Recognizing what you do not see — my promises
December 3 is International Day of Disabled Persons
On 3 December, the United Nations International Day of Disabled Persons, my colleagues and I are learning that what we don’t see can sometimes change everything. Thanks to at least three recent occasions, these lessons are coming to life, and have led me to make three strong promises in my leadership. I hope you’ll join me.
Our CMO, Conor McKechnie, lives by the words “every day is a school day.”
In that spirit, our global Marketing team recently got together to share evidence and experiences of inclusion and diversity, with a focus this year on unseen disabilities. Do you have a colleague who has identified themselves as neurodiverse? How do you respond? We watched a TikTok video from Rachel Winder, who most memorably said that she can only see things from her point of view, but that is not exclusive to autism. Boom! Nice reminder.
Since then, I followed up on one of my favorite scientific journalism sites, the Conversation.
Posting about autism awareness is in itself riddled with complications, controversy, and reminders to keep asking questions.
In early October I attended an Internal Communications conference in Copenhagen, where inclusion and diversity was a major theme. I’ll never forget the contributions of the panelists, but in particular Sören Lindbo, who is job searching, and put that at the top of his conversations with potential employers. Bravo! Here’s where you can watch that panel discussion (yep, led by me.)
And we continue to learn and discuss. Our marketing meeting was followed by a different meeting on everyday leadership, where the discussion around you can have a personal effect on people, whether you see it or not. Whether you know it or not.
The combination of these three events has led me to three commitments.
1. Am I thinking outside my own point of view?
2. How can I better enable a safe environment for diverse views and experiences?
3. How do I ensure that I don’t benchmark everyone using neurotypical standards?
I invite you to either join me, or add to my list. What questions are you asking in order to better support an inclusive working world?
Finally, to challenge your perception of invisible disabilities:
· Read: Invisible Disabilities Publications — Invisible Disabilities® Association)
· Listen: Radio 1’s Life Hacks — Adapt The World — Invisible Disabilities — BBC Sounds)
