The Importance of Expanding Diversity of Thought
If you think you are the smartest person in the room, you are in trouble! Why? Isn’t it a positive thing to be smart and knowledgeable?
Yes, but, if you think you are the smartest person in the room, you might fall prey to believing you have all the answers or you need to have all the answers.
And, that just might be the fastest way to tank a career and a company.
Great Leaders know what they know and they know a great deal about what they don’t know. They also are curious and remain open minded, seeking out different and challenging thoughts and assumptions.
Diversity of thought is critical to creative problem solving, and recognizing and honoring the way in which others view situations is an essential leadership skill. This leadership skill is crucial in order to ensure a variety of perspectives are brought in at the right time to create your best shot at success. But the bottom line is – if you don’t want to be challenged in your thinking then continue to hire and promote people who think and act and look just like you!
That’s what impressed me so much about Jeffrey Lurie who has owned the Philadelphia Eagles (an American National Football League Team (NFL)) since 1994. Several years ago, Lurie realized that if he wanted to have diversity of thought to solve complex problems, then he needed to have diverse thinkers sitting at his leadership team table. He started to hire people who did not look like or think like him – he hired several women who hold senior leadership positions in one of the most male dominated industries – American Football.
https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-nfl-team-run-by-women-11569412442
Over the years, so much has been said about the need for diversity and why it is important. We do know that diversity is good business and good for profits: According to a recent McKinsey study, companies in the top quartile for gender diversity were 21 percent more likely to experience above-average profitability than those in the bottom quartile. So check that box, diversity is good for business and has been for a long time. Diversity is also great for Brand Awareness and market expansion so that your employees and customers can recognize themselves in the ads as you promote more diverse role models and solutions. https://online.maryville.edu/online-bachelors-degrees/marketing/guide-to-diversity-and-inclusion-in-modern-advertising/
In Tiara, our definition of diversity and inclusion is quite simple:
Diversity is the Mix. (this can be mix of genders, races, religions, beliefs, education, thoughts, geography, cultures)
Inclusion is how the Mix feels. Does the mix feel heard, can they safely and honestly speak up, are they encouraged to present a different perhaps less popular opinion?
So let me take this back to my opening sentence. If you think you are the smartest person in the room, then in all likelihood, you will negate or worse - not even consider that someone else may have a perspective that is equally valid but in a different context.
It's not about getting equal numbers of a variety of variables at the table…it’s about creating cultures where anyone feels like they can add value and does so, because the power to succeed is shared.
Truly powerful leaders know that power does not come from “owning the power”, power comes from “sharing the power”.
