31 Jul Happiness is knowing good things happen
It’s easy to focus only on negative news stories (which is mostly all the major news agencies ever focus on) but below is a great story of hope and trust that should enhance your happiness.
Blind Man Counts Cash in Cafeteria
7/30/2007
By Carma Posthitt
Gimundo Correspondent
Can a blind man run a cash register? Yes!
Meet Mike Feeney. Not only is he blind, he is the owner and operations manager at an employee cafeteria in Phoenix, Ariz.
Norman Vincent Peale once said that “without a humble but reasonable confidence in your own powers you cannot be successful or happy.” Whether he knows it or not, Feeney is living those words.
Feeney’s business caters to more than 600 staff at Desert Schools Federal Credit Union, making for a very busy lunch rush.
“It can be stressful at times when the line backs up,” says Feeney. “There aren’t too many visually impaired people who count money for a living in a financial institution.”
Because he has to depend on customers” honestly in telling him what they are buying and how much money they are giving him, his business truly depends on trust.
Although he’s heard stories from others in similar positions, “I”ve never had a problem here,” Feeney says.
Feeney began to lose his sight due to diabetes when he was 28. Back then, he had a successful career designing irrigation systems for golf courses.
“I had to learn everything all over again,” he says. “That’s when I began making phone calls and doing research on services for the blind.”
Feeney is an independent vendor thanks to the Business Enterprise Program (BEP), a special agreement with the Arizona Department of Economic Security. BEP provides training and assistance to legally blind persons helping them become self-employed entrepreneurs.
Feeney feels the most important ingredient to success is believing in yourself and never giving up.