The Accessibility Paradox: How Hiring for Disabilities Drives Profit ft. Meryl Evans

Instead of treating accessibility as a compliance task, I treat it as an operational system. It's how you reduce barriers, prevent rework, and make your business easier to run and easier to buy from. That's important. Moreover, remote work allows employees to perform their best work in the environment suited for them. A workplace becomes inclusive when leaders assume variation is normal, not something to accommodate. That shift alone changes everything. It means you plan for different communication styles, different processing speeds, different ways people show up. You stop designing for the average employee. Because that person does not exist and never has. And once you fix those things, everything else gets easier. Hiring, onboarding, collaboration, remote work, performance, all of it. That's because, again, predictability reduces risk. Teams move faster when they're not guessing, and leaders stop being the bottleneck when the information isn't Trapped in their heads.

Good day and welcome to the Wealthy Entrepreneur Podcast. I'm your host, Bob Gauvreau. It is a pleasure to have you with us today. Just a reminder that this is the place where we dissect the elements that contribute to entrepreneurial success from mindset and leadership to profits and revenue. Today, I'm delighted to introduce a very special guest. We have guest Meryl Evans. Meryl is a Speaker, author, and operations consultant who helps organizations transform messy, unclear processes into streamlined, repeatable workflows. She's also a globally recognized advocate for accessibility and disability inclusion, using her lived experience as a deaf professional to help companies build workplaces where everyone can thrive. So today, Meryl and I are going to dive deep. We're going to dive deep into accessibility. We're going to explore how accessibility communication clarity, and exclusive virtual workspaces are powerful drivers of productivity, culture, and long-term business success. At the same token, I'm going to share my insights into how we've actually fostered some of this environment to the success of our team as well. But you know what? There's always ways that we can continue to improve, can continue to make remote environments even more successful. So hearing Meryl's insights today, are gonna be invaluable to that. So without any further ado, please welcome today my guest, Merrill Evans, to the show. Okay everybody, as promised, I'm really excited to bring Merrill Evans into the podcast today. Merrill, thank you so much for joining me. But you know, maybe to kick things off, could you give a little bit of a background on how you got into what you are into? Tell us a little bit about your story and what brings you up to what you're involved with today.

Well, I never set out to run a business, and I started with writing content, and people kept coming back because I made the work easier and the message clearer. I've never been a salesperson or strong at business development. Everything came from referrals. One project led to another. I got into digital marketing. And before I knew it, I had a business. It wasn't a grand plan, but it was a demand, I suppose.

Yeah, 100%. I totally get that. And so maybe talk a little bit about your business. And I know that you do a lot of speaking, maybe share a little bit about that journey and how you got into that space.

My experience as a person born deaf didn't just shape My mission, it shaped how I work. When you grow up navigating communication barriers, you learn quickly that most business problems are communication, process, and access related. People can't act on what they can't hear, can't see, can't use, can't understand. Nothing. Reveals a broken process faster than being the one person who can't pretend to fill in the blanks on what someone said. It's a gamble. If your process only works for everyone fills in the gaps themselves, that's not a process. That's a problem waiting to happen. It's a matter of when. Instead of treating accessibility as a compliance task, A tool that adds an operational system is how you reduce barriers, prevent rework, and make your business easier to run and easier to buy from. That's important. Moreover, remote work allows employees to perform their best work in the environment suited for them. My business has been remote working for many years. Works, and it helps me, it forced me to build processes, documentation, and communication habits that work for more people, not just people who work and communicate the way I do. Processes focus on outcomes, not the how. The how is up to employees to do it in a way that works for them. A great example is exercise. A group of friends sports So I was very lucky that exercise was part of my life from the get-go since I was a child. And I don't play sports anymore, but I still get my workout, my exercise in using different methods. But the outcome is the same. I'm healthier and my heart gets stronger and I stay strong.

Yeah, 100%. So tell me a little bit about your speaking. How did you get into speaking? And it sounds like on some pretty big stages talking about inclusivity and diversity.

