Suppose your race, gender, status, or ability level lends you power and privilege at work. In that case, you can be a powerful ally for those who feel othered or excluded from the organization’s culture.
DEI strategist Amri B. Johnson shares a few easy ways to help people shine.
NASHVILLE, TN, December 2022—You’ve probably heard of othering. It’s what happens when certain employees are (however unintentionally) excluded from the dominant workplace culture. Whether people are “othered” because of race, religion, gender identity, or some other reason, it does lasting damage. It’s terrible for morale, but it also robs businesses of the gifts and insights of many of their employees.
Significantly few people of power and privilege set out to “other” their coworkers; it happens almost by default. That’s why diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) expert Amri B. Johnson says it’s up to all of us to foster belonging proactively. (Yes! even you.)
“If you’re part of the dominant group, you’re free to speak your mind with fewer negative consequences,” says Johnson, CEO of Inclusion Wins and author of Reconstructing Inclusion: Making DEI Accessible, Actionable, and Sustainable. “This puts you in a position to advocate for those doing stellar work that is more likely to go unnoticed or unrewarded.”
Why should the people who are “on top” want inclusion? Because inclusion isn’t a zero-sum game, says Johnson. The sooner organizations end the “us” versus “them” paradigm that focuses on what divides us, the sooner we can reap the rewards of a shared humanity approach to DEI. Thinking in terms of “we” ensures that everyone thrives.
The good news is that small acts of inclusion by individuals (leaders and employees) can go a long way. For example:
Be willing to sacrifice your comfort to include “outsiders.” Bringing people who may feel, or have historically been, excluded into the group can put us out of our comfort zone. Do it anyway. Invite someone you don’t know to join you for lunch. Or, rather than sticking with your work friend at the staff meeting, sit beside someone of another race or culture and start a conversation.
“It’s only human to want to stick to our familiar habits and associations,” says Johnson. “Most people don’t do it with malicious intent. But when we’re willing to stretch ourselves and break out of our self-imposed boundaries, we give others room to grow. It’s a small sacrifice to make.”
Call on the quiet ones. Notice the dynamics when teams get together. Do some people lead or dominate the discussion? Who is interrupting? Who rarely speaks up? Quite often, you might find it’s the Black, Latino, or LGBT employee who is fading into the background. You can make an impact just by asking questions to ensure that everyone feels free to weigh in.
For example: “Kristen was talking about this the other day. Let’s see what she thinks.” Or ask, “Paul, do you see another way to proceed?” Or, simply ask, “Can we hear from someone who hasn’t spoken yet today?” One caveat: Make it clear that people can think about their responses and share them after the meeting. Introverts who hate being put on the spot will appreciate this.
Share praise with the people who helped behind the scenes. Reflect on who has helped you anytime you have a big breakthrough or achievement, and then give credit where credit is due. And don’t just offer quiet kudos. Make the praise public by putting it in a group email or giving a shoutout at a daily meeting.
Be your authentic self. Many people resort to “covering” behaviors that hide their true identity to survive or thrive at work. Do your part to help normalize authenticity by bringing your whole self to work—say, by being open about your blue-collar background or your struggle with depression. Using your privilege to “uncover” potentially will help people without the same level of privilege to do the same.
“When we act from a place of shared humanity, we find that small gestures can make a big impact,” concludes Johnson. “Above all, make sure care, openness, safety, and trust guide your actions and interactions. Treating people the way you want to be treated goes a long way to bridge each other’s differences, fully support everyone, and achieve the organization’s goals.”
About the Author:
Amri B. Johnson is the author of Reconstructing Inclusion: Making DEI Accessible, Actionable, and Sustainable. For more than 20 years, he has been instrumental in helping organizations and their people create extraordinary business outcomes. He is a social capitalist, epidemiologist, entrepreneur, and inclusion strategist. Amri’s dialogic approach to engaging all people as leaders and change agents has fostered the opening of minds and deepening of skillsets with organizational leaders and citizens, enabling them to thrive and optimally contribute to one another and their respective organizations.
As CEO/founder of Inclusion Wins, Amri and a virtual collective of partners converge on organizational purpose to create global impact with a lens of inclusion. Born in Topeka, Kansas (USA), Amri has worked and lived in the US and Brazil and currently lives in Basel, Switzerland, with his wife, Martina, and their three kids.
For more information, please visit www.inclusionwins.com.
