Welcome friends to our International Book Club!
Our first book together, The Leaders Guide to Unconscious Bias, by Pamela Fuller.
Pamela works on leadership issues of bias and inclusion at the consulting firm, Franklin Covey and with her amazing debut book, created an extraordinarily comprehensive repertoire of advice and actionable tips.
As one reviewer wrote, “it’s a useful toolkit for organizations looking to face individual and institutional unconscious bias.”
The first wow for me of the book is this whole discounting of the idea that bias means that one is inherently ill-intentioned or morally flawed, which makes people reluctant to acknowledge unless to take action, and for us to work on our own biases.
This then unfolds as the book, in part three, shares the most amazing section in terms of choosing courage, by making a conscious commitment to diversity and inclusivity initiative so that we really educate ourselves about where our own biases come from, and cultivate the habit of being on guard against.
This book is readable, not just for current leaders, people working with large teams in organizations, but for every single one of us, and I particularly loved the focus that is a red thread through hiring, progression, and retention of team members.
There are some incredible quotes and examples throughout the book; perhaps the one that frames the book for me personally is, “Words matter, And what is appropriate and inclusive evolves and changes over time. It is essential to listen, watch, learn, engage and reengage”. For me, this is central and important.
I also love the Verna Myers, from Netflix quote, “Diversity is being invited to the party, inclusion is being asked to dance.”
Plus, the mindfulness quote by Anne Lamott (Chapter 4, page 61), the whole sense of community and storytelling of the book, the bias trap Africa geography map, which I will never forget, and the allyship the marathon analogy.
There are so many important current and relevant elements to the book, particularly how the world changed in the two weeks that Pamela’s editors had the manuscript through Black Lives Matter, right for a resurgence.
Here’s the LinkedIn Live interview, recorded with Pamela on 16th February
Please share your feedback and questions below.