Being human is hard. We have all experienced the hardships that life has to offer and felt lonely, sad, and even helpless at times. The world has become increasingly more complex and every time we look at the news it seems like a million more things are going wrong. I think that living in these times it is even more important to recognize the importance of coming together as individuals and utilizing the resources available to us in the communities that surround us as a means of decompressing from stress and stimulation. It is our job to establish communities that foster environments that cultivate a sense of belonging and inclusion, by doing so we contribute to the well-being of not only ourselves but those around us and our communities.
Belonging is a fundamental need that comes with being a social creature. By belonging to a group or multiple groups you can build confidence in your identity because you feel accepted among a group that holds shared ideals and beliefs. When you feel accepted you build relationships that keep you connected. It helps to establish confidence which is essential for achieving goals and pursuing your dreams. You become confident to speak up and express your ideas, contributing to the web of other ideas that keep us interconnected. Without the expression of who we are and what we believe, feel, and think we would live in a world of similarities and lack diversity. How boring would that be?
Belonging isn’t just about being around a group but the quality interactions that happen within that group that you identify with. An article by Forbes discusses the importance of belonging is tied to our social identity and overall health stating, “To truly feel a sense of belonging, you must feel unity and a common sense of character with and among group members.” It puts an end to the social exclusion that leads to dissatisfaction with life, loneliness, depression, and other health issues that result from this. So how can we ensure that we are creating spaces that are nurturing belonging? We can do this by embracing the groups we are involved with by being our authentic selves and making sure that we are creating safe spaces so that others can show up as themselves and feel comfortable too.
As you can see belonging is super important to our development of social identity but inclusion also plays a major role in that. Yes, accepting people for who they are is great but we tend to gravitate towards the people who share common interests and similarities. It is also important to recognize that diversity and inclusion are not the same though they are paired together often. It becomes a challenge when we talk with someone who sees things differently or even someone who looks different. Inclusion encourages connections with people who think, feel, and look different than ourselves. It helps us to be comfortable in our authenticity and show up as who we truly are, fostering innovation and engagement among groups. I know what it feels like to be excluded from my experience with bullies in grade school due to my hair texture and skin color. It made me depressed and I withdrew from myself, feeling like I had to pretend to be someone I wasn’t to “fit in”. What would the world look like if we could embrace everyone for all the little things that make them different from us? What if we created more companies and organizations that held space for people with a variety of identity factors? According to an article by Stacy Jones on Yahoo Finance, 73% of senior executives in the Fortune 500 (the top 500 companies) are composed of white men while 21% are Asian, Black, Native American, Latino, and Latina. That figure shows that we still have a lot of work to do to create environments that build trust among people with different cultures, education levels, backgrounds, sexualities, and races so that they feel included and can be involved. Diversity is a key component of innovation. One idea can be great but it takes a team of people with a range of talent to make that idea successful. Harvard Business Review released a segment of videos on understanding inclusion, one video focuses on four ways to promote inclusion within your group; these include recognizing differences while avoiding singling out a person, creating safe environments, being supportive and ensuring everyone feels valued, and giving everyone the space to voice their ideas, thoughts, and opinions.
Belonging and Inclusion go hand in hand in building healthy communities. A healthy community is honest and vulnerable with each other, it holds empathy, compassion, and love. This is how trust is established which allows a community to come together, especially in times of need. TLU sees the power of community every year during H.O.T Dogs Day of Service. This is an amazing experience where we see all our fellow bulldogs come together to display servant leadership to Seguin’s community by helping multiple local organizations address pressing needs in the community. Students come together as individuals and as a result, create an impact far greater than one could alone.
It is when we come together that we hold greater influence and increase the well-being of others, our environment, and ourselves. This is exactly how humans have survived horrific events throughout history like catastrophic weather events and world war, community is key to our survival. It is when we set up safe spaces that we become more interconnected with one another and create changes to harmful structures that are dangerous to our survival. It is important to use communities we are connected to as a resource and engage in it. By being involved we are provided with support, safety, and connection that increases health. The focus we should all have is to repair the relationship we have with not just our communities but to embrace ourselves for exactly who we truly are to foster trust, hope, and compassion for each other that might just heal the world. So reach out, get involved, and utilize those resources bulldogs, there are so many opportunities at TLU for you to connect.
Sources:
https://hbr.org/video/6260508738001/understanding-inclusion-4-ways-to-cultivate-belonging-at-work
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/white-men-account-72-corporate-212102494.html
https://hbr.org/2017/02/diversity-doesnt-stick-without-inclusion
Official Website of Texas Lutheran University's Student Media 