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What Travel Teaches Us About Leadership and Discomfort
Travel can teach us so much about resilience, flexibility, and humility. As a frequent traveler, I strongly recommend it to anyone who has the opportunity as a way to stretch yourself, not only as a person but also as a leader. And for the record, travel doesn’t always have to take you an ocean away….
Ageism Never Gets Old: Tackling Age Bias in a Post-COVID Labor Force
When you hear about age discrimination, it usually pertains to an older job candidate not being selected due to their age. The truth is, ageism can potentially affect all ages and points in an employee’s life cycle. As I write this article, I’m reminded that I’m now older than the average employee age in my organization. As I get closer to being in the “older workers” category, this topic hits home for me and my generation, but also, I realize just how much stereotypes on age affect our daily lives. While the law prohibits discrimination in any aspect of employment — “hiring, firing, pay, job assignments, promotions, layoff, training, benefits, and any other term or condition of employment,” ageism undoubtedly still occurs.
It’s More Than Just Fatigue: We Need to Address Employee Burnout
Let’s face it — the past year has all of us feeling some level of fatigue. Even under normal circumstances, fatigue, stress, and overwhelm are common; we’re only human. Though it’s a shared experience, we often underplay the level of fatigue or overwhelm we’re experiencing, which can not only further our fatigue but can create feelings of isolation.
Feeling “burnt out” has become a common phrase amongst tired people, so it’s not unusual to hear this around the office. The issue with normalizing the phrase is that when people are actually burnt out, they aren’t taken seriously as it’s typical to just shrug it off.
What to Do When You Can’t Clock Out: Tips to Navigate Working Parenthood
Work-life balance is difficult for anyone to achieve, but for working parents, navigating parenthood and career can at times feel like an impossible task. Sheer willpower helps to a point, but nothing supports this balancing act like having a real strategy, a method to the madness, so to speak. While few would call working and navigating parenthood a simple feat (certainly none that ever tried), many would agree that it’s a balancing act that demands devotion and adaptability.
When Talking About an Inclusive Environment, We Have to Discuss ‘Splaining
Though most people see Spring as a stepping stone we must cross over to get to Summer, it’s a great time for growth and change, both personally and professionally. This Spring, there’s a lot of change happening — vaccines are steadily rolling out, and the hope of returning to “normalcy” is within reach. As some of us start to head back into our offices, I’m hopeful about those lingering promises to “do better” that many of us made this past year. It’s also my hope that these promises are fulfilled, and it’s up to us to hold our companies accountable so that these important topics of inclusion and diversity in the workplace span further than just during a movement or national month.
Black History Month Beyond February
As another Black History Month comes to a close, I encourage each of us to take a moment to reflect, especially this year as many individuals and institutions have pledged to do better. Afterall, we can always do better — all of us. Here are a few resources on Black speakers, authors, educators, and activists to learn from all year and for many years to come. Life gets away from us so easily, especially now with so much going on in our virtual and remote environments. If you haven’t already, I encourage you to dedicate time each week — even if just five minutes while drinking your morning coffee — to reflect, educate, and grow.
In Spite of 2020, I’m Still Grateful
As an eternal optimist, even I must confess that 2020 left a lot to be desired. And now that it’s finally over, and we await all that 2021 has in store, I’m trying to capture those “2020 moments” that brought me joy. I mean the kind of pure joy that makes you smile without even realizing it.
I know, 2020 reflection calls attention to Covid-19, racial unrest, and political divisiveness, just to name a few. Yet through it all, when it seems like joy was nowhere in sight, I’m determined to bring light to those positive moments at times buried deep within last year. You see, I believe it’s possible to acknowledge the hurt we’ve endured while also finding gratitude for the experience. Though 2020 brought many of us great heartache, there have been glimmers of hope sprinkled about that have hopefully brought a smile or two to the faces of many.