People got carried away with the words and forgot the meaning.
As a storyteller and a consultant that helps build stronger workplaces where people don't feel like they have to leave parts of themselves behind to do their job, that reality is disappointing.
I like to think that collectively we would come together and protect critical thinking and agree that treating each other like human beings who deserve the same opportunities we all do, but sometimes some people get swept away in fear. And they forget.
They forget that how they experience life is not how others experience life. One of the best parts of observation months is that we get to experience people outside of those cultures learn something new OR learn what we all share. For example, these are things I bring to workplaces that are just me:
I don't put my purse on the floor. It's bad luck.
I keep lotion on my desk because I don't like to have ashy hands.
If I get riled up, I go someplace and calm down because as a Black woman, my emotions are judged differently.
My nails will stay done. My dad worked on the line at Ford Motor Company for 40 years and never once wanted his hands to look like the work he did. I still use Bee Pollen Moist lotion when I find it.
My hair will always be done. The Crown Act isn't just a nice to have for me. It's a way of me identifying my culture and rejecting decades of pressure to have hair that looked like what others defined as "professional" - something no one person or group gets to define. It's clean. It's fly. It smells good. It's rooted in my culture.
I never leave my dirty dishes in the communal sink for someone else to clean up.
I will use my colloquialisms. My history is rooted in sayings that make sense to me. I will use fifty-leven to mean many different. I will use G-rated slang in the workplace because that's how I express myself and I'm happy to explain what I mean if asked.
I don't make assumptions about anybody's time as a latchkey kid whose parents worked a lot. Their time was spent working, commuting, decompressing from work, restoring and back at it again.
The ability to show up as yourself without being clocked by others in the name of their professionalism—which could have been inherited through so many different exclusive lenses—is what we were fighting for all along with equity and inclusion. To be included and to be treated fairly. The naysayers just got noisier than the cause.
Photographer Dinanda Nooney documented Bedford-Stuyvesant residences and their occupants in 1978. Lisa and Dorothy, 579 Putnam Ave.
What are some things you feel like you bring to the workplace that are authentically you?
If this interests you, I'm building a new workshop for leaders who struggle with storytelling. Storytelling is already being touted as one of the most important skill sets to have in the workplace. For leaders and emerging leaders, it's really important because you will not have cohesion, collaboration, or engagement if they don't know who you are or why you are there. Just hit reply to this newsletter if you want to hear more.
Rhona Barnett-Pierece and I did a session on Storytelling in TA for HR.com that’s now available for on-demand viewing! We talked about how storytelling for Talent Acquisition professionals allows them to advocate for themselves (pop your collars at work, friends), proactively engage candidates, and build employer branding harmoniously. You can catch it here.
Lastly, there have been so many Bad Bunny hot takes but this is my favorite. It’s the bell hooks quote that really seals it.
We are all on a journey to how to make work better together. Is there something you want to know more about or a problem you are navigating? Shoot me a note and let me know what problems you want to solve where you are. We got this.
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