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You can& #39;t be what you can& #39;t see.
With so many organizations discussing diversity and inclusion, I wanted to share my experience of what it means to me to see a woman of colour in leadership and to be able to interact with her.
With so many organizations discussing diversity and inclusion, I wanted to share my experience of what it means to me to see a woman of colour in leadership and to be able to interact with her.
Last month, I marked two years of working at @Refugees.
I am fortunate to have so many supportive colleagues so early in my career.
But why I count myself lucky is because I& #39;ve had the pleasure of working alongside @JAGhedini since day 1. And let me tell you why.
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I am fortunate to have so many supportive colleagues so early in my career.
But why I count myself lucky is because I& #39;ve had the pleasure of working alongside @JAGhedini since day 1. And let me tell you why.
I was only supposed to be working on the social media team and technically not also with the Global Desk, which @JAGhedini headed at the time.
One month into my job, I was added to the Desk (aka one of the best teams ever).
One month into my job, I was added to the Desk (aka one of the best teams ever).
And it has been a dream to work with and for @JAGhedini.
She has encouraged me to work on new projects, pursue cool ideas, given me miles and miles of sage advice and has always had a hug for me (pre-COVID, of course)
She has encouraged me to work on new projects, pursue cool ideas, given me miles and miles of sage advice and has always had a hug for me (pre-COVID, of course)
I didn& #39;t realise how much seeing a WOC in leadership could affect my aspirations and ambitions.
And the best part was @JAGhedini worked three doors down from me. I could talk to her about things I would never be able to bring up to white counterparts.
Because she understood.
And the best part was @JAGhedini worked three doors down from me. I could talk to her about things I would never be able to bring up to white counterparts.
Because she understood.
All this to say that I feel so very lucky to have a woman of colour to be my mentor and more importantly - friend - so early in my career.
The fact that I think of myself or am considered lucky for being seen and understood is weird and, frankly, angers me.
The fact that I think of myself or am considered lucky for being seen and understood is weird and, frankly, angers me.
It is often traumatising to navigate in a system where you need to constantly prove your value while looking for allies that may or may not be there.
Many womxn of colour work in industries without seeing someone they can relate to achieve what they one day hope to achieve.
Many womxn of colour work in industries without seeing someone they can relate to achieve what they one day hope to achieve.
Don& #39;t get me wrong, I often feel the need to prove my value 10x more than I should because of who I am.
But because of where my career started and simply because @JAGhedini is probably one of the most supportive people I know, I feel that much more secure about my ambitions.
But because of where my career started and simply because @JAGhedini is probably one of the most supportive people I know, I feel that much more secure about my ambitions.
Tl;dr Want to be more inclusive and diverse?
https://abs.twimg.com/emoji/v2/... draggable="false" alt="👉🏾" title="Rückhand Zeigefinger nach rechts (durchschnittlich dunkler Hautton)" aria-label="Emoji: Rückhand Zeigefinger nach rechts (durchschnittlich dunkler Hautton)">Make sure you& #39;re hiring diverse people AT ALL levels in your organization.
They& #39;re qualified. They& #39;re brilliant. They& #39;re out there. Expand your criteria. Broaden your horizons.
They& #39;re qualified. They& #39;re brilliant. They& #39;re out there. Expand your criteria. Broaden your horizons.
It can obviously be complicated to achieve true diversity and inclusion - but it depends on how you prioritise it, how much investment you are willing to put into it and at an individual level, how much of your energy are you willing to spend on it.
Hey, you gotta do the work!
Hey, you gotta do the work!
