‘How you do anything is how you do everything’

My commitment to the Black community

As this next week begins, I continue to reflect on all that has transpired and all that has been shared by the Black community surrounding the #BlackLivesMatter movement and the ways in which I can contribute in my own way. Not just as a leader of an organization, but also as a citizen of my hometown of Chicago, and as a mother, wife, and friend.  

Last week, I shared what my own firm is doing, and spent the subsequent days focused on my firm’s actions. As we transition into a new week, I wanted to share more personally what I’ve been thinking about and how I’ve been spending my time.

‘How you do anything is how you do everything’ is a phrase I first heard from a figure within the sports industry when talking about a particular baseball player. He essentially explained how every interaction this player had on and off the field was with the same level of intensity, clarity and directness. It truly resonated with me that day because the concept is one that has been a lifelong learning principle for myself, I had just never heard it described in such a succinct, powerful way. This week, the ‘how you do anything...’ principle has been prominent in my mind. 

Because, the fact of the matter is all these events have caused a disproportionate adverse effect on the Black community – full stop.

The devastating health effects of Covid-19 coupled with the most recent murders of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, and George Floyd, and the resulting unrest has me angry, heartbroken, and leaves me wondering what I can do to support in real, meaningful ways. How can I bring the same level of intensity, clarity, and directness that I bring to work every day as a business professional, and to my family, to the Black community -- a community that has faced a legacy of systemic bias, racism, and unequal treatment for 400+ years.

And when we find the start of an answer to a question, I believe it is important to share it:

I am committing myself to listening, learning, and taking real action (and, when appropriate, influencing others to act) in the following ways: 

 ·      Education: This isn’t a time when we should be relying on our black friends and colleagues to educate us on the equality issues at hand – we need to educate ourselves. I have recently [re]-read Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates, as well as Eloquent Rage by Brittney Cooper; I’ve also been consuming some very powerful and data-backed articles including Your Black Colleagues May Look Like They’re Okay — Chances Are They’re Not; and a Harvard Business Review report from late last year, Toward a Racially Just Workplace.  

·      Amplification: I recognize there are times to use the position of privilege I hold, as a white woman, to amplify others. I’ve sought out the voices of women whom I admire (and in most cases been fortunate to spend time with) because their words always inspire and guide - Mellody Hobson, Valerie Jarrett, Valerie Rainford, Stephanie Creary, 'Boz' Saint John, Thasunda Brown Duckett. I was also recently sent an excellent video by Emmanuel Acho, Uncomfortable Conversations With a Black Man Pt:1 I highly recommend. 

·      Donation: From the simplest of gestures like giving blood (vitalant.org), to broader time and financial investments - I’ve personally engaged with My Block My Hood My City to support local businesses, bail bond funds in Chicago, Minneapolis, and NYC, and Mayor Lightfoot’s Racial Equity Rapid Response Team to combat the devastating effects Covid-19 has had on communities of color, and to support those here in Chicago, peacefully demonstrating and demanding equal treatment by law enforcement.

·      Listening: These past two weeks I have been intently listening to and profoundly impacted by the stories that so many of my Black colleagues at my firm have bravely shared about racism in their lives - through town halls, small groups, 1:1 conversations, and hundreds of email exchanges. I am humbled by their openness to sharing their stories. Separate from those intimate exchanges, social media has served as a positive resource for me to hear and learn from the dozens of 20-somethings that are part of my network thanks to my 23-year old son and daughter twins. We know from straight data that members of Gen Z are more racially and ethnically diverse than any previous generation, they are on track to be the most well-educated generation yet, and digital natives. On paper, that already has many of us optimistic about the future, but I am fortunate to have a front seat to this generation’s thoughts, ideas, actions, and beliefs – and let me tell you it’s a powerful combination.

 I share all this with the acknowledgement that these ‘answers’ are just a beginning, and not one-size-fits-all, but it is what has helped guide me as I recognize my own privilege, past mistakes, and way forward. I share it in the spirit of spurring ACTION, with a hope that it’s a positive lesson in being vulnerable and speaking out on what really matters. Those of us who have a platform, especially white people in corporate spaces, should use it as a call to action, to constantly push ourselves and those around us to fight for a more inclusive and just world -- to ensure that how we do anything is how we do everything.