Let's Make Business Culture Better

?? I’ve Been Thinking…

… about how enjoyable it was planting flowers on my deck this past Saturday. It was a lot of work, but it looks really pretty out there now. I ventured into uncharted territory with begonias, a calla lily, and another hibiscus. Since I’m still healing from my knee surgery, I took breaks throughout the afternoon to listen to Huckleberry Finn to prep for listening to a new book, “James.” It’s narrated by the character Jim, and I wanted to absorb the original before moving to the new one.

Intermixing planting and listening was a perfect way to spend an afternoon: sunshine, exercise, and nature. All on the microcosm of my deck.?

How are you integrating activities? If you can’t do everything all at once, can you break it into segments?

?? Information & Resources to Help You Drive Change

Here are my shares for this week:

SPECIAL NOTE: If you hit a paywall on any of the stories I share, go to Google Search, enter the name of the publication and something about the story (author, title, subject) to get a natural search link that usually by-passes the pay wall.

• DEI. Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. Neela Singh talks about DEI as the new Macarena. Everyone’s doing it but not everyone knows why. This article is well constructed, and she shares personal experiences that provide interesting elements.

• Piggybacking off the DEI Macarena piece, here’s an interesting take on DEI by Alain Hunkins for Forbes. Did you know DEI means different things to different generations of workers? Where do your definitions fall? Helpful stats and research, dig in.

• Sean Kernan talks about curiosity as a basis for relationships. While the focus of this piece is on personal relationships, we need more of this at work too, so here you go.

• I couldn’t wait to share this one: HBR Ideacast podcasters (Juan Martinez and Tom Stackpole) and their guest (Ethan Mollick, a management professor at The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania) do such a great job making comparisons between how we looked at the pros and risks of early digital technology and considerations businesses are facing with gen AI now. There’s the 39-minute podcast and a transcript: take your pick, but do peruse.

?? You Never Know…

Did you know that 20.1% of US adolescents aged 12-17 reported having at least one major depressive episode last year, according to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIH)? Me neither. So let’s think about how that could affect their parents at our workplaces. What can we do to help, especially when colleagues haven’t shared their situations? In other words, everyone has something going on, so let’s default to kindness.

?? Do Good Spotlight: Out & Equal

To celebrate Pride month, this week’s charity is Out & Equal, a global nonprofit working exclusively on LGBTQ+ workplace equality. They leverage Fortune 500 partnerships, worldwide programs, and conferences to create inclusive company cultures. See what they do and how you can help: Out & Equal.

?? Noteworthy: Sidewalk Talk

Have you heard about Sidewalk Talk? It’s a not-for-profit created for our times. Like many great ideas, it’s simple: people meet on sidewalks to listen to other people. But it’s so awesome. Here’s their why: “Listening changes your perspective, fills you with hope, fills your story sharers with hope, soothes frayed nerves, improves mental health, reduces loneliness, increases inclusion, and reminds us that people are good despite what the media pumps out about humans every day.” Learn more about their what, how, who and where and the ways you can plug in.

?? On a Personal Note

I always thought most trees had roots that went down as far as the trees went up. Or maybe not quite so far, but I always assumed they went very deep.

Guess what…most trees, even very large ones – have roots that go down about 2-6 feet! They do, however, spread out horizontally, below the ground, 2-4x the diameter of the tree’s crown.

What does this have to do with creating better workplaces? I could find a metaphor but honestly, I just was amazed by this and wanted to share.

Now, my editor, Natalie Lorenzo, on the other hand, thought this was cool and too good not to go for the metaphor, so here’s her note:

One way forest trees communicate with each other is through the fungal network at their roots. Redwoods, in particular, can grow above 300 feet in the air, while their root system is only ~10 feet down. Their roots interlace with each other to hold all the trunks up together.

So by communicating through interconnection, the whole forest is healthier.

How’s that for a metaphor?

?Until Next Time…

Please take good care of yourself. We only have one you, and you touch many lives in many ways. Stay strong, stay focused, and keep bringing your best self to all you do. It’s appreciated! Thank you!

Niki

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