Empowerment

Has Independent Living failed to deliver?

Independent Living has been hailed has one of the greatest achievements of the Disabled People’s movement, but has it failed to deliver for the majority of dysabled people in 2016? While there is no doubt independent living policies have benefited those who had the determination to live independently, like myself, I am unsure if it has changed many of the attitudinal barriers that creates social and emotional institutionalisation.

I believe that having a personal assistant, relevant equipment, good housing and everything else people need as ingredients of inclusion does not automatically make someone emotionally and socially independent. 38% of Independent Living Fund packages were managed by parents, as opposed to just 28% being directly managed. It is also worth noting that only 0.67% of users were in paid employment. While it is difficult to make any major conclusions on these facts, it has to question the rosy and defensive picture many activists still paint about the fund.

We should never stop fighting for the ingredients mentioned above, and people often assume I am suggesting they are not needed, but this is not enough for real inclusion. The final ingredient comes from within in terms of self-motivation, self-belief and personal responsibility. I believe it is rarely the case that people lack this ingredient, but that due to the often institutionalising environment around them, it has become deeply buried within levels of learned passivity. They may need support to find themselves and reach their hidden potential.

I would argue that the environmental ingredients, like an accessible built environment, are in place, or at least the moral argument has been won. Endlessly fighting for better environmental factors will not stop dysabled people from learning to be passive, especially when they lack the barriers of yesteryear. It is time those who claim to care about dysabled people’s inclusion focused more on empower individuals, upskilling them to grab the opportunities around them in accordance with their personal story and journey.

The individualism approach seems very obvious to me, and I remain bemused by those who criticise me heavily for wanting individuals to succeed and to celebrate success. If I am not selfish and look after myself, as no one else will, how can I help others? I believe their concerns come from a collectivist ideology that it is easier to play the role of the downtrodden, sometimes decades after the fight has been won.

My belief in the power of the individual may stem from being brought up under Thatcherism, but for me, this is not about politics. While my viewpoint may seem harsh to many readers, I genuinely want every individual to succeed in the way their inner-selves would define that. Just throwing money at the problem is unlikely to help people to become and feel truly empowered. Happiness, the assumed goal for everyone, does not come from wealth or health, but from being in control of your own destiny as far as possible.

I believe to move forward and achieve full meaningful inclusion for everyone, we need to be honest about the failings of independent living, as well as its achievements. This may require a new generation of believers who can take a fresh approach to what is needed to get the job done for everyone to have a meaningful place in society.

 

 

Supporting moderate needs

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Many charities have started to focus on moderate needs as a mechanism to campaign for the government to increase the social care budget even though any increase is more likely to be spent on increased fees as opposed to helping anyone. My concern and why I appear to be heartless, is that it would be unhelpful to simply provide people with moderate needs with traditional care services with a simple tick box entitlement as I feel this would cause increased dependency that could be harmless and wasteful in the long term.

 

I feel people with moderate needs are most likely to benefit from enablement and empowerment opportunities which will assist them to be independent as possible where the use of equipment and adapting lifestyle can reduce the level of long term support needed. Also, a positive attitude will always make a big difference turning a victim into an independent citizen.  

 

If you like what I say, have a look at my site at www.simonstevens.com or follow me on twitter, @simonstevens74, or even leave me feedback on +44 (0)121 364 1974 or email simon@simonstevens.com  

 

The small things is life

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For many disabled people, it is not the big things like rights and policies that makes the real difference in their lives, but rather it is the small things that really matter and can be life changing. For this, I mean things like small pieces of equipment or clothes, like bibs and swimming nappies, within the home, a dropped curb in the right place or having assistance or support with that one little thing that makes life worth making.

 

You can have all the money in the world, but without a positive attitude and information about the little things which can make the biggest difference, people will remain victims of their own situation. I wish sometimes I could spent a few hours with so many disabled people to support them in understanding what they can do rather then what they can’t do, which has very little to do with the level of the impairment someone has.

 

If you like what I say, have a look at my site at www.simonstevens.com or follow me on twitter, @simonstevens74, or even leave me feedback on +44 (0)121 364 1974 or email simon@simonstevens.com  

 

Half empty or Half Full?

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The old phrase of whether a glass of water is half empty or half full is very interesting as people must make a decision, there is no middle ground, no sitting on the fence. The glass of water is a metaphor for how people say life and whether they have chosen to see be always be pessimistic or always be optimistic. I have chosen the later and people always remark on how I see the positive in everything however different the situation is.

 

We decide how we see the world and who are half empty sort of people should understand how that affects how they see the world and how indeed other people may relate to them. We can create our own luck and we can create our own difficulties by our own attitudes towards life.

 

If you like what I say, have a look at my site at www.simonstevens.com or follow me on twitter, @simonstevens74, or even leave me feedback on +44 (0)121 364 1974 or email simon@simonstevens.com  

 

The onion exercise

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I was first introduced to the Onion Exercise when I was at an ‘European Human Bridges’ youth seminar in Stockholm in 1997. The exercise immediately struck a chord with myself and it is now an exercise I use when I am assisting people to develop themselves and especially their  personal identity.

