Power Your Ally Journey With a Learning Mindset
Each week, Karen Catlin shares five simple actions to create a more inclusive workplace and be a better ally.
1. Turn on automatic captioning
In an article for Fast Company, product designer Quinn Keast shared his experience participating in video calls as a deaf person. Lip reading doesn’t work well over video, so he relies on automatic captioning. However, this also has its challenges due to time lags or dropped words.
To better understand the experience of someone relying on captions, his VP suggested their team all join a video meeting without audio. What was fascinating to Quinn is how their interactions changed during the call.
“The rhythm of conversation changed, from tentative, short sentences, to longer, well-thought-through blocks of thought. We discovered how difficult it was to go back and forth between speakers without the benefit of sound, and how important it was to give each other conversational space to join in. We discovered how hard it is to be heard.”
Quinn goes on to share how their learnings could benefit everyone, not just those who are deaf. He mentioned temporary challenges like having a flat wireless earbud or an ear infection, and I also think it could help people who have trouble inserting themselves into conversations.
Allies, if you use a video conferencing system that supports automatic captioning, consider turning it on and see how your spoken word shows up. Then adapt your style to be more inclusive.
2. Review your dress code (if you have one)
In an effort to “celebrate diversity rather than corporate restrictions,” UPS updated its dress code to be gender-neutral and to allow for facial hair and natural hairstyles, “such as afros, braids, curls, coils, locs, twists and knots.”
If your organization has a dress code, take a close look. Is it gender-neutral? Does it allow people to show up genuinely and authentically? Are there improvements you can recommend?
3. Be unafraid to say “I don’t know,” “I made a mistake,” or “I need help”
Last week, I read Getting Serious About Diversity: Enough Already with the Business Case by Robin Ely and David Thomas. I found parts of the article unsettling; the authors debunked some of the research I’ve quoted (numerous times!) about the financial benefits of a diverse workforce. Yet, they firmly believe in diversity and inclusion when done right.
Here’s their premise: you can’t just increase your employee diversity to realize benefits. Instead, you need to change people’s mindsets, organizational processes, and overall culture. I’m aligned with that 100%.
The authors went on to emphasize how vital a learning mindset is, especially across employees’ differences.
Their study of more than 400 retail bank branches in the United States found that the more racially diverse it was, the better its performance — but only for specific branches. At these locations, employees were willing to learn about racial differences and be unafraid to say, “I don’t know,” “I made a mistake,” or “I need help” when discussing issues of race.
These acts of vulnerability strengthened relationships, which, in turn, improved the branch’s financial performance.
I hope we, as allies, can all be unafraid to say those same phrases.
Speaking of making mistakes…
4. Say “yes” when asked if you’re open to feedback
Last week, when I was leading a Better Allies workshop, one of the participants messaged me during the break asking, “Are you open to some feedback?” As I racked my brain for what I might have done wrong, I typed, “Yes, definitely.”
They then wrote that they were surprised I said that men might be more comfortable or skilled at interrupting others because their vocal cords tend to be longer, resulting in deeper voices that project and help them break into conversations. Given that I had been using language inclusive of transgender people earlier in the workshop, this statement stood out to them.
I immediately understood my mistake. Transgender men (who are men) don’t necessarily have that same physical characteristic.*
They kindly suggested I say “cisgender men” next time, which is what I’ll be doing. (Thank you!)
Stepping back from this story, I realize that every time I say “yes” when asked if I’m open to feedback, I learn something. I hope you feel the same way.
* While transgender men can lengthen their vocal cords and develop deeper voices if they take testosterone, not all will take that route or be that far along in their transition.
5. Don’t blame the pipeline
While the pipeline might be an easy excuse for why it’s hard to improve your organization’s diversity, I hope you’re willing to think differently. Experienced applicants from marginalized groups are out there, and attracting them to is not the impossible task that pipeline-blamers believe it is.
I encourage you to check out this excerpt from my book, “The Better Allies Approach to Hiring,” recently published in The Muse. In it, I share some techniques you can use — whether you’re a leader, a hiring manager, or an individual contributor — to find and hire candidates from underrepresented groups.
That’s all for this week. I wish you strength and safety as we all move forward,
— Karen Catlin, Founder and Author of Better Allies®
Being an ally is a journey. Want to join us?
😍 Follow @betterallies on Twitter, Medium, Instagram, or Pinterest
✉️ This content originally appeared in our newsletter, 5 Ally Actions; Subscribe to get it delivered to your inbox every Friday
📖 Read the Better Allies books
👕 Get your Better Allies gear
📣 Tell someone about these resources
Together, we can — and will — make a difference with the Better Allies® approach.
