I have just googled “inclusion”, clicked on the images and over 85% of the pictures were mainly rainbow-coloured graphics of some wildly interconnected people, puzzles and trees. Then I read more articles about diversity being invited to the party; Inclusion is being asked to dance, etc. There is so much energy and money invested in this topic, yet, everyday life shows not much improvement.
The more I research the topic of diversity, inclusion, culture and mindset, the clearer it becomes that most approaches focus on the symptoms, not the root cause of the problem. Why is it so difficult to understand and accept others?
I believe the reason is within us, it is low self-esteem. Put simply, it’s how well we think of ourselves in comparison to others. Having low self-esteem means we feel like we don’t measure up to other people or their expectations. Good self-esteem doesn’t mean being arrogant. People with good self-esteem don’t have to go around saying how great they are because they already feel OK with themselves. Low self esteem is a widespread mental affliction; it has reached epidemic proportions. Almost all people carry this “virus.” Few are symptom-free. Here is the question:
If we cannot fully accept and understand ourselves, how could we accept and understand others?
Aggressive behaviour, like bullying, can also be a sign of low self-esteem. If someone picks on other people, they are probably doing it to make themselves feel good. Bringing other people down gives them a false feeling of self-confidence. We can see this type of behaviour at work and even in politics. The more uncertainty we face, the more stress we experience, the more we revert back to survival mode and that is certainly not inclusive.
If we really want to make a difference, we should start with SELF-INCLUSION, only then we would be able to fully include others, not until then.
The more we understand our own mindset,
Csaba Toth
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