Recognize that mental states like peace, focus, and even managing biases are trainable skills, not fixed traits, enabling you to actively work on developing them.
Reframe your self-perception as a ‘good-ish’ person, a work in progress, to cultivate a mindset willing to learn, grow, and improve rather than a binary ‘good or bad’ identity.
Prioritize noticing your biases when they arise, rather than attempting to make them disappear, as this awareness is the key to effectively dealing with them.
Instead of defending mistakes, openly acknowledge when you’ve made one or are struggling, and express your intent to understand and learn from it, making your growth process transparent.
Senior executives must openly discuss their personal learning journey and acknowledge their own unconscious biases, as their visible engagement is crucial for any diversity or bias training to impact others.
When discussing your own biases, frame your statements as ‘here’s what I’m learning about myself’ to make your learning visible, and ensure your audience is educated on how the human mind works to avoid creating panic.
When you see, name, and admit an implicit bias, acknowledge and validate yourself for that awareness, as it reduces the likelihood of acting on the bias.
When you notice an error or a bias, actively engage a growth mindset by paying close attention to it as a valuable opportunity for learning and improvement.
To effectively engage people’s ideas and minds, validate their identity and offer some positive affirmation (‘sugar’) before presenting criticism or asking for change.
Do not use shame or make people feel terrible for their biases, especially implicit ones, as it is a counterproductive strategy for encouraging ethical behavior change.
When engaging in social change, recognize that successful movements often utilize both ‘heat’ (confrontation, challenging norms) and ’light’ (education, meeting people where they are) rather than relying exclusively on one approach.
Even when targeted by excessive political correctness or criticism, adopt a ‘good-ish’ mindset to identify useful insights within the message, rather than shutting down.
Address your biases to improve your ability to work effectively with diverse teams and hire different kinds of people, which is crucial for professional success.
Work to lessen your own biases, which are often injected by culture, to avoid acting them out blindly and contribute to a more equitable society.
Recognize that implicit biases manifest in your own daily life, such as mixing up students or making gender assumptions, as this self-awareness is crucial for addressing them.