Published on January 15, 2021
I was talking to a close friend the other day and discussing why building inclusive work cultures is so challenging and whether workplaces are a reflection of society considering the real deep divisions of exclusion in society. This raises questions;
Have we lost the ability to be considerate of others? When did we become so selfish?
I have read the worst of times brings out the best of people, however I think there is also the ability for some to use situations to behave poorly and recklessly.
I keep hearing the ‘right’ to free speech; I have the right to say whatever I want! ,
I am responsible for myself and don’t need to follow those rules, and
People have to accept me for who I am.
These statements are all inwardly focussed; do we have a right to say whatever we want? What happened to the time when we considered others and thought about our impact through our words or actions? What if the comments are untrue, are racist or incite violence, are hateful to a particular part of our society or are just aimed to inflict hurt or pain? I believe we all have a responsibility to phrase or frame our comments, it is perfectly acceptable to hold a position or belief, but it is how you express the point of view. I note in several commentaries where certain facts or rights around freedom associated with speech are stated, people taking those words as gospel, regardless of any outcome. Having read the history, background and ideals of many people who authored the original ‘rights’ and the values of the day, I wonder what they would think if they knew the way their words were construed in the modern world.
Do we have a discretionary right to decide what rules we are to follow? What are the parameters if a rule conflicts with a belief we hold? When did we become, as a society, so focussed on ourselves to the detriment of others. The current emphasis on self over all others seems obscene at best.
And one of my favourites, “people have to accept me for who I am”, this comment is usually trotted out after someone offends another with a comment, gesture or action, this is the essence of selfishness, to state this comment suggests all others have to respect them but they have no care or respect for other people or the effect they may have on that person or section of society.
To me, all these examples relate to a society ever more becoming focussed on the individual and not on the collective action of our words or actions, where is the feeling, empathy and compassion for others. When did people allow their anger to inhabit so much of what they believe; or is this part of the rise of the digital age where relative anonymity manifests as ‘shouting’ and crude opinion has become the norm, our point of view over all others when you are pressed to prove a negative without the other party accepting the positive in any way.
It is quite distressing to see how recent international events have overwhelmed this discussion piece from when I first started my draft to the finish, how quickly reality can grow larger than life, a saying attributed to Confucius is “A wise man makes his own decisions, an ignorant man obeys public opinion”. Two concurrent news stories portrayed the following; 1 was a politician supporting ‘freedom of speech’ the second was a sporting event where spectators were thrown out for what they said. I believe there is a line, when are we going to grow up, create values of our own and live to those values?
I suppose it comes down to what we think of ourselves, who are our role models and what are we trying to achieve, I wonder how many of us are trying to replicate unrealistic role models and social media images, how many ‘celebrities’ really have substance behind them, many are an obtuse idea of what success looks like. If people are looking up at these people as ‘successful’ in their private lives, how do they translate these values and images into their career or workplace?
How do we get back to accountability and responsibility for ourselves and consideration of others?
So.........we have many strategies, plans, studies, frameworks and processes to help create an inclusive workplace, why are we so fragmented in society, we need strong leadership both within workplaces and society displaying courage and example to move the conversation.....and hopefully, us forward.
Mal