ACTIVITY 51Be Willing to Learn from and Be Influenced by Others Who Are Different from You
“You are here to make a difference, to either improve the world or worsen it. And whether or not you consciously choose to, you will accomplish one or the other.”
—Richelle E. Goodrich
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Our environments have a tremendous influence on us and can impact just about every decision we make. Aside from DNA and upbringing, our environment informs the way we think, who we associate with, our likes and dislikes, and, more important, how we interact with one another. Consider a work culture that embraces the LGBTQ community. Such an environment signals that they can be their authentic selves, can fully engage, and will be supported in the face of harassment or discrimination. An environment that is intolerant of LGBTQ individuals begats intolerance and is an open invitation for others to display bias and homophobic tendencies signaling to conform to heterogeneous norms or else. In both scenarios, actions are influenced by the environment, bias, and stereotypical beliefs. But let's just say that in that intolerant situation, there are one to two individuals who model inclusive behaviors toward LGBTQ co-workers. They can influence change for those with an open mind to learn and make a conscious choice to be influenced. Harvard Business Review describes influence as:
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