Yeah, I'm very excited. Yes, I love speaking. It was an accident that I got into speaking. I've always been very comfortable with public speaking, but I was realistic. I do have an accent. It's not a French or a Canadian accent, obviously. It's an accent that is from nowhere you can travel because I was born with it. As someone who was born I'm profoundly deaf, so I didn't know how people would respond to that. I started making videos about captioning, and because of those videos, I got invited to a conference to speak. And from there, I got more invitations. In fact, I have another invitation coming up in a few weeks at a big conference locally. So it just grew from there and before. So that told me people don't have a problem with my accent. It's all about my delivery and the information I share.

100%. Now you were talking about systems and creating a work culture successful for, for remote, which I think is, is really powerful. So for our team, we're a team of about 180, about half of those people are remote. And, you know, I would share from my end, you know, the accessibility of getting top talent that feel more comfortable in a remote environment versus an in-person environment is, is very powerful. And not to say that we've created the, the ultimate remote environment. So I'm interested to get some of your insights on this, but knowing that we've created an environment where it's just more accessible for some people, and it's not necessarily related to disabilities, although some situations it is. But, you know, one of the things creating accessibility has done for us is it's allowed us to be in those larger metropolitan areas and get the talent where the talent pools are a little bit deeper because people who are in those larger areas don't have to travel to work or outside of the city to come join us. They can join us online. And it's really allowed us to uplevel our skill set with our team. And so I would love maybe a little bit for you to talk about how accessibility maybe directly impacts productivity, retention, and team trust overall.

I love that y'all support a remote environment culture. I always say remote working, not a perk, it's just another way of working and it doesn't work for everyone. Some people need to be in an office. Whereas others want to choose their work environment. But I can give you a great example. In my last office job, there was a guy in the cubicle over next to me who had a meeting every single day on his speakerphone, and it was so distracting. It was really frustrating, and I couldn't focus, and I did not want to turn off my hearing aid just the focus because I need to have it on so people don't sneak up behind me, you know?

Yeah.

And so I talked to the manager about that and they said they can do that. So I'm like, well, I'm trying to work here. So the nice thing about remote work environment is people can choose everything to make the best environment they want and they do. Best work. I had a problem in offices with the lighting, the bright white lighting. I do not have a disability reason for it. It's just really, it's really harsh. Here I can choose my lighting. And now more and more people are standing up while they work or both. Yeah, more and more offices now have those options. But they weren't always around. And I prefer standing up, working standing up, because the fact that I, my legs get antsy and I feel like I have to go take a walk. That takes me away from my station. So you become more productive doing things your way. Again, it's the how, but you still produce the same outcomes that I've been talking about. I know collaboration is really important, and a lot of people have been saying, We need to go back to offices because collaboration was better. But I've been doing this for so long and I've worked with clients and we've collaborated on many different projects with great results. It's just the mindset. You need to have that mindset. The ones that keep saying you have to collaborate in person don't have that mindset.

For sure. And one of the things I would say, you know, from our team, when you are in person, and it's funny, my chief executive or my chief operating officer, Derek, and I sort of have this battle every now and again, and we're not even disagreeing. We're just trying to find the, the ultimate solution. But in-person people that sort of punch a clock, they maybe aren't as productive during that time, but they're present, right? And so you go, okay, well, that's okay, but it's very visible when they're here and doing work-related things. But when you are remote, you know, there's no observation of people people being in a desk or, you know, the amount of time that they're actually doing it. So one of the important differences I feel is that, you know, either way we need to be working more towards an outcome-based model where, you know, remote team members, you know, here's the responsibilities that you have for your job, you know, do it as it fits you, whether it's 6:00 AM or, you know, 8:00 AM or whatever. There's gonna be some times where we need you to be available, but Ultimately, here's the job. As long as you get it done, then it's great. And it, you know, in the in-person space, it's almost the exact same as well. It doesn't mean just because you're sitting in a chair that you're doing your job either. It's like it's gotta somehow become outcomes-based. What are your thoughts on that and how can we ensure that in remote work we're making sure that our teams are actually hitting their outcomes?

