Honoring Diversity – What Makes You Unique?

One of the reasons I love what I do is because of the fascinating people I have the opportunity to meet every day.  The highly social aspect of my personality is always curious about others; their “stories” and deepening relationships by just getting to know them.

One of the exercises that Madd-Steiny often facilitates in our learning modules around the topic of honoring diversity has participants answer the simple question: ‘What makes you unique?’

We hear that life experiences in diverse cultures and communities, family systems, education, life events, and work experiences create each of our unique stories.  Invariably, this discussion always creates a curiosity to hear more about the unique and individual stories.

We believe that in order to embrace a culture of respect and inclusion every individual needs to be honored for their uniqueness.  This can be advanced in any organization when individuals and groups take time to create a forum where dialogue and listening can take place.

One of my all time favorite authors, Margaret Wheatley, said it best in her book Turning to One Another: Simple Conversations to Restore Hope to the Future.

“Great healing is available to us when we listen to each other.  No matter what we have experienced in life, if we can tell our story to someone who listens, we find it easier to deal with our circumstances.  Listening is such a simple act.  It requires us to be present (and that takes practice!) and willing to just sit there and listen with the intent to understand.  Why is being heard so healing?  It has something to do with the fact that listening creates a relationship.

We know from science that nothing in the universe exists in isolation.  Everything takes form from relationships.  Our natural state is to be together.  Though we keep moving away from each other, we never lose the need to be in relationship.  Not listening creates fragmentation.  Listening moves us closer to becoming more whole.”

Here are some questions that you might consider asking others to learn about what makes them unique:

·    What is your favorite thing about this time of year?
·    What traditions do you practice in your family that has a legacy?
·    What was an experience in your life that was a “defining moment” for you and shaped who you are today?

Enjoy and honor the stories you’ll hear!

Sincerely, Georgine

Is Your Company Customer Centric?

One of our favorite clients is a hospital with whom we’ve been working for more than three years.  We feel privileged that they have implemented a customized version of our respectFULL teams™ program.  Recently, they spoke to us about developing a learning plan for an initiative they’ve undertaken to build a “patient family centered” culture.  Patient family centered care is the practice of building and sustaining mutually-beneficial partnerships among patients, their families, and health care providers.  At its core, patient family centered care requires that patients and their families are treated with dignity and respect.  (We love that part!)  One aspect of this best practice requires the interpersonal competence to be able to connect and communicate with people in a way that is meaningful for them and meets their individual needs.  In many cases, this is a paradigm shift for hospital personnel because patients and families must be viewed as equal and important members of the health care team.  For health care, this is a revolution.  And, it can be a revolution for all other industries as well.

What do you think it would be like if all organizations treated their customers – all the time – with dignity and respect?  There are some core principles of patient family centered care that translate well to any industry and all customers.  Here are some of the guidelines for making an organization more customer-centered.  What improvement ideas and/or challenges come to mind for you as you read them?

·    Service is customized according to the customer’s needs and values.
·    The customer is the source of control.
·    Knowledge is shared and information flows freely.
·    Decision making is evidence-based.
·    Transparency is necessary.
·    Needs are anticipated.
·    Waste is continuously decreased.
·    Cooperation among service providers is a priority.

Lynae

Generosity

Recently, I’ve heard a lot of “talk” about a new book out by Ken Blanchard (author of The One Minute Manager) and S.Truett Cathy (author of It’s Easier to Succeed Than to Fail) called The Generosity Factor: Discover the Joy of Giving Your Time, Talent, and Treasure.

I don’t know about you, but for me when I hear something once I take notice.  When I hear something twice, I take interest. And, when I hear something three times (or more), I take action.  So, I went out and bought the book.

I found the book to be an inspirational and easy read.  What I received from the book was a reminder about the power of giving.

I couldn’t help but think about a blog that my partner, Lynae, wrote a few weeks back on Getting What you Want after being inspired by hearing Zig Zigler speak at a conference we attended, about the power of giving generously.

Generosity is the mindset of giving freely without expecting anything in return. Generosity involves giving of your time, attention, assets, or talents.  Although the term generosity often goes hand-in-hand with charity, it is not solely based on one’s economic status, but instead, includes the individual’s pure intentions of expressing appreciation, looking out for an individual’s/group’s common good and/or giving from the heart.

For me, the book inspired more than a heart of giving. It inspired my heart of receiving. I haven’t always been so gracious in receiving gifts from others, be it appreciation, feedback, help, or tokens. I do believe that giving and receiving go hand in hand.

We have always heard that the act of giving has a cause and effect relationship with the receiver. They are more inclined to “pass it on” and acknowledge others that make a difference in their lives.

Madd-Steiny’s focus on helping create and sustain values-based work cultures has a lot to do with the art of giving and receiving. When we are generous with each other, we have an eye on the greater good that we can accomplish together and feel more empowered to make a difference in our world.

Here are some tips I would suggest for practicing the art of giving and receiving in your environment.

·    Be generous with “calling out” action and/or contributions from others that you appreciate
·    Be fully present “in the now” with each interaction you have with others.
·    Get good at saying “thank you” when you receive a token of generosity
·    Express your appreciation for the give and take (collaboration) of your relationships

Georgine

Monuments

Last week, I took my twin nieces to Mt. Rushmore.  (That’s us in the photo.)  I was awestruck by the powerful sight of four of our greatest presidents carved into a granite mountainside.  It got me thinking about monuments, their power, and their meaning in our culture.

Monuments are imbued with meaning by their creators.  Mt. Rushmore is a memorial to American history and instills hope and is meant to represent a basic belief in the decency of our country and its government.  But I believe Mt. Rushmore holds greater power than imagined by its artist because of the personal meaning for each individual who visits.  For me, the monument represents America’s values of freedom, liberty and opportunity.  I can only imagine what it might mean to others: hope, strength, truth, justice, happiness, or possibility.

In organizations, we create monuments imbued with meaning that is intended to send a message, represent shared values, or align with the company vision.  Sometimes the monuments are explicit, such as a sculpture of a company founder or a mural depicting major events in a company’s history.  Other times, monuments are subtle reminders of important beliefs, such as a plaque on which are listed the company’s core values.  More subtle still . . . a monument can be found in the form of company lore─a story told time and again.  The important thing to remember for leaders who erect monuments (or perpetuate a company’s oral history) is to make sure they are inspirational.  A monument endures when its meaning is universal and can stand the test of time.

·    So, what monuments exist in your company?
·    Do they inspire and appropriately represent your organization’s vision and values?
·    What do they mean to you and others?
·    How do they help your company progress and grow?

Lynae