilities or salary that would be better for you in the long run?

·    Do you believe that you can stay employed (work for another) or do you believe that you’d be better off self employed?

No one can predict how a chronic illness or disease symptoms will behave in the future. You’d need a crystal ball. But you don’t have to leave it all to chance. You can develop those skills that will make you as marketable as possible so you can have as many options as possible.

My advice to Emily is to continue working hard on developing her skills. Regardless of her future career decisions, this gives her more leverage.
When you live with invisible chronic illness, it’s easy to become overwhelmed with difficult symptoms, difficult doctors and difficult employers — and forget about thinking strategically for your long term career health.

Don’t let that happen to you. 

National Invisible Chronic Illness Awareness Week is an invaluable experience for all who participate and a fantastic way to promote the issues that people with chronic illness face.

Building on her experience living with chronic illnesses, including multiple sclerosis and ulcerative colitis, Rosalind Joffe founded the career coaching practice, cicoach.com (http://cicoach.com). Dedicated to helping others with chronic illness develop the skills they need to succeed in their careers, Rosalind firmly believes that living with chronic illness does not preclude living a full and successful life. Rosalind Joffe is the published author of “Women, Work and Autoimmune Disease: Keep Working, Girlfriend!” and recognized national expert on chronic illness in the workplace.