Advocating is a verb.
It is something you actively do in the moment to give voice to the “only” in the room.
Advocating for another person has two parts: Awareness and Action.
When you advocate, you observe behaviors that either exclude the minority representative in the room or singles them out. You see it. You recognize it. Then, you take action and own the experience.
Taking Action
Being an advocate is important for every “only” in the room.
Great leaders aren’t afraid to take action and address issues as they arise.
How to Advocate
To advocate for another, put yourself in their shoes and consider what support they might need “in the moment.”
Examples of things to do and/or say include:
- Encourage others in the room to pause and listen.
- Amplify or build upon what the individual has said.
- Join in to support an idea or objective.
- “XX (person being ignored), is there something else you might want to add to this conversation? I think you have some good experience here.”
- “XX, I really like your idea of (topic). Sounds like we all agree it is a good idea. Can you please elaborate on what you were thinking?”
- “XX, I think we are all interested in what you said earlier. Before we all jump in to build upon it, could you repeat what you said?”
Your Advocate Assignment
Over the next week work with intention to be an advocate. Own it.
Listen for microaggressions and see if you can practice saying something without singling out any one individual, and without blaming or shaming anyone else.
Reflect on what you could say, or did say, to advocate in the situation.
Download the Uncovering Inclusion Inhibitors worksheet to record your reflections.