Follow to lead - part 2

Author: Aneesha Ugwoke (she/her) is currently a leader with Farm Credit Canada, CPHR Alberta member, and an anti-racism specialist. 

Inclusivity isn’t just about hiring a diverse candidate.  It’s about the daily practice of leading the people you already have with your heart.  It’s about a daily consideration of whom you’ve left out.  As leaders, we are conditioned to fix; to make it better, to think top-down (as we should ).  I want to augment these characteristics to include leaders who look for the bad .  For you need not blindly trust a system that you did not build.

SO, TRUST IN YOURSELF WHEN ELSE IS UNTRUSTWORTHY.

But to gain belonging, it can’t be about you.

So, how can YOU (inhibitor) go from yourself to THEM (enabler)?  

Shame
Guilt
Fear of offending
Embarressment
Compliancy to only business outcomes
Self-promotion
Policy
Not my place
Etc.
 

Note:  Their needs are not listed because only they can tell you.

This compels you to think outside yourself because at the end of the day, followership makes it mandatory that it’s not about you and your emotions.  So, loop back on an ongoing basis to ensure that your efforts are impacting those who need to feel them; otherwise, your efforts are only meaningful to you.  This is a boomerang performance that will exhaust you and won’t illustrate your good intent after all. 

And you WILL misstep.  But your uncleanliness will be authentic, so lead with that and your authenticity will yield trust.  Followership as inclusive leadership is a tactic that doesn’t discount business objectives or outcomes at all.  Conversely, it mobilizes people as the primary way to achieve high performance and innovation.  It may not be an extraordinary concept, but it is an extraordinary reminder of what it means to lead people, ALL people. 

You CAN impact inclusion.  There is a way for those who have the will…as they say.

JUST LOOK OUTSIDE THE BOX.

The views and opinions expressed in this blog post belong solely to the original author(s) and do not necessarily represent the views and opinions of CPHR Alberta.