The Power of AND

There is a growing need for society's ability to not just hold but also live diverse perspectives without judgement.

Growing up, I wish I knew the power of AND…the realization that life is not black OR white, and it is also NOT gray, in fact it is black AND white. In other words, unity in diversity is about harmony with all perspectives from all dimensions without diluting them or without biasing against any one of them. The power of AND is the most needed virtue in society today to address the issues we face around diversity, equity, and inclusion, around shifts in workforce needs, around transformation of our organizations.

What does Power of AND look like in the society?

At the Vizient Summit recently, the CEO of Houston Methodist Marc Boom talked about applying the power of AND in his organization. In his words from his LinkedIn post “If our organization can create a unified culture with over 29,000 employees from every walk of life and every political viewpoint, we can serve as a beacon for positive change. Imagine a world where we all learn to always use the word “AND” rather than the word “OR.” When well-intentioned people respectfully disagree, we can leverage their goodwill to find the best compromise and the best solutions - the power of the “AND.” Behind every successful cultural transformation, there is this power of AND.

What does Power of AND look like in workplace?

When we began Vizient’s transformation journey, just like many other organizations, we had to perform today while evolving for tomorrow. We had to transform our core and transform into our future growth vectors. That concept of dual transformation was very important to keep the workforce engaged and understand that the two sides do not have to be at odds with each other, and in fact both sides were needed to reinforce each other.

What does Power of AND look like in self?

Learning from my own journey immigrating from India to the US in 2001, I felt like I had to fit in to be successful in realizing the American dream. I was ambitious and driven in my education and my career, but I was also very rooted in my Hindu values and traditions. Did chasing the American dream mean I couldn’t bring my whole self to work? Would humility, love, service, and faith weaken my leadership and authority? I was either compelled to live in the extremes or dilute how strongly I lived my values. But as I grew in my career and realized what is needed of people/humans/leaders today, is in fact no different than what my family values and faith taught me, I decided to bring the power of AND to my life and work. I could be both humble and ambitious, I could be both a technical engineer and a blue ocean strategist, I could be both spiritual and driven, I could be both a capitalist and madly driven to patient service and healthcare transformations...that I could ultimately lead both from my head and my heart.

The world today requires all of us to live in that duality and not just live but thrive in that duality and unleash the power of AND!?