I’ve had a few conversations recently about leaders still looking for quick fixes to complex issues around inclusion and equity. The people trying to create change in these organisations are struggling to keep focused and positive in the face of this. It’s exhausting.
E.g. One leader actively driving steady progress on inclusion and equity described his frustration with a Board who make demands on staff diversity targets, with no understanding of what it takes to achieve them and no willingness to go beyond superficial DEI rhetoric in their own leadership of the organisation.
E.g. A senior executive expecting to be given a to do list on DEI without having to look at how their own attitudes and behaviours may be contributing to their organisation’s slow rate of progress, with fellow senior executives who “get it” failing to challenge their colleague.
In both examples we have leaders talking the talk but not willing to do the work to create change. Leaders who bluster when progress is slow without being willing to recognise that they are a blocker of change.
Lack of self-awareness permeates these leadership forums like a thick fog.
If you are one of those battling against unhelpful leaders to create change on DEI, here are six ideas to help sustain you as you fight the good fight.
Hold it lightly
The work you are doing is crucial, but it will “cost” you less personally if you hold the work lightly.
One of my heroines of history is Sojourner Truth, a black woman born into slavery in the US in the 1790s who became an enormously influential abolitionist and women’s rights campaigner. I keep one of her quotes close to my heart, and it really helps:
“Life is a hard battle anyway. If we laugh and sing a little as we fight the good fight of freedom, it makes it all go easier. I will not allow my life’s light to be determined by the darkness around me.”
Find your “pressure valve” people
A key factor in my resilience is a small number of people I trust and with whom, not only can I vent, I can also:
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Seek another perspective on a situation I am facing
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Get sage advice and problem solve
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Find the humour and humanity, whatever the situation in my work to drive DEI with challenging clients
Our chats are strictly confidential, and I always feel a lot better afterwards. Oh, and they are not all DEI experts. Some of them are just wise people.
Create regular mental breaks
Self-care is essential when working on DEI.
There have to be ways of replenishing your energy and also your sense of self. Something that takes your mind out of the challenges two or three times a day.
If that thing involves some kind of movement to work the stress out of your body, all the better, but ultimately it is about doing something that gets your head out of the problem and onto something completely unconnected, so when you come back to the issue you can approach it with fresh energy and perspective.
Do what you can with what you have from where you are
Sometimes the scale of the change needed can feel overwhelming. But in my experience, it is better to take baby steps consistently than trying to achieve a big hairy scary thing in one go.
If you are struggling, just identify the next step and take it. And then the next. And then the next…
Acknowledge how far you have already come
I had a catch-up recently with the CEO of an organisation I worked with about three years ago. When I first started working with them, they didn’t even know where to start. We helped them work that out, and to develop the foundation stones on which they could build change.
Now they are firing on all cylinders. When I pointed out just how far she and her organisation had come, she looked genuinely surprised. As a great CEO she was constantly looking forward, and it hadn’t occurred to her to look back and acknowledge the road already travelled.
If you are one of those working to create change, I guarantee you will have already achieved loads. Recognising how far you have come will give you the fuel you need to keep the fires burning.
Can we help?
Want help with any aspect of your leadership and inclusion journey? Reach out and to set up an informal, no obligation chat. Contact [email protected]