As a result of some of my posts and public sharing, someone asked hubby if I am gay or transgender. “Is she gay? Why does she care?”
First–why does it matter if I am gay or transgender? I’m not married to them. Our relationship is our relationship and he accepts me for who I am or we wouldn’t be together. My gender identification or sexual preference is not their business and I do not have to justify #myidentity to make them feel comfortable. Not their business.
Second–caring about my fellow brothers and sisters in society involves an ability to view the possibility of who I may be working with, playing with, and just plain existing with. Regardless of my opinions about life and my purpose–everyone else has the right to determine what their life and purpose should be.
There’s enough on my plate trying to navigate through my own purpose. Furthermore–innovations require understanding the needs and requirements of end users. Otherwise, we wouldn’t bother with user stories.
While walking through my place of employment, someone commented about the transgenders that are my colleagues. I smiled and informed that person that it’s one of the reasons I’m proud to be a part of that workforce community. It’s a culture of acceptance that strives for inclusion. It’s not a perfect system but there is a whole lot of ‘try’.
With horses, equestrians discuss a horse’s willingness and amount of try as a worthy trait. We cannot train a horse that won’t move its feet. The responsibility of ‘try’ begins with me.
Understanding #diversity and #inclusion begins with the responsibility I have to try to understand what other people need so our #innovations will be successful and can be marketable, useful and usable for all. Branding should be more than words. It’s a lifestyle.