That's a challenge. You made an excellent point about the in-person setting. I was very lucky. I learned a very valuable lesson early in my career. People were staying late for the sake of it. So this girl, they were not busy. They were just passing time because they wanted to stay late. And I noticed a lot of people would be on the phone a lot. And because I use the phone differently than most people, I don't get carried away with the phone conversation where you start making small talk and then you move away from work. So that's another way to lose a lot of time in your day. More and more job descriptions are trying to be more outcome-focused. I mean, you do need to have the responsibility so people understand what your expectation is. Who you are and what you'll be doing, and then what you deliver as well. I think there's more and more progress toward outcome. For a long time, we were just all about responsibilities and focusing on outcomes. So for example, if you are a marketer planning a campaign, you will create outcomes for that campaign and work to deliver. So if you produce a campaign, That's an outcome. Yes, measuring is an outcome as well, but that's one of those you have to adjust because sometimes you overshoot, undershoot, you don't always get the numbers you want, but you still got the campaign out and by that certain date. That's a perfect example of an outcome.

Absolutely. Yeah. Thinking of accessibility in the workplace, right? And I know Sometimes people think, okay, you know, is it very costly to do? Is there having to be some significant remodels? I know our, our space when we built it, it's 100% accessible, which is great. But when we're thinking of, you know, the complexities or the costs, what are some high-impact, low-effort changes companies can do to quickly increase their accessibility? In the workforce.

Accessibility impacts productivity, retention, and trust because it removes friction. And when you take that out, people perform better, they stay longer with the company, and they trust the system more. Take meetings. When you send an agenda ahead of time, you're giving people time to think. Not everyone thinks on the spot. Some people need a minute, not a spotlight. And not everyone can take notes while participating. If I take notes, I'm missing what everybody's saying because I'm not reading their lips. I'm sorry, I've been reading lips my whole life. I have not been able to figure out how to read lips and take notes at the same time. I'm not that talented. But accessibility takes us at guesswork off the table. People get the information they need before they need it in a format they can use. This means fewer surprises, fewer stalls, and fewer "what are we doing" moments. Productivity goes up because people can do their job instead of trying to decode their job. It also improves retention. People stay where they can do their best work what that feeling like, so constantly behind or doing the work in a way that's uncomfortable for them. When your processes and your environment are usable, such as agendas, summaries, clear instructions, people feel set up to succeed instead of fail. And it builds trust because it comes from predictability. When people know how information flows, how decisions get made, and what they're responsible for, they trust the system. But if everything feels like improv night, trust evaporates. And best of all, your clients will appreciate it. When they can interact with your company in their preferred way, they're happier. Lots of customers like me have gotten upset when a company only defaults to one contact mode, phone call. That can affect the relationship with the company, and retention is always cheaper than finding new clients. So accessibility removes barriers, and it is not a disability thing. It's just good business practice. It's really good business practice, not compliance. It just makes your business operate better because you're thinking universal design. And a great example of universal design is captions. So captions were originally created for deaf and hard of hearing, but so many people use it. People who may not speak English as well, people who are learning to read, people who have trouble listening and they need something visual. People who are multitasking. So notice these are not disabilities. So accessibility is for everyone, but it is especially for people with specific disabilities, but it ends up helping everyone. And a lot of us are using accessibility and don't realize it. For example, when you travel, you have a suitcase with wheels, right?

Yes.

Like, so do you use the curb or do you use the step?

Right. Most of the time I use something where it's not the steps, right? Yeah.

Right, exactly. And the curb was originally created for people who use wheelchairs. So people were traveling, families with strollers, shopping carts, people with dogs. They all use the comb. So that's a perfect example of how it was developed for one disability, but ends up helping everybody with and without disabilities.

No, I love that. And that's a really good perspective too, right? You, you maybe think that it's specific for individuals when we're talking about accessibility, that it is, you know, incorporating disabilities, but it's maybe in fact just enhancing the work environment for everybody. That makes so much sense, and, and I can appreciate that. So, you know, I'm thinking of my remote team, and one of the more difficult things that I would say is, is trying to replicate or create a culture of, you know, high energy in a remote environment versus the in-person environment. And because we have both, it becomes challenging. You know, sometimes remote team members feel like they're not as part of the team as people who are in person because they're not seeing everybody every moment. Do you have any, any thoughts on how teams could better incorporate remote team members into the culture of an organization?

