Organizations that get diversity right reap tremendous benefits that ripple across the company culture and eventually lead to an indisputable impact on the bottom line. But robust, resilient diversity in the workplace thrives only when members of the majority group, who we call Insiders, actively educate and challenge each other.
Excerpted from co-founder Michael Welp’s book, Four Days to Change, these 12 Radical New Mindsets mirror the life-changing transformation that occurs when Insiders broaden their view of the world, freeing them to benefit from more inclusive, authentic partnerships in the workplace and at home.
- Mindset #1: It no longer works to see everything in life as a problem to solve. Life is a journey in which new questions and perspectives arise. The journey itself will lead to more profound learning.
- Mindset #2: Incorporate multiple perspectives, even if they are contradictory. They give you a more intricate view of the world. Seeing the world from only one perspective gives an incomplete view.
- Mindset #3: Your strengths overused become weaknesses. Notice when your strengths don’t serve you. Create the space to grow underutilized skills and attributes even if you feel tentative at first.
- Mindset #4: Learn to accept ambiguity, emotion and discomfort.
- Mindset #5: Inquire and seek the insights of others. Maximizing inquiry will expand learning and create new partnerships. Most of us spend an overwhelming majority of our time in advocacy, arguing our positions and proving that our views are right. There is another way.
- Mindset #6: Focus on the present to create immediate and deeper connection — with yourself and others. Our focus is often on creating the future or examining the past while neglecting the present.
- Mindset #7: Recognize we are all in this together. Discover our interdependence. Our interconnectedness is more critical to our ultimate survival as a species than any sense of independence that may resonate with you now.
- Mindset #8: Explore just being, and step out of doing. We often assume our essential value comes from focusing on action and getting things done. But acting without reflection can derail success. New paths open when we take the time to just be.
- Mindset #9: Show up with vulnerability—it’s a form of courage. You’ll create more openness and deeper connections than ever before.
- Mindset #10: Be conscious of intent and impact. By tuning into both the intent and impact we have on each other, we build a foundation for full partnership.
- Mindset #11: Notice abundance rather than assume scarcity. When our worldview is one of scarcity, we succumb to fear and tend to struggle. Yes, some resources are finite, but others are infinite. Share the wealth.
- Mindset #12: Notice, appreciate and acknowledge what is working well. Our strong problem-solving muscle has us often looking to address what’s wrong in order to solve it. Put your attention on what you want to grow.
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