From the course: How to Support Colleagues from Underrepresented Groups

Identify your unique offerings

From the course: How to Support Colleagues from Underrepresented Groups

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Identify your unique offerings

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- Have you ever been so jazzed to support someone that you totally over-commit yourself? Yeah, same, same, because we've all done it in an effort just to be helpful. But just because you've made that mistake, doesn't mean you should stop being generous with your support. Rather, it can serve as a lesson. To start, I'd encourage you to assess how you offer your support, what you offer to begin with and the boundaries you set for yourself. So let's do a bit of that right now together. Not every act of support has to be grand. Your support can be small and still be meaningful, but you need to be okay with offering something on a micro-scale because you see it as valuable, rather than offering up something dramatic and huge. It's not that huge acts of support aren't needed sometimes. But if that's your expectation every time, then you'll never do it, or you'll be so drained when you do, that you hesitate supporting the people that actually need you. And we do not want that. The support we have to give changes depending on the season that we're in. I've had months where I'm barely staying above water. So the support I give to my community is reserved for a diverse group of colleagues that I know relatively well. Other months, I've had a lot of time on my hands, and I use that time getting to know new connections, what their goals are and how resources I have can best serve them. You have something to give. Let's take a look at the primary sources of support that you're sitting on without even realizing it. First, do your talents provide to others what comes easy to you? If you're great at finance, help a business owner in your network get their business model together. Second, you're connections. Lend an email or intro to someone in your network who could help your fellow colleague. Never underestimate the power of a newly opened door. Your attention, whether it's a brainstorm, a phone call or a social media share of someone's work, your attention can help. And last, your time. Whether it's taking a coffee date or being a mentor or offering a Zoom meeting to discuss ideas, when you use your time to get people closer to achieving their goals, it will be time well spent. So let's recap: talent, connections, attention and time. These are four meaningful methods to support other people which can be demonstrated in small and in big ways.

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