Well, the most important thing is to remember that, like I said earlier, remote is not a perk. It's just a different way of working. And it's important to remember to go half when after the pandemic happened and more companies went remote, there was a term that refers bias, location bias, something along those lines. In other words, people who work remotely were at a disadvantage over the people in an office because you didn't see them every day. So the first thing that you have to do is create a culture mindset We are a hybrid office, not in person and we just added remote work for some people. You have to think of yourself as a hybrid office. And if you have meetings, I do it all the time. I go to in-person meetings and we have the video on for anybody who can't be there in person. I have a nonprofit that always has video available because sometimes you can't make it, but being there is better than not being there because you couldn't get to the site.

You know, we do that as well. I would say one of the tools that we use for our remote team to try and make sure that everyone feels included is all of our individual teams have Teams chats, right? So even throughout the day, there's just ongoing chatter and communication that sort of happens there. Of course, you know, using Zoom and Teams throughout the day, being accessible to all team members, being able to connect when needed or to get support when needed. One thing I would say is, for me, a lot of the junior team members struggle a little bit more in a remote environment than more experienced team members. So once people are able to sort of work independently, we see more people having success moving to a remote environment because they're confident, they're knowledgeable, they've got experience, so they can sort of work independently without relying on maybe more support. And that seems to work, work really well for us. Question for you, so thinking of leadership, so what role does leadership mindset play in building a workplace that truly values disability inclusion?

Leadership mindset matters because people take their cues from the top. If leaders treat disability inclusion and accessibility like a checkbox for team loyalty, if leaders treat it like part of how the business runs, it becomes the norm, not the exception. A workplace becomes inclusive when leaders assume variation is normal, not something to accommodate. That shift alone changes everything. It means you plan for different communication styles, different processing speeds, different ways people show up. You stop designing for the average employee because that person does not exist and never has. We're more transparent today than we were 50 years ago. Leaders also set the tone for how safe it is to ask for what you need. If a leader gets annoyed when someone asks for clarification, no one will ask again. If a leader says, "Let's write this down so everyone's on the same page," suddenly it's not a personal request. It's a team standard. And half the time, accessibility is just good management with a better name. The other piece is predictability. Team needs trust leaders to make expectations clear and communication consistent. When leaders model that, agendas sent early, decisions documented, instruction people can understand, for team follow-on. And the funny part, most of those accessibility practices, as I said earlier, end up helping everyone. Thus, the mind shift is simple. Inclusion is not about special treatment. It's about opening the door so people can do their best work. When leaders believe that, the culture follows. Any leader who tries to hire people exactly like themselves can count on their business to fail. The diversity of experiences, knowledge, and skills is what helps a company move forward. When a company doesn't proactively hire people with disabilities, it will have a big gap as we bring experiences and knowledge that can't be learned in school or on the job.

I love the circling back on, you know, it's not just about accommodation, it's about improving the ability for everyone to experience their role in their work environment in a better way, right? Like that it's not just benefiting a few, it's actually benefiting everyone by creating more accessibility. So I really, really like that. You talked about sort of predictability. So let's think about the future for a moment. If we were to look ahead, how do you think accessibility will shape the future as remote and hybrid teams continue to grow and expand? I know ours is, so I want to, you know, sort of pick your brain about what you think the future looks like for that market space.

Accessibility is going to shape the future of work because it forces companies to design for how people work, not how we wish they worked, or used the outdated defaults. And as remote and hybrid teams keep growing, that becomes a non-negotiable. Remote work exposes cracks in your systems, such as unclear communication, missing context, processes that live in somebody's head, accessible and exclusive So, correct. It makes information usable, meetings predictable, and workflows repeatable. And once again, accessibility practices are good management practices. So, as a result, you ought to shift your theme. More async by default. Again, not everyone thinks on the spot. Not everyone's brain works on the same network speed. Clearer documentation. If the stuff only exists in somebody's head, that's not documentation. That is a liability. Usable communication, shorter messages, clearer instructions, and updates that don't feel like reading a novel. And predictable processes. Workflows shouldn't require detective work or fall apart when someone's out. The process Not Django. As teams get more distributed, accessibility becomes the thing that keeps everyone aligned without burning them out. Again, it's not special treatment. It's about removing barriers so more people can contribute without struggling. Companies that get this right will scale faster because they're not rebuilding the plane in the middle of the flight every time someone joins, leaves, or changes time zones.

