by Seth Nelson

Since March ’18, I have been employed with the Science Museum of Minnesota as a parking attendant. Working with Kandy Hagen (Kaposia Career Consultant) doing the Discovery Process led me to this job. A job which I’ve been very happy with.

There’s a lot I could say about my Discovery experience. The main thing is that I’ve learned a lot about myself—things I probably wouldn’t have if I’d gone the traditional job search route of filling out applications and just applying for advertised jobs. Through this all, I learned it was important to not only identify my skills, strengths, and interests, but also to learn and be more aware of things about myself that I could improve on and things which have held me back.

Before accepting this job, I had doubts about what I could do and what I’d be most successful at and enjoy. A big part of me wanted to know “for sure” that the next job I found would be the “right one.” I had been hesitant to try opportunities that were available to me—hesitant to try something new and “go for it.” Because Kandy had worked so closely with me, she knew me well. I started to realize she had my best interests at heart and learned to trust her. Throughout the Discovery process, Kandy encouraged me to step out of my comfort zone and say, ‘Yes’ instead of automatically saying, ‘No,’ or ‘Maybe later.’

Through my work with Discovery, I learned to not only start trusting the process, but also to trust myself and to believe in my own abilities. In this job, I’ve been able to work independently with limited employment supports and manage my own transportation using the city bus and light rail. I said, ‘Yes’ when offered the Science Museum parking attendant job and am very glad I did.