The disability advocacy nonprofit RespectAbility has released its free Disability Entrepreneurship Toolkit. The new toolkit provides an inventory of existing materials, advice and guides for jobseekers with disabilities who want to start their own enterprise or develop their entrepreneurial skills.
Many highly successful entrepreneurs have disabilities, including Elon Musk, Richard Branson and most of the Sharks on Shark Tank.
RespectAbility’s Disability Entrepreneurship Toolkit launch was timed to meet the heightened interest of people with disabilities and others who are watching the groundbreaking new docuseries Born for Business, which is on Peacock (USA) and CRAVE (Canada). Born for Business focuses on the talents, innovations and impact of entrepreneurs with varying disabilities. Born for Business shines the spotlight on four emerging entrepreneurs: Chris Triebes, Qiana Allen, Collette Divitto and Lexi Zanghi.
Entrepreneurship and self-employment can be a valuable and viable option for disabled people looking to enter the job market on their own terms. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, people with disabilities are self-employed at a rate nearly twice that of their nondisabled peers. As of the 2019 American Community Survey, approximately 700,000 workers with disabilities were self-employed, enjoying the flexibility and opportunities that entrepreneurship provides.
Approximately 70% of disabled people want to work, and thousands could become entrepreneurs if they can develop their skills and access capital. Potential entrepreneurs with disabilities need resources, assets and support in order to translate their entrepreneurial ideas into actual, viable businesses.
“Born for Business shows what people with disabilities CAN achieve,” said Philip Kahn-Pauli, Policy and Practices Director at RespectAbility and the main author of the new toolkit. “We hope that this toolkit will give viewers the resources they need to achieve their goals as well.”
Added Jennifer Laszlo Mizrahi, President of RespectAbility, “The pandemic is a time of massive change and many people and companies need to innovate and adapt. These are skills long honed by people with disabilities who need to circumvent barriers to success. Now is a great time for people with disabilities to use their skills as innovators to start highly successful businesses.”
Born for Business is produced by Shopify Studios and Bunim/Murray Productions, the Emmy Award-winning creators of Born This Way.
All 10 episodes of Born For Business are streaming now on Peacock (USA) and CRAVE (Canada).
