Inclusivity at Work: Reflections from the Playground
Inclusivity at Work: Reflections from the Playground
Think back a few years to when you were in elementary, middle, or high school. The dynamics of navigating the playground and hanging out around school was often just as much of a challenge as mastering your classes. Sure, for some it seemed easy, but for others it was fraught with social stress of making friends, keeping friends, avoiding bullies, trying to be the bully, finding acceptance, and developing trusting relationships.
I recently read an article about a woman who recounted being bullied in school. This, along with other aspects of her personality contributed to psychological trauma as she grew up. Years later she decided to reach out to her childhood classmates to interview them about what they were experiencing during those years. This wasn’t an attempt to cause them any distress, but simply to understand how they viewed the same experiences.1 (more…)
During the first five months of 2020 we’ve experienced multiple crises. People started the year preparing their vision for 2020, drawing a comparison with having 20/20 visual acuity. But I’m sure no one had this vision for five months filled with: Political uncertainty, a pandemic, economic meltdown, Supply chain interruption, hurricanes, tornadoes, floods, killer hornets, senseless killings, protests, and riots
All across the U.S., after several months of orders to stay at home, shelter in place, and work remotely, resulting in many places of business being shuttered, the pressure is on to open up the economy again. The “save lives” focus is shifting to “save the economy.” Several states are venturing forward by opening public spaces and business-to-consumer locations.
As we navigate through the COVID-19 pandemic, the biggest crisis in our lifetime, we’re hearing about many acts of heroism, kindness, generosity, and creativity.
I frequently begin my leadership insights with a story, but none is needed today. We all know the story, and the title is COVID-19. It is a pandemic that has impacted virtually every country and continent in the world. The potential for serious illness and loss of life is enough to make all of us quickly change our normal routines, postpone or cancel what we previously thought to be critically important meetings, and stockpile supplies (including more toilet paper than we know what to do with, me included).
As leaders we’re constantly communicating to our stakeholders with strategic intent. The question is whether our communication plan is effective or not. This may sound simple, but amazingly, many leaders miss excellent opportunities to communicate with employees in ways that develop them by enhancing their understanding of business priorities and engaging them in driving sustained business outcomes. When you’re communicating with others it’s important to think about your goal to ensure your methodology is properly aligned.
That’s the refrain from a number of my female (and some male) colleagues and friends who reluctantly admit a time when they were the target of unwanted and inappropriate attention from someone. These are accomplished, influential people who found themselves in a situation where a more powerful person demanded undeserved, intimate fulfillment. The demands may have come by way of improper or sexually themed text messages, a “gentle” but suggestive touch on the arm, a lewd remark at the bar, an expectation to continue a business conversation over drinks and dinner, an out of town meeting scheduled in a hotel suite where suddenly everyone else leaves the room, and the list goes on. 
How well can you accomplish your goals by working alone?
A CEO recently expressed concern that there was an environment of fear among his employees in the workplace. He was trying to understand the underlying issues driving this, to determine how to address it. His sincerity was commendable, and it provided an opportunity to identify drivers of fear by starting at the top of the organization.