I like that, rebuilding the plane in the middle of the flight. Nobody should do that, that's for sure. I can tell, you know, your passion in supporting accessibility in the workforce is, you know, this may be more of a personal question for you, but what legacy or impact do you hope your work leaves on the future of workplaces?

I've been thinking about that a lot lately. I think that's why I love my speaking and advocacy work, because that's where the difference comes in, is speaking up and educating people. A lot of times people with disabilities and without, and our supporters and the non-supporters get angry with each other simply because of lack of awareness, lack of education. And I've really worked hard to make disability inclusion and accessibility, turning it into a mindset of progress over perfection. And don't always assume ill intent. Sometimes it's just the person does not know better. One of the most common things I hear about is accessible parking and A lot of times people, I've heard comments from so many people who have accessible parking passes. A lot of them won't use it because they don't use the wheelchair. And when people see them getting out of the car, they start saying, "Why do you have a parking pass when you look fine?" So my sister, rest in peace, she passed away last year. She had an accessible parking pass because she couldn't walk long distances for a lot of reasons. And so she didn't use a cane, she didn't use a wheelchair, she didn't use any kind of visible thing. So I was afraid to go anywhere with her when we parked in a accessible— because I was afraid people would attack us. I think part of the problem is the parking space has a wheelchair, so people assume it's only for wheelchair, which is not true. It's for people who get doctor approval to park there because they have a medical reason. And sometimes it's not always physical. So often families with an autistic kid in the family, and they will run away if they don't know where they are, or they want to run to their car, and you want them to be in accessible parking so they're not running all over the parking lot. But with the case management, there's a lot of reasons why people would have that pass. And I appreciate the allies are trying to point things out, but as a result, they're upsetting people who have a good reason for it. Like one person was dealing with cancer and they were like, I'm tired of parking here because they're adding to my stress. So I'm not helping.

Yeah, well, and I think that's more of a societal thing too now, right? Is that, you know, people are quick to judge others and, you know, you never truly know what other people are going through, right? Whether it's a physical, an emotional, a mental challenge, you know, there's maybe things going on in people's lives and, you know, they may not be behaving in a way that they normally would. And I feel like, you know, in society we're so quick to pass judgment, especially with social media now. It's easy for people to make comments and, and pass judgment. And it's really frustrating for sure.

I hear the story. I got a comedian with a disability. He's hilarious. And he told the story of how he met a woman. He had a special, special needs in his bio or something, or handicapped. It was handicapped. And she said, "You can't," the woman said, "You can't use that word." And he's like, he's the disabled person. She's not. And she's all, "Handicapped and special needs are not very popular terms in our community. However, some people self-identify that way. They prefer to identify that way for whatever reason." That's not on us. That's their choice, and we can't get angry at that. When we talk about hearing disabilities, when we're just talking about people in general, we say deaf and hard of hearing. However, I have some good friends who identify as hearing impaired, and impaired is considered a negative term, and they don't see themselves— we don't see ourselves as impaired. Born this way or became this way, whatever. But some people do prefer, first of all, they're not deaf. So a medical term that differentiates deaf from hard of hearing. Secondly, they don't identify as hard of hearing because to them it's an old-fashioned term, an outdated term, or whatever. They all have different reasons for it. So it's not about me. They're not saying I'm damaged. It's about them. So we have to respect their choice.

100%. Okay. I have a few rapid-fire questions here for you that I think will, will help everybody who's listening. And, you know, my audience is— a lot of them are business owners, and I think you've added a lot of insights related to accessibility and the benefits for the workforce of why we want to focus on creating accessible work environments. So maybe this will— there will be some takeaways from this one. So are you ready for this, Meryl? Okay. One simple accessibility upgrade every remote team should implement this month.

I think the one that will have the biggest ripple effect is making information clear, consistent, and available to everyone at the same time, because this shift forces the company to communicate up clean up and improve how they communicate, how it documents, how it makes decisions. And once you fix those things, everything else gets easier. Hiring, onboarding, collaboration, remote work, performance, all of it. That's because, again, predictability reduces risk. Teams move faster when they're not guessing, and leaders stop being the bottleneck when the information isn't trapped in their head. So clear, accessible information speeds delivery and makes the organization more reliable. It's not a nice-to-have, it's operational hygiene. It's the same as brushing your teeth and getting sleep. Here's what happens when you do that: better decisions because everyone's in the same pain, better execution because expectations are not a mystery novel. Better retention because people don't burn out trying to keep up. Better inclusion because you are not just rewarding the fastest processor. So when companies get this right, accessibility stops being an add-on. It becomes how the business runs. It's not charity. It's not compliance theater. It's a business practice that pays for itself.

