10/06/2026
A few days ago, Michael had a conversation with Chloe Ith about getting started in accessibility.
The question was a familiar one:
Where do you start when accessibility feels so broad?
His answer was simple:
Start with what you know.
For Mike, that started with colour blindness.
His best friend at school is red-green colour-blind. His father-in-law is blue-green colour-blind. Those early experiences helped him notice how small design choices can either include people or shut them out.
From there, he built out.
Vision.
Hearing.
Mobility.
Cognitive accessibility.
Learning design.
Workplace systems.
Not all at once. Not perfectly. Just step by step.
Chloe later sent this hand-drawn doodle, with that line above it.
“Start with what you know.”
It is a useful reminder for anyone who wants to make their work more accessible but feels unsure where to begin.
You do not need to know everything before you start.
Pick one real barrier.
Learn from people with lived experience.
Make one thing better.
Then keep going.
Illustration by Chloe Ith, shared with permission.
Image description: A hand-drawn, sketch-style portrait of Michael Osborne on a white background. He is shown from the shoulders up, with short dark hair, dark eyebrows, a beard, and a grey jumper. The drawing uses dark blue linework with soft pink shading on the cheeks. Above his head, curved handwritten text reads, “Start with what you know.” At the bottom, large handwritten text reads, “Michael Osborne.”
