Getting Started

Getting started. Most of this course is about relationships between employers and their personal assistants, but in this first session, we highlight what disabled people need before they recruit their first personal assistant, or their next one. We also include some exercises to consider what you might be looking for. A key to getting it right is knowing yourself, and knowing what you want. ,Good communication, and mutual understanding will provide the foundations for a good working relationship. Recruitment of personal assistants can be difficult. This is particularly the case in rural, or remote areas. It makes it harder if the disabled person can’t afford to pay competitive wages, often due to funding squeezes.

It may also make it difficult for a personal assistant to maintain their professionalism, if they are paid at minimum wage levels. However, many workers

report that there are other benefits to working as a personal assistant: flexibility of course, but also the satisfaction that comes from supporting someone to be empowered and independent. But once the disabled person has found a potential worker, or a personal assistant has found a potential employer, we think that the issue of boundaries and personalities becomes very important. It helps if you know yourself well. What are your likes and dislikes? Where are your boundaries? Self-awareness will help ensure the right employer works with the right worker, rather than having potential conflict down the line. Good communication and mutual understanding will provide the foundations for a good working relationship.