What is Diversity? (Hint: It’s race, it’s gender, and it’s much more.) What is Equity? (Hint: It’s not the same as equality.) What is inclusion? (Hint: It’s much more than just being nice to everyone.) More importantly, what are all the things an organization needs to do to transform a culture?

Do you have bias? (Hint: Yes.) How does it work, and what can I do about it? That’s a slightly longer conversation, but it can be understood, and it can be mitigated, both through individual effort and systemic change.

Power is having the ability to make things happen. If no one exercised their power, nothing would get done. And, power results in predictable psychological responses – including being less naturally empathetic than those with less power. However, leaders can still proactively activate their empathy, if they learn why it’s important to do so and more importantly, how.

Culture is a complex topic, but can be easily understood as the beliefs and behaviors that define a group of people. Countries have cultures, marginalized groups have cultures, and so do workplaces. Changing a culture isn’t easy, but it’s possible — only if you learn to understand cultural dynamics and differences first.