Greater than Zero

“Roger, we really like you and Ali (my wife), but you’re zeros. We need better than that because there are a lot of minus 1s in the world”

That was how Kerry Bowie a black friend and former classmate of mine (we were in some pretty quantitative classes together — hence the math equation) articulated real honest feedback about his personal experiences with racism the wake of last years George Floyd tragedy.

That moment of transparent honesty, came after 15 years of friendship. It was an expression of the sentiment that is pervasive among so many of our friends and colleagues in the black community and in so many other diverse communities as well. I found myself reflecting on the feedback, becoming defensive but coming back to the conclusion that the the message is pure truth and I had to own and act on that feedback.

That was a personal inflection point for me. It has changed my perspective on race. Changed how I view my role — as an American, as a white male, as a leader and as a member of many communities. I hope and intend to be a plus — perhaps a plus 10 or 20 or more. We’ll never know, but I’ll err on the high side.

Kerry helped me realize the truth in plain sight. Racism is pervasive in our society. I’d rationalized addressing it by trying to be as good a friend/coworker/etc to my diverse friends as I was to my other friends. That simply is not enough — I now view it as a personal imperative to help address the challenges that racism creates to help counterbalance so many minus-1s.

For me that has meant volunteering my time with Kerry at the Majira Project, an organization that helps minority owned entrepreneurial businesses succeed. Given my business background, I hope to help do my part close the economic opportunity gap that is both a cause and symptom of racism.

Next Monday we celebrate Martin Luther King day in the U.S. I will spend it reflecting on how to be more of a plus. I hope I also encourage a few other well-intentioned zeros to see the truth in the math and do the same.