What’ s unique about you? I’m sure there are a lot of different ‘things’ that make you who you are. And that is good!
April is National Diversity Month and Lynn Zimmer of the Sales Pro Insider team wrote the following note to remind us to celebrate diversity:
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A national survey conducted in 2007 revealed that diversity in culture and background contributes to innovation and greater business success. Over the years, this concept has continued to grow.
When we open our ideas to diversity around us – including the many diverse ideas available – creativity knows few limits!
Diversity means acknowledging, appreciating, and ultimately managing differences and similarities at the same time. Its reach includes categories such as:
- Race
- Gender
- Age
- Religion
- Sexual Orientation
- Physical Disabilities
- Nationalities
- Political Beliefs
- And others…
The month of April celebrates workforce diversity and fair and inclusive workplaces.
To celebrate diversity this month, take time to gain a greater appreciation of the diversity of cultures, backgrounds and life experiences of those around you.
“Diversity is not about diminishing differences by overshadowing it with similarities. It is about creating active working environments where fostering appreciation of both differences and similarities is paramount.”
– Stephen Stewart
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I’d like to add a few other diverse ideas here… we can ‘categorize’ all of us into a lot of different groupings of how we are diverse – but does it matter what ‘bucket’ we are in? My 19 year old, who has a strong interest in all things cultural (he’s studying geography in college) told us again last weekend how much he dislikes having to categorize his ethnicity and such on surveys (he volunteered to complete the Census Survey for our household).
So I ask you to celebrate the uniqueness of yourself and those around you – find what makes EACH person who they are and celebrate that wholeheartedly! The rewards in business will pay off as you accept and adapt to them.
