Leadership Matters- Showing Up for Racial Justice

A message from the founder of Alliance for Leadership Acceleration and creator of the LEAP®, Leadership Acceleration Program, Lynda Silsbee.

This past week or so has been a struggle, with many of us not sure what to say or do. It’s important that we take a stand and educate ourselves. Personally, I’m using this time to listen, learn, engage, and work to do better as a leader. Our informal mission at Performance Dimensions Group is to improve the world of work one leader at a time, and we need stronger leadership and change now more than ever. The COVID19 lockdown has been stressful for everyone and we’ve finally begun to ‘unlock’. Just as we think about returning to work, we are confronted with the reality of terrible brutality and injustices resulting in the deaths of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, and George Floyd (and far too many others before this). My tears from mourning have turned to tears of anger, inflaming a desire to do something with my own privilege. This outcry for action comes from a movement for racial equality and justice that has spanned generations, our silence and inaction are no longer acceptable.
 
But where do we start? What can we do? I started by asking my black colleagues and friends. Consistently, they have told me to become informed racial inequality and educate myself on anti-racism. Even though I thought I was doing enough in the past, becoming more intentional about this process has shown me where I can grow. On this journey of becoming informed, I'm sharing the following resources and information, which have been very helpful and educational.

• Anti-Racism resources for white people: A large collection of information, articles, books, videos, organizations to follow that was documented and compiled by Sarah Sophie Flicker and Alyssa Klein in May 2020.
  bit.ly/ANTIRACISMRESOURCES
• Online Racial Equity Workshops: A collection by EventBrite from experts on a wide variety of topics.
  https://bit.ly/BLM_eventbriteEducation
• Business leadership “The Future of Work” Summer Series from the Bellevue Chamber: A series of excellent topics from a broad cross-section of thought leaders. 
  https://www.bigmarker.com/series/future-of-work-leadership-co/series_summit 

As a small business, we also want to share our commitment to action moving forward. As a call out to those remaining on the sidelines, any action taken is a step in the right direction. It will not be enough to do on our own and we invite you to join us in being a part of the change to a world where all people are guaranteed equal rights. We will get there faster if we do it together! Here are our commitments to help us build a better workplace for us and our clients:
 

1. We commit to educating ourselves and seeking out resources that will help us better understand the issues surrounding inequality, injustice, and racism. 
2. We commit to donating financially and pro-bono consulting time to help support the change we want to see in the world now. We are researching which organizations to start with and welcome suggestions or collaboration.
3. We commit to bringing in more consultants on our team from underrepresented minorities.
4. We commit to speak out and speak up to amplify the voices of those seeking equity and justice.
5. We commit to talking less and listening more. We must give time and space to those whose voices have not been heard.

Our mission is to help our clients create GREAT places to work – together we can be the change we want to see in the world! I am thankful to those around me who continue to engage in the difficult conversations, ask tough questions, and draw attention to the ways we can be better.