I was having a conversation with an employee at a place I go to regularly. We started talking about the week and what we were planning on doing with our weekend.
He shared with me that he was going to LA Pride with his boyfriend and I asked if he was going to SF Pride as well. He looked around, leaned in and said: "Heck yea! If they don't let me go, I'll quit."
I quickly realized it wasn't about going to Pride; it was about his values, who he was and what he believed in. It was at that moment he expressed how important it was for his job to support that.
If you can't bring your whole self to any environment - it's not worth being there.
From Black Lives Matter to Ramadan, from Pride to Lent. If it is a part of you and your culture the workplace should be an inclusive, safe place to be and express who you are.
For this to balance, Humanity in the Workplace is key.
One conflict I hear the most is when employees feel they aren't able to bring their values to work. Feeling they have to "compromise" pieces of them to fit the status quo or what they think others what to hear or see.
"Companies don't have values, people do." -Stan Slap
If this is happening, it's usually because there is a misalignment with where you are, not who you are. It's important to be aware that the more you practice bringing only parts of you to the workplace (or anyplace), the more comfortable you become leaving your true self behind.
Humanity must be the driving force in the workplace or else it's all for nothing.
"Life is too short to live bits and pieces of ourselves."
My hope is that employers become more aware of the cultures and diversity they continue to attract and that employees no matter where they are in their career find places that they feel safe and comfortable bringing their whole self.
Charisse Fontes is the founder of Culture Circle and an Executive + People Ops Advisor to founders and leadership teams.
more about Culture Circle →first published on linkedin, jun 2017_
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