Forbes Article – It’s Time For Business Leaders To Address Healing—The Missing Piece Of The DEIB Puzzle – 13Jan2023

Healing is the antidote to trauma and releases us to be free.

I believe that incorporating Healing into the DEIB mix would greatly enhance initiatives to create a more inclusive workplace. It should be noted that when Lewis Griggs first introduced the idea of inclusion to his business clients in the 1980s, he initially got pushback from people who saw it as too “touchy-feely” for the business world. We now know better.

Similarly, we should not shy away from addressing healing in the workplace. Healing is not just a private matter to be pursued in a therapy session. Just as leaders are now learning to address mental health head on, we must make healing central to organizational culture and strategy. We should embrace a range of modalities, including the somatic (massage and physical therapy), meditation—and the act of forgiveness, which played a critical role in helping South Africa heal from its wounds and divisions.

In my coaching practice, I explicitly incorporate healing into the strategic planning process. When a company looks down the road and decides where they would like to be in six months or a year, they can also usually identify obstacles that might prevent them from getting there. Invariably, some of these obstacles have to do with culture and team cohesion. The level of psychological safety may not be as high as they would like, for example—preventing people from taking risks and being innovative. I will work with leadership on specific practices to build trust and healing. For a two-week period, we might focus on improving listening skills, and then assess our results by regularly surveying people and asking, “Are you being heard?”