Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. The call is coming from inside the house.
What if the very thing holding you and your organisation back is what you’re choosing to exclude?
We all know the undeniable benefits of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DE&I) in the workplace.
Companies that embrace these principles are more innovative, more profitable, and better positioned to capture new markets.
· Boston Consulting Group reports that companies with above-average diversity on their management teams generate 19% more revenue from innovation compared to companies with below-average diversity.
· Harvard Business Review reports that teams with diversity in age, ethnicity, and gender demonstrate better decision-making up to 87% of the time.
· Another HBR study highlighted that companies with diverse leadership are 70% more likely to capture new markets.
The evidence is clear: excluding or undervaluing any gender, ethnicity, age, disability status, or religion not only stifles creativity but also limits progress.
What About DE&I on a Personal Level?
What if we took those same principles and applied them inward? Imagine the untapped potential we could unlock in ourselves if we embraced the full diversity of who we are, just as we encourage our organisations to do.
Let’s face it, unless you’re an ascended zen master, we all have parts of ourselves that we undervalue, ignore, or even try to exclude entirely.
Since my own life affirming burnout four years ago, my journey has centred on one thing: collecting up and integrating the fragments of myself that I had once tried to exclude.
Things like:
I didn’t believe I could be both strong and vulnerable.
I felt I couldn’t be both courageous and frightened.
I didn’t think it was possible to be both confident and insecure.
In summary: I couldn’t possibly be completely perfect. And deeply flawed.
In each of those examples, I’d deemed one of the qualities as ‘acceptable’ and so welcomed it and included it in what I called ‘Me’. And the other was ‘unacceptable’, so not welcomed, not included, and was instead judged, shamed, and banished to the darkness of my subconscious.
The Dangers of Exclusion. Especially on a Personal Level
When we try to exclude parts of ourselves, those parts don’t stay hidden for long. These qualities - our own internal diversity - are essential to who we are.
My burnout was the implosion of everything I’d tried to exclude.
And I’m not alone. A study by Deloitte found that 61% of employees hide or "cover" parts of their identity at work. The mental energy spent on this "masking" behaviour leads to higher stress levels and is a significant contributor to burnout.
And Gallup research shows that workers who feel they cannot express their emotions authentically are twice as likely to experience burnout compared to those who feel comfortable being themselves at work.
Given the research from McKinsey that highlights that burned-out leaders are 2.5 times more likely to make poor decisions, impacting strategic initiatives, innovation, and overall company direction, it’s no surprise that burnout is costing the global economy an estimated £247 billion annually.
What these data points show is that companies that fail to facilitate and prioritise inclusion - in every sense of the word - will continue to see significant financial losses and decreased performance.
Self-Inclusion and Integration
In my experience, the journey of self-integration - bringing all parts of myself out of the darkness and into the light – has been a challenging yet beautiful process.
It’s a long road, and it never really ends. But the journey is necessary, and Self-Inclusion and Integration is the key to unlocking the full potential in all of us. We must learn to accept and embrace every part of ourselves, not just the parts we find comfortable or familiar.
This isn’t easy. And so, it requires tools.
My personal journey of collecting these fragments of Me and bringing them into the light couldn’t have been possible without one tool in particular. A bloody bright torch.
My torch came in the form of wise, loving souls who shone theirs on me until mine was bright enough to see on my own. Yours might be different. Torches can come in many different guises. The only thing the torch needs to do for it to be effective is shine a light.
Because when you do shine a light, you can see things clearly. My torch allowed me to see all my qualities for what they are: essential components of my own diversity.
So, how can you begin to practice Self-Inclusion and Integration in your own life as well as your leadership? It’s one thing to recognise the value of including every part of you, but quite another to actually put it into practice. The journey of embracing your whole self - especially the parts you’ve ignored or excluded - takes intention and conscious effort.
Here are four simple yet powerful steps you can take to help you on your journey:
1. Illuminate and Welcome Back Your "Excluded" Parts
Take time to reflect on the aspects of yourself that you’ve been avoiding or downplaying. Are there emotions, traits, or experiences you’ve been excluding because you feel they don’t fit the "acceptable" version of yourself? Write down these excluded parts and recognise their role in shaping who you are. See how both your strengths and perceived weaknesses have value.
2. Practice Self-Compassion
As you illuminate and integrate these parts of yourself, be kind and non-judgmental. Embrace self-compassion by treating yourself with the same understanding and care you would offer a friend. Allow yourself to be imperfect and give yourself permission to grow without the pressure of constantly achieving or conforming.
3. Create a Daily Ritual of Self-Reflection
Build self-inclusion into your daily routine by creating a ritual of self-reflection. Whether it's journaling, meditating, or taking a quiet walk, set aside time to check in with all aspects of yourself - your emotions, thoughts, and physical well-being. Ask yourself: Am I including all parts of who I am today? What do I need to integrate or nurture?
Illuminate Your Organisation’s Full Potential as well as Your Own
Organisations are just like individuals. Many leaders have aspects of their organisations – or their leadership - that they wish weren’t there. They may not yet see the value in those areas, or perhaps those aspects just need some adjustment to align with the organisation’s goals or the leader’s own ideals.
At Neema, we help CEOs and leaders by shining a light on the full spectrum of diversity within their leadership as well as the organisations they lead. And because we include and integrate all parts of ourselves, we have a bright enough torch to help you and your organisation do it too.
We Are Neema, and we love sharing our torch.
