The Story of Bill,

A Case History

Bill, an 18-year-old high school senior and a paraplegic since age 13, was graduating soon, and he wanted to figure out what career would be best for him. He knew he had an interest in creative writing and thought he might want to be a novelist, but he was not sure. Bill spoke with his career counselor, and she suggested he begin with a self-assessment. The counselor also connected Bill with the department of vocational rehabilitation, because he was now 18 and eligible for services. Bill took a number of skill, aptitude, interest, and personality tests and inventories through his school and his local vocational rehabilitation office. He found that he liked structure, was very outgoing, loved to work with people, and was a good communicator. He was also interested in business, marketing, and teaching. In addition, he found that he valued creativity, stability, and family most highly. This process helped Bill see that he had the aptitude, skills, and interests to follow several different career paths. After his self-assessment, Bill was ready to explorewhether his dream of becoming a novelist was really right for him. Bill did a lot of research and had three informational interviews, one with a freelance writer, one with a novelist, and one with a successful poet. In addition, during his last three months of high school, he entered a work-study program and took a part-time job working for a well-known advertising agency in his area. Bill's father, a friend of the advertising agencies vice president, was able to assist Bill with getting an informational interview which lead to the part-time job.Bill was able to write copy and try other tasks at the agency. After reviewing what he learnedfrom his self-assessment results, informational interviews, part-time job, and other research, Bill decided he would probably be much happier going into advertising or marketing and writing as a hobby. This did not mean he was giving up his dream of being a novelist, but he was allowing himself to explore other options. He thought that another career might be more compatible with his strengths, values, and personality. Bill still had a lot of research and exploration ahead of him, but he felt confident that he was moving in the right direction.