The Resilience to Continue

It’s been a whirlwind few weeks, and I’ve had a lot on my mind. Maybe you have, too. For sure, there has been a flurry of news around the globe. Here are just a few topics that have had worldwide implications:

• In a gross abbreviation of the depth of the conflict in Syria, in short, over half a century of rule by the Assad family in Syria crumbled after opposition forces converged on the capital, Damascus, after taking city after city in a matter of days. Syria’s leader, President Bashar Assad, has fled the country, and Syrians around the globe are celebrating the fall of Bashar’s 24-year dictatorship.
• South Korea’s president declared martial law late at night, giving him extraordinary powers. Then, after protests and an act of parliament, the order was reversed seven hours later. The president survived an impeachment vote as of Saturday night, but protests continue, and the opposition is making calls for another vote on December 14th.?
• CEO of UnitedHealth Group’s insurance division, Brian Thompson, was shot and killed in New York City by a masked gunman while walking to the UnitedHealth Group Investor Conference.? The attack appears to have been targeted, and the shooter left clues suggesting a motive, including three recovered shell casings with the words “delay,” “deny,” and “depose” written on them in permanent marker. A suspect was apprehended and charged yesterday.?

All of this has just been over the last week.

It made me think: Everyone I know, everywhere, is angry, worried, overwhelmed, exhausted, or burnt out. Whether they work in the equity space or not, it seems like we all have a lot going on - either personally, connected to what is happening on the world stage, or both.

If everyone is living on the edge, how are we supposed to have the space for tough conversations, giving and receiving feedback, and navigating identity when our existence is consumed with a perpetual cycle of increasingly more chaotic news?? And that’s not even touching the copious amounts of mis- and disinformation sliding across our screens at any given time.?

When I consider what wasn’t working and what was triggering for some folks regarding “DEI,” the thing that surfaces for me each and every time is: How much energy it takes to adapt to change. And DEI has been mostly about sharing information and frameworks to get people to change - often without much explanation beyond “it’s the right thing to do.”??

In my observation, we all need one important skill to help us to be able to better connect across our uniqueness and the rampant divisiveness and polarization in our world: Resilience.

Resilience is our capacity to navigate and adapt to challenges, change, and adversity without succumbing to extreme stress that can compromise our well-being or the mistreatment of others.

It’s not about just taking whatever life throws at you and staying strong, but rather staying so full on what we need that we have the bandwidth to manage tough times.? Without resilience, we are tired, snappy, irritated, and much more.??

The steady stream of political snark and disrespectful exchanges on cable news —all indications of people at their maximum frustration and low on resilience.

For you, this lack of resilience shows up in everyday moments: the sharp reaction to a driver cutting you off or the pointed email reply starting with, “Per my last email…” These instances also showcase a lack of resilience and emotional bandwidth in an increasingly overwhelming world.

We are not ok.

If we aren’t able to give ourselves what we need to be ok - we are going to continue to be really terrible at meaningfully actioning on any iteration of fairness for anyone else.

This Comes Next…

This month, we are releasing The Workplace Resilience Playbook.? This free resource is my way of equipping you to navigate the current moment of uncertainty with a sense of clarity and purpose. It’s filled with guidance for approaching culture change when divisiveness and angst are at an all-time high.? It has practical tools, actionable strategies, and insights designed to help you become and develop resilient leaders, teams, and organizations capable of courageous communication, accountability, and intentional leadership.

Let me give you a sense of what’s inside:

• The Workplace Resilience Playbook will focus on the culture-ready language of the future and avoid all terminology currently under scrutiny. Consider it a guide for how you can change your tone.
• We will share an honest look at the present challenges,
• Tips and scripts for having respectful conversations and managing resistant or challenging leaders
• Recommendations for rethinking how you are/could be using your organizational data
• Most importantly, I’ll walk you through actionable strategies for building resilience—for yourself and your teams and organizations.

The Workplace Resilience Playbook Live Webinar

Tuesday, 12/17 at 6pm ET

The Workplace Resilience Playbook will be available soon, and I can’t wait to share it with you. In the meantime, you can sign up to join me for a live webinar we’re hosting to accompany its release: Resilience Defined: Preparing for the Future. It’s happening on Wednesday, December 17th, from 1 to 2 p.m. ET. During the session, I’ll walk you through key insights from the guide and share how you can use the tools included to move forward, even when the path feels uncertain. If this sounds like what you need right now, register here to join us.? As a bonus, webinar attendees will be able to download the guide before it is released to the public later this month.?

?? Sign up for free here: https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_XdHhS5iNQECHL0ENibgDOQ

?? Recommended Reading + Watching + Listening

Catch me live today, Tuesday, 12/10 at 3-6pm EST on The Karen Hunter Show on SiriusXM radio channel 126.

I recently shared links to my Fast Co feature, RIP DEI. This is what comes next, but tap the link if you haven’t read it and are curious about what a way forward might need to include.?

I was quoted in a brief USA Today article, RIP DEI? The war on “woke” America has a new commander-in-chief, sharing how the President-elect and his future cabinet plan to handle DEI and the precipitating reactions.

On the wellness front, it’s also imperative that we recognize that every living thing needs a season of rest and recovery to move forward. As we head into the winter holidays, I encourage you to pick up Amanda Miller Littlejohn’s The Rest Revolution for tips and mindset shifts around prioritizing rest and reclaiming your rhythm.? Amanda has also been a guest on Guilty Privilege, and her episode is here.

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???Guilty Privilege Episodes

The Guilty Privilege Podcast will be wrapping up in December. Catch up on the latest episodes and subscribe to learn a little about the new direction in a few weeks!

Episode 38: Capturing Confidence: The Art of Empowering Women Through Photography with Danielle Finney

Episode 37: From Misdiagnosis to Advocacy: Breaking the Silence on Uterine Fibroids with Tanika Gray Valbrun

Episode 36: Connecting Your Past to the Present: Genealogy, DNA, and Identity w/ Nicka Sewell Smith

?? Partnering with Cabral Co

Though Cabral Co. is mid-pivot, we are still working! If you need services, we would love to hear from you. We are offering discounts on select services if your deposit is paid by January 10, 2025.? We want to continue to bring you the best approaches to navigating today’s workplace - that includes preparing your language and framing to future-proof your organization's culture.

To uncover how Cabral Co can help your organization, you can start the conversation by booking a discovery call at cabralco.com/discovery.

If full services are not your thing, but you need a strategic thought partner, you can book a short, affordable consultation with me and get actionable insights to help you make informed, confident, and impactful decisions for you or your company.

[Book your time here]

At Cabral Co., we are still focused on developing the skills leaders need to build and support the workplace cultures we all desire.? We know corporate neutrality is a myth. And that workplaces where behaviors like respect, effective communication, accountability, conflict resolution, innovation, and professional development are foundational requirements will thrive in the face of change.

We also acknowledge that in addition to the shifts in language, approach, and framing future commitments, the new year will require intentionality around helping leaders be well enough to human better together. If folks aren’t okay, nothing they touch will be okay, either.

If you enjoyed this newsletter, don’t keep it to yourself – tag a colleague or friend who also would benefit from tools to help them on their journey to Human(ing) Well.