When you choose to step into conversations about racism you risk giving up your comfort and the illusion of control on how you are seen.

In essence, when you choose to speak up against injustice you are inviting discomfort.

And inviting discomfort is an affront to all the ways you protect yourself from harm. 

Yet when you befriend your discomfort instead of letting it shut you down, you can navigate the vulnerability of potentially being misunderstood. 

The polarities that come up around wanting to say the right thing, but not be performative or not wanting to center yourself, but be authentic and true are real and can also shut you down.

Sometimes it seems best to just stay quiet. 

Taking the time to pause and not just react is important, especially in our hyper-responsive world. But indefinite silence is never ok when harm is being done. 

Self-leadership helps you lead yourself with more confidence and clarity through the vulnerable and awkward moments. And collective efforts are always better than individual ones. You can best advocate when you have community, clarity, and a plan. 

Today’s guest literally wrote a book on how to talk about race to your boss at work that is practical, actionable, and really, really helpful. 

Y-Vonne Hutchinson is the author of How to Talk to Your Boss About Race and CEO of ReadySet, a diversity and inclusion training firm that helps tech giants, political leaders, media outlets, and Fortune 500 companies speak more productively about racism and turn talk into action.To date, ReadySet has worked with hundreds of companies around the world to build, manage, and grow diverse teams. In a former life, prior to founding ReadySet, she worked as an international labor and human rights lawyer for nearly a decade.

Listen to the full episode to hear:

• The impact of performance attribution bias on people of color in the workforce
• Why Y-Vonne says work, identity, and race are so intertwined in our culture
• Why emphasizing unconscious bias and individual actions alone can’t create sustainable systemic change 
• How movement language gets co-opted and why leaders need to prepare for backlash
• How identity, social location and position can impact your strategy for speaking up at work

Learn more about Y-Vonne Hutchinson:

• ReadySet
• How to Talk to Your Boss About Race: Speaking Up Without Getting Shut Down
• Twitter: @ReadySetInc
• Connect with Y-Vonne and ReadySet on LinkedIn

Learn more about Rebecca:

• rebeccaching.com
• Work With Rebecca
• Sign up for the weekly Unburdened Leader Email

Resources:

• Resmaa Menakem
• Kimberlé Crenshaw
• Capital and Ideology,Thomas Piketty and Arthur Goldhammer
• How to Raise an Amazing Child the Montessori Way,by Tim Seldin
• 90-Day Fiancé
• "We Don't Talk About Bruno"
• Coming to America