What’s shaking? How are you and your team? We just entered Spring Equinox on Monday, March 20. We are also wrapping up Quarter 1 for those who operate on this timeline. If you are feeling stress, it’s okay to pause for a moment.
Let’s breathe (Inhale 1, 2, 3, 4. Hold, 1, 2, 3, 4. Exhale 1, 2, 3, 4 …) and remember …
- There is always more to do than we can possibly do in every moment.
- How might you return to a place of curiosity and calm, and from here, what is important to feel/be/act on?
- What can you celebrate right now?
We are closing out Women’s Herstory Month, preceded by Black History/Black Futures Month, and we have Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month and Pride Month on the horizon. As others have acknowledged, like Stefani Coverson on LinkedIn, it is important to continue to be in action all year long to support the well-being of people in your organization.
For those of us who share a commitment towards creating cultures that are liberatory, how do we do that?
- First, let’s breathe together again. Inhale and exhale. Transforming workplace culture takes time, care, investment, commitment, rigor, and institutional support.
- Second, let’s bring our attention in this moment to considering how we can bring less harm to and better understand the needs of Black employees, Black women, women of color, trans women, women with disabilities, single parents, and other individuals and groups who are not currently centered in policies and practices within our organizations. Ask yourself: How can I bring my attention to this regularly?
- There are many planning strategies to support larger movement towards your goals. It might be time to engage in a strategic planning process, revisit plans you’ve already created, and/or to schedule a meeting with your DEI committees or employee resource groups.
- Then, there is regular spot checking — being responsive in the moment and in real time to yourself and others.
- Do you need a rest to recharge? DO IT so that you can come back more present and model this.
- Do others? Talk to your team about what type of support they need right now. Support it.
- With everything going on around us, the more we can explore responding from a place of curiosity and listening (to our needs and others’), the more we can build a culture of people around us who are resourced in various ways.
Another world is possible. People are building towards this every day; each moment we are breathing and envisioning, building resiliency, and pausing for a moment of rest, redirection, and saying yes to another way.
Be inspired: Take a moment to watch this short YouTube clip showing a murmuration of starlings as a way to connect with what’s possible when we come together.
As a reminder for this month….
Shifting culture to something new means first noticing what is around us already, such as ideologies like white supremacy and patriarchy. Aspects of white supremacy culture like control, perfectionism, and sense of urgency have been building into our workplace cultures and team mindsets for hundreds of years and take practice to unwind from.
This Women’s Herstory Month, I want to encourage you consider how patriarchy, sexism, and cissexism show up in your systems and interactions and can have harmful impacts across all genders.
Reflection questions: How are you interrupting sexism and cissexism throughout your days? How does this help you align your values to your workplace culture?
