When we do equity work, the question isn’t if emotions will be present, it’s if we are prepared to skillfully navigate them and support ourselves and others in learning from the wisdom emotions provide.
As with all things Transformational Coaching, you must start with yourself before you can support others. This is why participants engage in an exploration of their beliefs about emotions during our Coaching for Equity 101 workshop. The more aware we are of our beliefs, the easier to shift those that hold us back.
An exercise: Take a few minutes to complete and reflect on this excerpt from an exercise that participants engage in during Coaching for Equity 101 that comes from The Onward Workbook. Consider how these lessons learned and beliefs held might impact your ability to thrive, and your ability to engage emotions and coach for equity.
| Beliefs about feelings | I was taught this | I believe this a little; sometimes; a lot |
| Emotions don’t need to be talked about. | ||
| There is a right way to feel in every situation. | ||
| Telling others that I am feeling bad is a sign of weakness. | ||
| Men shouldn’t cry. | ||
| Negative feelings are bad and destructive. | ||
| I can’t control the way I feel. | ||
| If I tell other people how I feel, they won’t like me. | ||
| If I ignore a feeling, it will go away. | ||
| Letting others know how I feel is useless. | ||
| Being emotional means being out of control. |
An opportunity: If you want to learn how to coach for equity and are in the early stages of understanding educational inequities join us November 2-3 for our final 2022 Coaching for Equity 101 workshop.