News of Naomi Osaka, a superstar in the sport, and her choice to pull out of the French Open has been a media sensation for the past few days.
Some have challenged her choice: did it have to end this way? Naomi Osaka has had to learn to deal with global stardom on the fly. Her act is an uneasy rush into the spotlight after she was fined for skipping a news conference.
In contrast, some discerned her silence as a candour move and how she has spurred the conversation about mental health and issues unspoken by making herself vulnerable.
None of these expressions implies right or wrong; these are individual worldviews.
For me, Naomi’s candour is a call for collective opportunity to understand the rich diversity, think broadly about the uniqueness of each individual and live beyond labels.
. . .
My first introduction to diversity was through my grandfather’s definition of culture. However, back then, it had not felt like a diversity or well-being lesson to my little consciousness.
He used to say that culture changes every 32 miles, probably why all marriages and extended relationships happened within 32 miles. “We need commonalities for conversations. These conversations impact our well being and relationships with others”, he reasoned.
Diversity, by itself, can mean many things.
The important point is that diversity indicates a point of difference. Its broad association, as yet, is with many demographic variables, like race, religion, colour, gender, nationality, sexual orientation, age, education, and skills differences from others.
Noami’s choice and the world’s response to her choice screams, yet again, the point that diversity runs more profound than any visible differences. We all need to develop the capacity to see beneath what is visible.
Not to repeat the diversity definition, it would probably be the millionth version attempt, but to share the Greater Good Science Center’s outlook, which registered directly to my heart.
Diversity refers to both the obvious facts of human life — namely, that there are many different kinds of people — and the idea that this diversity drives cultural, economic, and social vitality and innovation.
Diversity is individual uniqueness.
. . .
Absolutely! Diversity is an obvious fact of human life. We all know it very well, and we intend to make a difference in our own ways. Still, why it is not enough?
Knowledge and intent to make a difference is good. But not good enough.
The intent matters. But, individual efforts and expressions are not enough. “I understand. We did our part” is not good enough.
One of the rational reasons that Grand Slam tournaments’ cited was their desire for fairness. The statement made in media is, “I think Naomi has always struggled with public speaking, and dealing with the press has always made her anxious. We cannot allow a player to have an unfair advantage by not doing post-match press. If one player is not doing that and others are, that is not equal. “
Humankind, collective consciousness and individual quandaries are evolving. In these times, expressing our worldview is like touching the iceberg’s tip and, regrettably, a shallow answer to the intense situation.
. . .
It is time to expand our consciousness and constantly ask ourselves how to make our part more meaningful, connective, and impactful.
How can we make our part more meaningful, connective, and impactful?
When we ask so many thoughtful, reflective, strategic questions when we seek to improve the business, job and daily chores, why not do the same in our strive to create an inclusive world.
Answers have a small shelf life. Questions have all the power.
1) ask few simple questions
How would my life have been different if I was born to other parents, another family, another city, another country, played with other friends in another park or studied in different schools in other countries?
Be more thoughtful about your intent, your bias. Don’t just get in the game. Put things in perspective.
Constantly evaluating own intent — is it to look good versus doing good? Regardless of the results of our action, it is simply not good enough if the intent is to look good. Be tolerant to self-discoveries and other’s worldview.
How would my life have been different if I was born to other parents, another family, another city, another country, played with other friends in another park or studied in different schools in other countries?
. . .
Decades of research is submitted to the good intentions of explaining the diversity and inclusive groups — well-being. Intolerance hurts our well-being, and we thrive when we can tolerate and embrace the world’s diversity.
2) develop a tolerance for differences
Tolerance is not a compromise, forgiveness or encouragement of negative behaviour.
When my aunts and uncles grew up, expanded on their culture consciousness, and decided to marry beyond 32 miles, it placed a challenge to my grandfather’s worldview and culture definition. He needed to be open to change. Though sometimes he accepted easily, it sometimes took the whole village’s effort to drive expansion beyond 32 miles.
It was a big expansion for him and would be for anyone. After all, In our individualistic aspects of well-being and music of mundane, we touch our mental models of beliefs and values — This is the way of being human.
As A.H.Richmond says, “In the postmodern world, we must all learn to live with ethnographies cultural diversity, rapid social change and mass migration. There is no peaceful alternative.”
We must all learn to live with ethnographies, cultural diversity, rapid social change, and mass migration in the postmodern world. There is no peaceful alternative. ~ A.H.Richmond
Tolerance is learning to evolve beyond firmly set common ground and develop openness to expand, evolve and include. Tolerance is to develop a sight to see people’s differences as unique perspectives, not as labels.
Naomi’s label of being an introvert, not a good public speaker fuels biases and non-inclusive behaviours.
3) label is a point of view, not the identity.
Labels are dangerous when repeated, carries the power to compel us to a single identity. At the same time, perspectives and labelling the situation open the windows to slanted realities and develop the capacity to see beyond the individualistic part and appreciate the whole.
Let me attempt to create this for you.
What comes to your mind when you see this elephant?
I am sure that the first thought that comes to mind is: Why is the elephant not breaking off the little rope and setting herself free? Who is stopping her?
Because this elephant believes that she cannot, or she has started loving the circus as she has family here now, or probably broke the rope once but couldn’t find the way out, or possibly she doesn’t even realise that there is a world outside the circus.
Whatever the elephant has, she cannot say it in the language that we can understand.
What if we replace the elephant with ourselves and answer the same question from the viewpoint of people we like, love, and value.
What are the words that come to your mind when you think about yourself? What do you think your partner will say about you? What do you think your friends will say about you? What do you think your fans will say about you? What do you think a person who doesn’t like you will say about you?
Isn’t that what we repeatedly listen to is that teeny-tiny rope that has the power to become a solid chain one day. Our behaviour was probably a conscious choice in that situation, and — It doesn’t define our identity or personality.
A great public speaker label is equally limiting as an anxious label and creates the association with only possible behaviour expected.
. . .
Summing it up
Unveiling diversity starts with introspection, asking simple questions, developing tolerance to differences, tearing off labels, and seeing each individual as a seed. A seed that has a whole tree inside waiting to unveil.
Naomi’s silence is not an answer to the press or board’s intentions of fairness and equality. It is a call for collective opportunity to understand the rich diversity, think broadly about the uniqueness of each individual and live beyond labels.
Her layers of diversity, worldviews and labelling go much deeper than any definition can express, and similar is the depth of layers of diversity for all of us.
Cultivating our ability to forge relationships across differences can increase our well-being. It is a little seed that sprouts with awareness and intentionality and grows with tolerance and openness to change.
Happy introspection, expansion and life beyond labels!
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This post was previously published on Change Becomes You.
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