Page 4 - The Leadership Line: June 2022

Embrace your team’s authentic selves

Who are our authentic selves? To what extent do we show our authentic selves in the
workplace? As our workplace, home, and social lives intertwine, is the next step to
begin showing more of our authentic selves to our leaders, co-workers, and customers?
Many will find that risky and even scary.
For members of the LGBTQ+ community, this is not a new issue at all. The LGBTQ+
community has struggled for years with showing their authentic selves due to bias,
insensitivity, prejudice, and fear in the workplace. It is important to note that a
workplace is, by its nature, built for activities that provide services or products of
value to customers which bring rewards to the organization in return. Nowhere in this
simple equation does an individual’s gender identity, sexual preference, race, or class
matter.
As managers, we must remind our peers why our organization exists, what our
mission is, and how inclusivity and respect for diverse views and behaviors help the
organization. It is our responsibility to create a supportive, respectful, and inclusive
work environment where everyone feels that they are a part of the organization and
its mission and that they are respected for the value they add. Seeing more of the
authentic selves of your team is not something to fear. It’s something to harness for the
greater good of MIL, as a competitive advantage, and to help achieve our vision.
(Main points taken from: “LGBT Pride Month: Time to Embrace Workers; Authentic
Selves” by Joseph A. Jones, Ph.D., SHRM-SCP)

Did you know?

Everyone has many identities!
Age, gender, religious, or spiritual affiliation, sexual orientation, race,
ethnicity, and socioeconomic status are all identities. Some identities are
things people can see easily (like race or assumed gender), while other
identities are internalized and are not always easy to see (like a disability,
socioeconomic status, or education level).

Important June dates

» Data Privacy & Security Training: Monday, June 6th to Friday, July 1st
» Federal Holiday: Juneteenth— Monday, June 20th (OBS)