Diversity and Inclusion Matters

Chapter 3Data for DE&I

Fill the Cup of Others

The horrifying images of the attack on our US Capitol on January 6, 2021, left me feeling hopeless. Like many of you, I had a pit in my stomach afterward. Piled on top of the weight of the pandemic and the events after George Floyd's killing, so much violence and hate was too much. I felt numb and empty. I also began to lament if we as a nation were failing our children through our inability to disagree while remaining civil. These thoughts only deepened my sense of emptiness.

The hopelessness I was feeling was compounded by several requests I received from individuals who had asked me to write something they could share through their DE&I departments. The leadership at these companies wanted to help their colleagues with a message to validate the uneasiness we were all feeling while setting a vision for the way forward. My first thought was, “How do I do that? My cup is empty.” Typically, writing a response comes easily to me, but this time, the process of trying to write something was surprisingly difficult. My sense of hopelessness was becoming overwhelming.

Then I realized that when my cup feels empty is when I should use whatever drops of hope are left to fill the cups of others. Emptiness is contagious, but so is hopefulness. It is in moments like these when we must live our values.

I had a similar feeling of emptiness after the events of 9/11. What I saw on TV that day was unimaginable. At that time, it seemed we would never ...