We all are a personal brand and it belongs in the workplace. For most of my career I learned to suppress or ignore my personal self. There wasn't room in a corporate setting to be personal. You took on the attributes of the corporate brand you were marketing or you were deemed "not a good fit."
Today there's growing room for the person because of the work people are doing in Equity, Inclusion and Belonging initiatives. We were honored to discuss A Model for diversity, belonging, equity and justice in our episode 19 with Anh Thang Dao-Shah, Ph.D., Executive Director of Belonging and Equity at John Muir Health.
I also had the privilege of meeting Herna Cruz-Louie, Chief Organization & People Officer for Girl Scouts Northern California. It's encouraging to know of the organizational efforts Girl Scouts are doing to understand the distinctions in Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB). During that meeting with Herna she shared the following questions (adapted from Dr. Dafina-Lazarus Stewart's essay "Colleges need a language shift, but not the one you think"):
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Diversity Asks: "Who is in the room? What perspectives are missing?" |
Inclusion Asks: "Is this environment safe for everyone to feel they belong? Has everyone been heard and listed to?" |
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Equity Asks: "Have we removed barriers that have been preventing people from feeling they belong in the space? Does everyone have what they need to fully participate?" |
Belonging Asks: "Does everyone feel accepted even when we do not always agree" Can everyone share their differences openly (without judgement or defensiveness) while focusing on connections?" |
Such good questions - makes me hopeful that the Gen Zers I see in my classes will be mentored, find allyship, and feel they belong! And they will all "Take the Lead!"