 

The exercise uses an onion to show a person’s identity where each ring of the onion represents a different level of importance. The things people put towards the outer edge of the onion may be more visible but less important like someone’s hobbies or where they live,  while those in the middle are things which are more important to their core identity but maybe less visible like their faith or impairment. The exercise works on the basis that our identity is made up of many components which may or not be important including our background, our hobbies, our likes and so on.

 

The exercise can be the first time a person can see their identity for themselves as well as be able to show others and this can indeed be a powerful tool in helping people move forward with who they are and where they wish to be.

 

If you like what I say, have a look at my site at www.simonstevens.com or follow me on twitter, @simonstevens74, or even leave me feedback on +44 (0)121 364 1974 or email simon@simonstevens.com  

 

There is always a choice

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I often hear people say that they had no choice when they were faced with a specific situation but when we really examine it, I believe there is always a choice in anything we do. The thing is any choice comes with consequences whether may be good and bad and therefore we avoid some choices because we do not like the consequences of what may happen by choosing it.

 

To give a extreme example, I can murder anyone I want so long I can physically do it, there is little stopping me. But the consequences are that I am most likely be arrested and spend many years in Prison, which makes it a harder choice but it is still indeed a choice. The thing is it is about not seeing ourselves as victims of any situation but understand we make the choices and have taken control of our destiny by understanding what could have happened if we had made other choices.

 

There is always a choice and it is so important to remember this important fact.

 

If you like what I say, have a look at my site at www.simonstevens.com or follow me on twitter, @simonstevens74, or even leave me feedback on +44 (0)121 364 1974 or email simon@simonstevens.com  


Just never give up!!

People who know me who that I am a very determined person and I have always been determined. If I wanted something than I have always found a way to get it, one way or another. I sometimes amaze myself at how determined I am even with doing the impossible because just I never give up.

I am not saying it is easy or that anyone can achieve what I have, because we all have our own stories to fulfil. But I am saying that “I can’t” can be turned into “I can” if you dig deep and use the fire in your belly to get things done. You may need to make a few people uncomfortable or be quite creative to get what you want but it can be done.

Everyone faces barriers in their life and it is easy to think you are the only won, but barriers are merely things to overcome that make life interesting. You have the power to not let barriers stop you from getting what you want if you just never give up!!
If you like what I say, have a look at my website at www.simonstevens.com or follow me on twitter, @simonstevens74, or even leave me feedback on +44 (0)121 364 1974 or email simon@simonstevens.com  

Do you want to be a failure?

We now seem live in an era where not only is failure regarded as a norm but I fear for some, it is a desirable state of being. We clearly have a section of society who regard success as something wrong since why the hell work or do something meaningful and hard when you can have an easy life and live off the state?

This goes against everything I believe and my goal to be successful in any way I can. I was brought up on the 1980s, under Margaret Thatcher and I kinda of ‘the British dream’ that hard work pays off. I always believed the individual can overcome anything with determination and one person can change the world. 

I have realised it can be many years before you reap the benefits on what you put in but that hard work does in the end pays off. I have never expected people to be as determined as I am, I have a level of determination that amazes me, but I do think people should want to have a good life rather than believe failure is the norm. 
If you like what I say, have a look at my website at www.simonstevens.com or follow me on twitter, @simonstevens74, or even leave me feedback on +44 (0)121 364 1974 or email simon@simonstevens.com 

Helping people be positive


I feel one is the greatest gifts you can offer anyone is the ability to see the positive in the situations they are facing. For me, being positive is not about shouting mantras on how I am wonderful and wearing a big false smile all the time trying to laugh when you actually want to cry. 

Instead, it is able having the ability to see things in a rational way and understand the real issues of a situation, without irrational fears, and to establish a constructive plan to tackle issues step by step in a way that is realistic. It is also about understand if one way to trying to achieve something fails, then you seemly think on another way of doing that and even work on the basis nothing will be straight forward.

I feel the real cause of poverty is ignorance and negativity and that people can be empowered to see how they can make the most of what they have and achieve things they never thought possible. We should stop giving out support that keeps people as victims and enable people to be positive.

If you like what I say, have a look at my website at www.simonstevens.com or follow me on twitter, @simonstevens74

Stop playing the victim (just because you are disabled!)


If there is one thing that really annoys me is when disabled people play the victim just because they are disabled. For my, playing the victim means complaining to others about the general situation without actually asking for help or taking responsibility for the situations we are in.

We all face situations that are difficult but it is our attitude which determines if we take responsibility or selfishly indulge ourself into the realms of victimhood. If Plan A fails, try Plan B and if thats fails, Plan C, D, E and so on until you find something that works. Determination will get you everywhere and it is about accepting the here and now, and moving beyond it!

The rise of the victim culture amongst so-called disability activists since the start of this coalition government only served to demonstrate the medical model attitude and plays right into the hands of the charities and the middle class. Only be stopping being victims and succeeding despite any new barriers will disabled people be able to claim the inclusion deserved!

If you like what I say, have a look at my website at www.simonstevens.com or follow me on twitter, @simonstevens74