We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Anita Polite-Wilson a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Anita, thanks so much for taking the time to share your insights and lessons with us today. We’re particularly interested in hearing about how you became such a resilient person. Where do you get your resilience from?
Being resilient is a family trait passed down from my great grandfather who was a formerly enslaved person. Even without any rights or possessions of his own, he carried himself in such a way as to have earned the nickname of Polite and that was his identity.
When he was freed, instead of following tradition by taking the last name of his former slave owner, he chose the name Polite to be his last name. There is even a portion of his life story written in history book about the early days of Brunswick, Georgia.
When I married I decided to retain my maiden name of Polite and hyphenate it with my married name of Wilson to serve as a reminder that regardless of how much people may choose to undervalue me, overlook me, or marginalize me, I could still show up in this world in a way that demonstrated my choice to rise above the assumptions, interpretations, and limiting beliefs that others may have held about me. Which is why retained my maiden name of Polite to remind me that resiliency is literally in my blood.
Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?
As the founder and President of Dr. Anita Enterprises, Inc., I drive ROI through resilient cultures to create future-ready organizations in my roles as a C-Suite Trusted Advisor, Board Director, and Consultant by coaching leaders and their teams to navigate culture, complexity, and change.
My clients understand that a more inclusive tone at the top is critical, and when we work together, we link employee experiences, employee engagement, and workforce sustainability, grounded in belonging to achieve bottom-line results.
I personally have over 2 decades of experience designing leadership development programs for Fortune 500 companies, non-profit organizations, and government entities.
Now, my mission is to serve organizations who want to replace check-the-box initiatives with a human-first, relationship-driven, change-the-culture approach to culture-driven change management
Whether you’re in the C-suite, a middle manager, or on the front line, my mission is to help your entire organization feel like your company is where they belong. I look forward to the opportunity to help clients integrate core values, ignite employee engagement, and improve workforce sustainability.
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
My consultancy prioritizes a human-first and relationship-driven approach to fostering trust and belonging among C-suite executive leaders. This allows C-suite leaders to role model inclusive leadership with direct reports and promotes a sense of belonging that is cascaded to employees on the front lines. I do this by being intentional in three areas:
1) I don’t allow shame and blame from anyone. I never want anyone to feel talked down to. I meet people where they are. We focus always on opportunities to know and grow.
2) I don’t believe in check-the-box initiatives—which don’t work—instead, we get to the root with change-the culture behaviors that align with corporate and individual values.
3) I don’t try to get any executive to passively reach agreement. Rather, we raise awareness as people to insightfully develop real relationships that transcend race relations.
The advice I have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these areas is to be intentional about how they ACT:
Approach others with an open heart by being aware of what your biases are and how they can derail your relationships. Connect to understand others first, then to be understood by others second. Finally, tap into diversity by being culturally curious about individuals and people groups that are different from you.
All the wisdom you’ve shared today is sincerely appreciated. Before we go, can you tell us about the main challenge you are currently facing?
In the last few years, many companies say they are dedicated to fostering a diverse and inclusive workplace where everyone feels valued and respected. Many leaders believe that a commitment to diversity and inclusion is the right thing to do, and there are lots of WHYs for doing effective and successful Diversity, Inclusion & Belonging (DIB) work. Some leaders, however, may also believe it will not drive business success, or positively affect the bottom line.
The challenge I am currently facing with my clients is a willingness to thoughtfully examine and address the WHY NOTs of DIB work: what the hesitancies may be that hold leaders back from taking on this challenge in a healthy and fruitful way.
There is no shortage of research on Diversity, Inclusion & Belonging (DIB) work and the potential for its positive impact across an organization, including the bottom line. Yet there is still a lag in authentic change, especially in the C-Suite.
Wherever you, and/or your organization, are, the first step in thinking through your business strategies for the 21st century and the current environment is to examine your WHYS — AND your WHY NOTs — for doing Diversity, Inclusion & Belonging (DIB) work.
Contact Info:
- Website: doctoranita.com
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anita-polite-wilson-ph-d/
