International Day of People with Disabilities

The 3rd of December is the UN International Day of Persons with Disabilities. It aims to promote the rights and wellbeing of persons with disabilities in all spheres of society and development, and to increase awareness of the situation of persons with disabilities in every aspect of life.

We are pleased that we benefit from the diversity disabilities brings from across our current YRP committees. Martyn Ross, Operations Project Manager at Racon Consult and YRP's Regional Chair for Scotland and National IntoRail Manager, was diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) as an adult. Here he shares some of his experience of working within the rail industry, advice on career development, and also his thoughts on what can be done to support people with hidden disabilities.

What do you enjoy most about your job?
I am involved in a range of different things, from internal projects to client projects and that exposure allows me to add strings to my bow on a near enough daily basis. I get to learn from people who have a wealth of knowledge and experience in and out with the rail industry, and that has been the case since I started my career in rail. Being able to bounce ideas or questions off of people in the know allowed me to build up my confidence and skillset and then, in some cases, become the person in the know too.
I’m also a massive fan of Microsoft Excel!

What parts of your job do you find most challenging?
Overcoming the anxiety of constant communication is a phenomenally tricky thing for me to manage. For me, it’s something that I’ve had many ups and downs with, and it can be extremely overwhelming at times. I generally avoid going out and socialising as it’s never really been something I’ve been interested in, and the experience I have in the run up to social interaction isn’t really worth it for me. Though, communicating in a professional capacity helps me build on my ability to manage that anxiety and get myself into a way of working with people on a daily basis, being in meetings and socialising a bit more – in a way that makes me comfortable. Although, this will continue to be an uphill battle for me, I’ve found that my rail peers have made this a smoother process than it could have been elsewhere.

What advice can you give to others wanting to get into Project Management?
I would say, “speak to Project Managers when you get the chance”. Most of the people I have met within the industry, even those who like a good moan about their job, always take the opportunity to talk about what they do and show-off a little. You can learn a lot by showing an interest without needing to know the right questions to ask or anything about the role specifically.

Read up too, or if you are like me and struggle getting through large documents at any considerable speed without getting frustrated, the wonderful world of YouTube has a lot of content to offer on project management. Although, you may not always find everything sensible or helpful, it’ll allow you to gain an understanding of how you would do something in the same position and understand if that is the best way or not.

What skills are required in your position on a day-to-day basis?
As a high-level summary:

• Leadership
• Organisation and Planning
• Good Communication
• Problem Solving
• Analytical Skills

And a few more, which are developed as you do the job. No one jumps into any job being great at everything and accepting that allows you to maintain any confidence you have and build on your skillset positively.

If there is ever a skill listed against a job you are interested in that you think is a bit far away, do not let it discourage you. Experts weren’t always experts!

What advice do you have for someone new to the industry?
Don’t be afraid to be yourself and be honest with others. I think there is an assumption from any walk of life that trying to get a job in any industry means that you need to be this confident, outgoing and comfortable person, that reads, goes to the gym, doesn’t have meltdowns, doesn’t struggle with anything ever and has it completely together in every aspect of life. This simply isn’t true. We are all human and everyone has that thing that they’ve always struggled with or perhaps they experience lots of social anxiety, and so the list goes on.

Remember, when you are looking for a job (although it isn’t always easy), they also need to be right for you. If someone can’t accept you for you, then maybe they aren’t the right organisation to work for. Although, this has not been my experience of the rail industry. From my personal experience, rail is a key advocate for supporting opportunities available for people with hidden disabilities.

If you are living with a hidden disability, any other disability or anything else that may cause you to feel restricted or limited in your career, try not to look at is as a brick wall in the way. Embrace what you think is a limitation and look for ways to make it work for you.

What can the rail industry do to support people with hidden disabilities more?
There are some key things the industry can do to continue to support people with hidden disabilities:

1. Continue to advocate for opportunities.
2. Continue to learn - speak to people and if they feel comfortable enough to discuss things you can learn a lot from their experience.
3. Don’t assume that you already have all of the answers and that everyone with a hidden disability is the same.
4. Ask people what would help them and if there are any reasonable adjustments that can be made to support them to thrive in their career.
5. From a general point of view, which should apply to everyone, think before you jump to a conclusion, you don’t know what the other person is dealing with and you don’t know the full impact of your actions.
6. Be kind!