What this years “International Womens’ Day theme #InspireInclusion means to me

I am the proud owner of Change Grow Succeed which is a training and coaching consultancy practise. Essentially, I help my clients find focus and clarity enabling them to perform and get results in the areas of their life that they value. However, my passion, is to help women recognise, articulate and act on their greatest strengths.

This IWD, we are invited to #InspireInclusion. When we inspire others to understand and value inclusion, we forge a better world.

When we truly #inspireinclusion at work, we create an environment where all employees feel respected, relevant, and empowered, regardless of their background or gender. This, in turn boosts employee engagement, creativity, collaboration and overall productivity. Therefore, by prioritizing inclusion, workplaces are better positioned to harness the full potential of their diverse workforce.

Diversity and Inclusion in the workplace isn’t just a moral imperative but it makes good business sense. There have been countless studies completed that reveal that increased diversity in our workplace optimises innovation, creativity not to mention financial performance. However, to reap the benefits of a diverse workforce, it’s vital to have an inclusive environment where everyone feels able to participate and achieve their potential. Paying lip service to this concept is not enough.

How do we inspire inclusion? It entails an individual- centric approach and thus, starts with challenging the assumptions we make about people and instead, choose to engage curiosity and empathy with our colleagues to connect and meaningfully understand their needs.When we #inspireinclusion we take personal responsibility for driving meaningful change that has value, not only in the workplace but in our homes and communities as well.

I’m looking forward to partnering with several organisations over the coming month to help them celebrate International Women’s Day. My talks will be themed on humanizing inclusion and challenging attendees to consider the common barriers to inclusion, they will review the role of our most powerful allies (our male colleagues!) in creating an inclusive environment and I will share tangible tips themed around the theme ‘inspire’ that folks can implement straight away.

Inclusion is a necessary pillar for a peaceful, prosperous, and sustainable world. Let’s be role- models to ourselves and for each other, Let’s humanise our workplaces and create environments where everyone feels that they can participate and where everyone feels they belong. We can all be winners.

Leaving my comfort zone to “Put On The Ritz”

I love to dance. Tap dance specifically. Wednesday evenings are sacred to me for this reason. I often find that no matter what trial or tribulation the day has brought, or even my own energy levels, I will always leave that class feeling psychologically nourished, energised and free. What do I attribute this to? Several factors, namely, movement, music and a terrific atmosphere crafted by a wonderful teacher and a tribe of fellow dance Queens!

On Sunday last, our class took part in an end of season production held in the Cork Opera House. Although we have practised our routine a hundred times, it was hard not to let the nerves kick in. These nerves presented in the form of negative thoughts, for example; “Tap dancing in front of a live audience? You don’t need this in your life Gillian” or “What if I forget my steps?” or “What if I fall?” (“Or am pushed by Deb?” – inside joke.) Prior to going on stage, my heart was pounding and my mouth was dry. When we took our places, I could feel my stomach lurch as the familiar music started to play, and then, just like that, we were off. Each one of us fleeing our comfort zones.

Tony Robbins has famously said that “All growth starts at the end of your comfort zone”. Yesterday, was an opportunity for me to practice what I preach every day and specifically, it served as a reminder of the importance of managing discomfort around comfort zones as a route to empowering us to move beyond them, to grow and to flourish. Here are my main take- aways:

• Don’t believe everything you think – Thankfully, I was able to call on my inner coach to challenge and disprove some of the thoughts above and replace them with more helpful and supportive narrative such as “What if you don’t forget your steps?”, “What if you don’t fall?”
• Pay attention to what you’re paying attention to – is it serving or sabotaging you? If you’re attempting to flee your comfort zone and you are focusing on negative self- talk, it will only hold you back and keep you stuck. Seek to reframe e.g. Replace “I can’t do this” with” I’m giving this a go”, or replace, “I always panic” with “this is my body telling me I’m uncomfortable, because I’m about to do something new”. This fosters a more compassionate mindset, one that is open to growth and trialling new behaviours.
• Lean on your tribe – My fellow dancing queens were an immense source of support, encouragement and fun last night. We were there for each other. This is exactly what we need when pushing through our comfort zones. Don’t hesitate to engage your tribe when trying something new – you won’t regret the accountability or support!
• Recognise your effort & celebrate success! My dancing queens and I enjoyed a lovely meal and lots of laughs after our performance. A much enjoyed respite after our unique journey together. It got me thinking that life can be a constant ‘strive’ – it’s important to take time out to recognise and celebrate milestones along the way. Do you do that enough?
• Have fun! We all want to live a life with meaning but ‘meaning’ doesn’t just happen, we create it! Remind yourself of why you’re pushing yourself and what this new venture will give you that you don’t already have. Speak to yourself as you would a good friend or trusted colleague. Remember to back yourself and to ENJOY the experience!

If you want to hear more about how to explore your potential and manage the barriers that can get in your way, click here to listen to my recent podcast on this theme.

Gillian McGrath is a Cork based Life & Business Coach & experienced Facilitator. For more information, you can contact her directly at Gillian@chagegrowsucceed.com

Hope and Everyday Courage (IWD 2021)

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Being invited to share my thoughts by several clients to mark IWD over the past number of weeks has been a privilege. There’s no doubt that the pandemic has intensified the challenges faced by women, and I firmly believe that the pandemic has also thrown opportunities up for all of us. Leaning into the moral message of inclusivity, owning our roles in enabling diversity and equity as well as empathetic leadership, we can all play a part in mitigating the risk of losing women in leadership roles and future female leaders.

We know that there have been countless studies carried out that advocate the business case for increased diversity, equity and inclusion in the workplace. In fact, benefits regularly cited include innovation, creativity, inclusivity, performance and financial results. We also know that pandemic has intensified the challenges that women already face (as highlighted by Deloitte in the image above). In fact, the initial research indicates that the pandemic could set women in the workplace back by a decade.  This situation is now an emergency for employers globally as companies risk losing women in leadership and future female leaders as well as unwinding years of painstaking progress.

This years’ theme tells us that “an alert world is a challenged world” and with this awareness there is opportunity to address and tackle these challenges. In my talks, I shared 5 themes that I believe will be the difference for teams and businesses placing diversity, equity, inclusion, and empathetic leadership at the centre. Also, I have been heartened by the encouraging responses and feedback to my tips aimed at how we, as individuals, can lean into the moral message of #choosetochallenge by channelling acts of every day #courage.

Leadership is not about titles but rather a series of behaviours. How can you be the difference while accepting full responsibility for your thoughts and behaviours?

Gillian McGrath is a Cork based facilitator and leadership coach. For more information, go to http://www.changegrowsucceed.com