One day I was visiting a large corporation where I had previously delivered a presentation on inclusive leadership several months prior. As I scooted down the hallway, I heard someone yell my name. I stopped and saw one of the maintenance staff running toward me.

This staff member, who introduced himself as Roger, asked if I had a minute to chat.  I replied” absolutely”. Roger, wanted to tell me that he had attended my presentation months earlier, even though he had initially thought it would be a waste of time. Roger went on to say that before attending my presentation he had never given any thought to the idea that he could be an inclusive leader. However, after my presentation, he started to look at his job differently. Instead of thinking that somebody else was going to create a more accessible and inclusive organization, he became the “somebody. 

Roger went on to tell me what action he took. “I started small,” he explained. “I noticed that the waste receptacles are constantly being moved in front of the accessible door openers. I started clearing the path every day.”  I could see the pride on his face as he continued his story of how that one action had inspired his maintenance staff colleagues to do the same thing in their work areas. During their lunch breaks together, he and his colleagues began to talk about other actions they could take to create a more inclusive workplace. As I listened to all of the accomplishments of Roger and his colleagues I was blown away. 

 It was one of those extraordinary moments in my life. Roger had learned that an inclusive leader wasn’t necessarily the head of the corporation in the building where he worked. He had learned that he could be a leader – and an inclusive one at that. He had become an inclusive leader because – he had come to believe that accessibility and inclusion are possible, and he truly valued them. He had also inspired his colleagues to believe in and value accessibility and inclusion, and they had become inclusive leaders too. Through collaboration, they had achieved concrete, and wonderful, results. 

We can all be inclusive leaders. It is a choice we make. How are you doing?