Being able to understand the resources and supports available to you at home, work, school and your community around you is important. Being able to ask for what you need and achieve your goals, means sometimes taking the lead to express yourself, ask questions, and share your ideas.
To tell people what you want, you need to know what’s out there. What are your options? What do you have to do to get the things you want? You make choices and decisions about your future including things like work, colleges, your health, where to live, and places you can go to get what you need. You need to find out your options and make informed choices.
Self- Advocacy does not mean making all of the choices alone or having to know everything. It means knowing who to ask for help and being able to ask for what you need.
Learning self-advocacy skills takes practice. You can get better over time.
Try a Challenge
Choose one of the challenges below to practice your self-advocacy skills.