Al Foxx’s most common disability topics are: "Disabling Disability Myths", "Delighting in Differences", and "Winners Don't Quit". Each of these presentations can be adapted to fit into your time frame.
All of Al's presentations are insightful, inspirational, and have relevant humor that keeps the audience on the edge of their seats.
Al's presentations help organizations fulfill the spirit of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
Summary of Presentations
| Disabling Disability Myths | Delighting in Differences | Winners Don't Quit |
| Booking Al Foxx |
Disabling Disability Myths is a45-minute presentation that helps people without disabilities and people with disabilities work together efficiently. It does this by disabling the disability myths.
Before giving listeners any actual tools to help them interact with someone who has disabilities, this presentation acknowledges two points:
- Differences are all around us.
- How well someone relates to differences has more to do with them than with that which is different.
That being the case, there are still three generally held misunderstandings that are so widespread that I use the next section of this presentation to disprove them.
Disabling Disability Myths
Myth 1
People with Disabilities are not as intelligent as people without disabilities.
In this talk, I show through personal experiences and examples of other people who have disabilities, that the physical body a person is destined to go through life with has absolutely nothing to with their level of intelligence.
Myth 2
People with Disabilities are not competent.
It’s true that people with disabilities are sometimes not able to function alongside their non-disabled counterparts in a world largely designed for people without disabilities. Is that due to their own incompetence or is it due to the designers not accommodating them and their associates’ unwillingness or inability to see things more than one way?
This talk explores how accommodating people with disabilities allows their associates and society at large to benefit from their skills and expertise.
Myth 3
People with disabilities don't have dreams
Disproving this myth is a slam dunk! The world is full of examples. In this section I describe an example or two of people with disabilities and their dreams, and I describe how my own dream to drive again ultimately led to my driving again.
Have you ever felt uncomfortable working with or approaching people with disabilities? If you have ever wondered how to communicate with a person who’s disabled, or if you’ve ever wondered what to do or say or what not to do or say, you’ll appreciate Al’s insights and practical, down-to-earth ideas about how to understand and appreciate the special gifts, skills, talents, and abilities of those with disabilities.
You'll gain practical tips on how to:
- Approach anyone with a disability
- Learn what questions to ask and not to ask
- Listen to and talk with people who have speech impairments
- Communicate with wheelchair-users
The practical result of hearing this talk is an increased ability to relate with people who have disabilities and a willingness to see things from their viewpoint.
The ultimate result of hearing any of my talks on living or working with people who are different than you is an increased willingness to have a friendship with someone who is different.
Video Clips
Al Foxx learning to walk
Al Foxx speaking on disability awareness
Two mini video clips of a Disability Presentation that you can view. Be aware that the sound quality of these clips are not as good as a live performance.
DELIGHTING IN DIFFERENCES is a 45 minute presentation of skills and ideas to use in the work place to minimize the discomfort many kinds of differences can create. Individuals are different. Everyone is the author and playwright of their life story. Life is a gift. Everyone's gift is different. Efficient communication minimizes differences and enriches the gift of each communicator.
Two heads are better than one, as long as they think different thoughts, see different things and effectively communicate different ideas. Al believes there are three principles inherent in efficient communication.
The 3 C's of efficient communication:
- Comfort...It's easier to work with someone who is comfortable not only with themselves and the ideas they represent, but with the skills they possess to relate to their associates.
- Cooperation...The more interaction tools they possess, the better equipped teammates are to help themselves by helping each other.
- Compassion...Show me a person who has compassion for his coworkers and I'll show you a person who people like to work with.
In this presentation Mr. Foxx speaks on Delighting in the Different perspectives of those who are different than you due to disabilities or different ethnic, social, or cultural experiences.
Mr. Foxx also has a presentation for Black History Month/Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day that also discusses Diversity.