Yeah, clarity and managing expectations is so important for every leader with every team. Couldn't agree more. Okay. What is one workplace habit you wish companies would retire immediately from using?

Making in-person work a requirement. I mean, obviously there are some jobs, some companies that have to have it, like a hospital, you can't remote work that. Although more appointments can go over by telemedicine, you can have more and more appointments online when you don't have to do physical checkups, but, and possibly like counseling appointments as well. You really need any kind of interaction for that. But when you're just So focused on the in-person mindset, it just reverts to a time many years ago, which worked 50 years ago before the internet and all this. Doesn't necessarily, it's not necessarily the best way to do it today. So we've come a long way since then.

Yeah, and I would say, you know, not that I want to talk about benefits of COVID but I would say the communication channels certainly opened up when people couldn't have physical proximity, you know, it just made, made it more everyday. So I couldn't agree more. The majority of our client meetings that we have now are online, which is great. We've got these boardrooms and meeting rooms set up, and the fact that they don't get used is just fine. It seems easier for our clients, it's easier for our team. We have all of our information in front of us. So I couldn't agree. I think that's the really great insight.

Proximity bias. That was the word I was looking for.

Proximity bias. Yes. Yeah, that was the, that was the post— yeah, the post-COVID challenge for people who are working remote. Yeah, 100%.

And I was hoping that— I mean, COVID sucked. I would not want it ever again.

No.

But it showed what was possible. It was possible for teams to work together. It was possible to do remote working outside the office. All of these things were possible and you were saving, well, not then, but you can save money by reducing your buildings, the number of buildings you have and the space because buildings are one of the biggest overheads in a company. And if you take that out, you're cutting your expenses a lot and you're also helping with the traffic problem We have traffic problems in a lot of places and public transportation not great everywhere. Dallas is struggling with that right now. And we are a growing city that's really ahead of the curve, but not so much with public transportation. So I was hoping it would finally convince leaders that remote working can work, but unfortunately a lot of them are going back to the previous ways, but at least some are doing hybrid. So that's progress.

I agree. And I think the reason that everyone's going back or not, maybe not everyone, some people, I think it's a personal preference because they like to be around everybody. But one of the things I think that people are forcing everyone back is perceived productivity. And maybe it isn't even just perceived, but because they haven't figured out the outcomes-based model. Yet, right, on how to increase accountability based on completing outcomes versus time. And so, you know, if you're really interested in growing your business and, and like Merrill said, not introducing more capital costs with new facilities or, or anything like that, you can scale without having to do that. If you incorporate remote teams, you create greater accessibility, and also you understand how to do outcomes-based management. I think it's super important. Okay. What is the most overlooked accessibility feature that benefits everyone, not just persons with disabilities?

Well, it depends because everybody has their thing, but I know a lot of people who use dark mode just because they find it easier. Something I use every day, and that's the brightness setting on my phone. I use it all the time. I I always roll when I'm inside because I don't like the bright light. But when I go out and drive someplace I've never been to, no, I get lost easily. So I need my maps, I need my GPS. So I do have a screen in my car, but it's still old. The maps It's useless now. So I have this thing that hangs from my rearview mirror and I can put my phone right here so I can see the road and the map. Yeah. So most people use the audio instructions on the map. I can't. I need to see. Therefore, I've got to turn the brightness setting way up to be able to see the map. If I didn't do that, The screen will be blank. It's blank the minute I go outside and I can't see anything. And would you believe it? There are blind and low vision people who, if you watch them work, it's amazing to watch. The screen is blank the whole time and they're just working away on their phone. It's pretty, pretty cool. Okay.

And lastly, what do you think is the biggest myth about hiring people with disabilities?

