Make your accessibility learning public

One of the best moves you can make for your accessibility journey: share what you’re learning as you learn it.

I know it feels vulnerable. Nobody wants to post about accessibility and then have someone point out that they got something wrong. But here’s what I’ve seen happen when business owners and agencies embrace learning in public:

• You normalize the learning curve. When you share your “accessibility rookie mistakes” or celebrate finally understanding ARIA landmark roles, you’re showing others that no one starts as an expert. This reduces the intimidation factor that prevents many businesses from even starting their accessibility work.
• You invite others into the conversation. A simple LinkedIn post about discovering keyboard navigation issues on your site often sparks helpful comments from your network. Suddenly, you have a support system of people sharing resources and experiences.
• You build trust through transparency. Customers and clients appreciate honesty about the learning process. When you document your accessibility improvements openly, it demonstrates your commitment to growth and instills confidence in your expertise – even as you’re building it.
• You become an advocate without trying. Every time you share an accessibility insight, you’re planting a seed in your network. Someone sees your post about alt text best practices and starts applying it to their website content. Knowledge spreads organically.

The accessibility community thrives on shared learning. Your questions and discoveries matter more than you think.

Here’s my challenge to you: share one accessibility lesson you learned recently. It could be a tool you discovered, a mistake you caught, or a concept that finally clicked. Your vulnerability becomes the catalyst for others to learn something new.