Six questions to ask yourself if you are a white leader struggling to know what to do in the wake of Black Lives Matter.
In the wake of the current wave of the Black Lives Matter movement, we’re all aware of significant shifts taking place. The pressure is now on to demonstrate true leadership, to commit to anti-racism, and to commit to this not just for a moment but for monumental and significant change.
If you’re a white person in a position of leadership, particularly if you are surrounded by a majority of white people, how you manage the way your business and your team respond to this wave of change is crucial. And it isn’t going to be easy. We’re talking about the dismantling and rebuilding of entire systems and structures which have benefitted those of us who are white (and so have the inherent privilege that goes with that). It will be uncomfortable. It will be challenging. And it will require commitment for the long-term. I've spoken to a lot of people recently who feel their leaders aren't currently stepping up so if you’re feeling overwhelmed, that you don’t know what to do, or how to lead your team through this, here are some questions to ask yourself.
Where am I centring my narrative? When you talk to your teams about race and diversity, is it through your own lens of guilt and shame? Is there a greater weight of your communication and focus on your own feeling of sadness and of how this has affected you, rather than on those who are actually affected by racism and inequality? This moment isn’t about you and your struggles, or how you feel. This movement is about those who are black, not those of us who are white. Your communication and focus need to reflect that.
What’s really at the root of this feeling? If you are feeling uncomfortable, defensive, confronted, or angry, ask yourself what’s really going on. Are you scared of changing? Are you upset because you wish you had done better? Are you worried that you’ll try, and you’ll still get it wrong? Are you scared of admitting you don't know how to get it right? Getting clear on what is making this hard is going to make it easier for you to understand it, and to help you equip yourself to deal with it. It’s also going to help prevent the rabbit in headlights, hiding our heads in the sand moment. We’re all on a journey here but if we allow our initial feelings of discomfort to guide our reactions without examining the root, we’ll end up being silent out of our own fear. It’s better to try than to say nothing. Being silent is being complicit.
How can I better educate myself (and my team)? We are well past the point of ignorance being an acceptable excuse – with the wealth of information available at our fingertips, we need to start doing more and doing better, this starts with educating ourselves. Encourage your team to do so too. A big part of this is really listening while learning. Just because you don’t recognise or understand an experience or a behaviour, doesn’t mean it’s not true. Be open to hearing about the experiences of black people both in and out of your organisation without judgement.
How can I lean into discomfort and learn from it? The fact is, those of us who are white are born into a society where we are afforded a privilege that black people do not have, just by the colour of our skin. This inequality is structural, it is systemic, and it goes so deep that it is hard for us to even realise it much of the time. For the most part (and obviously there are important exceptions to this) we are not being challenged on this as individual white people. This is a system built over centuries - it does not exist because of one single person. But. We are the people who benefit from this system. And like it or not, if we are committed as leaders to building a society which is anti-racist and more equal, then we play a crucial role in dismantling this system that has given us this privilege while limiting it in others. Of course this feels uncomfortable. Feel into that discomfort. Recognise that the scale of your discomfort at being asked to share some of the privilege you were born with pales in comparison to the discomfort of those who were born without any in the first place. Ask yourself – what can I learn from this discomfort? How can I expand, not contract here? How can I listen more and talk less?
How can I aim for progress, not perfection? There’s a risk of aiming for perfection over progress at the moment. The desire to get everything absolutely right, which is often rooted in a fear of “looking bad” (which, let’s be honest, means we’re worried we’ll look like a racist if we get it wrong), can actually still be harmful because we’re setting ourselves up for failure. We need to aim for progress, not perfection because this is a long process and there is no magic solution. Aiming for perfection adds significant pressure and makes it really hard for people to highlight when we aren’t getting things right and what we need to do to improve. This doesn’t help you or your business – if you’re defensive about your lack of perfection, you’re not creating an environment in which your black team members can speak up. If you can bring openness and vulnerability into your progress and be willing to listen to feedback because of a genuine desire to continue to improve, you’re going to foster a more positive and open environment and that is the path to change.
How can I be more inclusive? As the saying goes, diversity is being asked to the party, inclusion is being asked to dance. Are you making decisions in a bubble? Are you including non-white members of your team in conversations around what changes need to be made? Are you listening to the answers? What are you then doing about it? How are you building long-term plans? How will you measure your ability to deliver?
This is by no means an exhaustive list – it’s simply a starting point for more thought and deeper exploration if you're feeling a bit stuck right now. The time has come for significant change and effective leadership will be found in honestly, openness, vulnerability and empathy. Only with that will we be able to deliver real results and real change.