That we're incapable and all the assumptions people have about us, it may be different for every disability, but truly we could be some of the best workers you've ever had. I know I heard a story about an adult with an intellectual and developmental disability, and he worked for the company doing this task that nobody wanted to do. And he's never made a mistake. Not one mistake. But people like us, if we do the task and we hate it and we're bored, you know, it's very easy to make the mistake because we just were like, this is not something we want to do. So that's the really cool part. They take on those tasks a lot of us don't want to do. And that's all they do because they're so good at it. So, and here's a story about a mall that hired people who use wheelchairs to be their security. They're faster than people who aren't fucked. And they are at the best level of height to catch pickpockets.

True, true.

And people with disabilities like me, we notice when something's wrong. Out of place, different, I can't help it. It's like if I see something out of place, I have to fix it. So, and I really think that because of my deafness and probably a little bit my Type A organized anal stuff. So we bring so much to the table and we want to grow, we want to work hard, we I mean, I've met everybody, lawyers, doctors, and they're just achieving a lot. Unfortunately, a lot of us have felt we need to perform as well or better than everyone because we feel like we have to prove ourselves. We shouldn't, we shouldn't. But that's what happens when society has so much assumptions about you that you're working hard to overcome it all the time. That you become so good at what you do.

Well, and a huge win for those that do become that valuable as well, right? In those positions, you know, it's incredible to see people accelerate and do what it is or live up to their full potential as well. So I do appreciate that. And yeah, it's certainly when we think of accessibility and making sure that we're getting access to the top talent, everyone needs to be thinking of where that talent could live where that talent could exist and to create a space to allow that talent to come in and have a huge impact on our businesses, on our communities. So this has been very valuable, Meryl. Thank you. I can tell your passion. I can see your passion into creating more accessible workplaces. And I know there's been a lot of great insights that you've shared today that will benefit so many. If you had one piece of advice that you would give yourself 20 years ago as you were getting into the workforce, um, like I was, what would that one piece of advice be? What would that one piece of advice, um, maybe career advice be to someone, uh, who's looking to maybe aspire to success like you have?

Advocate for yourself. Don't be afraid to advocate for yourself. A lot of people are afraid to do it because They feel it would make them look bad or miss out on opportunities, but that's what you have to do. It's hard, but sometimes better things come out of it.

100%. Meryl, how can people get a hold of you?

Very easily on my website, meryl.net. So it's Meryl at Meryl Streep. Monopoly. They can find me on LinkedIn easily. My LinkedIn ID is Meryl, my first name. I was very lucky. I get— I got on LinkedIn in 2003. I'm like one of the top 2,000 people to get on it first.

That's amazing. Yeah. And what we'll do, we'll put in your website, we'll put in your LinkedIn contact information. I believe you also have a book as well, right? What's the name of the book and how do people get ahold of that?

Not to break anybody's heart, it's outdated anyway. I have contributed to several books, so I'm not the sole author, but the most recent one just came out in the past year was Design for All Learners. So that is about incorporating accessibility into your learning and your training. So if you have a training team, that would be the book for them. And also want to point out before I forget, That accessibility, everybody has a role to play because it affects everyone. It affects how you do human resources, how you do recruitment, how you interact with your clients and your prospects. It's in every piece. Even procurement has a role to play. So it's everyone's role, not just—

Meryl, thank you so much for joining me today. It's been a pleasure to connect with you, to learn from you, and to hear your insights on accessibility. So thank you for joining me. Hey everybody, this has been the Wealthy Entrepreneur Podcast. I'm your host, Bob Gauvreau. It's always a pleasure to have you join us and hear from extremely insightful and expert guests bringing value to you and your business. What I want to just say is if you found some insights from some of the key messages that Meryl had, please share those with people who you feel would benefit from that knowledge. Again, we're here to empower entrepreneurs with the financial information and business strategy information necessary to be successful so that together we can Make a positive change in the world. Make sure you give us a like. We want to make sure that you're following our podcast, that you get access to the next release when we bring in our next special guest, or I do some form of training on an insight that we've learned in business as well. Leave a comment, post a question. We're happy to answer any of those questions, concerns that you may have, or to connect you in the right way. We're going to have Meryl Evans' contact information attached in the show notes below. So make sure if you're looking for her, you reach out, definitely connect with her on LinkedIn. Always some great insights that are there. So once again, guys, thank you so much for joining us today. This has been the Wealthy Entrepreneur Podcast. I look forward to seeing you again next week.