February 2023 DEI Committee Blog

XOXO, BEST DAY, CALL ME, YOU SHINE, TEXT ME

Do any of these classic candy heart messages apply to your professional relationships? At the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee’s February meeting, Corresponding Secretary Rayven Davis led the group in a topic discussion on: Exploring Love Languages in the Workplace.

The Love Languages, now a popular framework to understand our personal preferences for showing and receiving affection, were developed over 30 years ago by psychologist Gary D. Chapman. His original framework categorized five “loving” behaviors: words of affirmation, quality time, acts of services, and tangible gifts, and physical touch. Over the last three decades, family counselors, relationship experts, and other interested parties have used these concepts to understand and strengthen human connection. It is no surprise, then, that the love languages have been applied to our workplace relationships as The 5 Languages of Appreciation at Work.

During the meeting, members of the DEI Committee reflected on how the languages of appreciation are being spoken in our workplaces, and which are of particular value to us and our teams. In addition to personal preferences, the group discussed cultural differences in the workplace that may lead one colleague to lean in for a hug, another to give direct feedback, and yet another to grab you a cup of coffee during a particularly busy season. Whether or not you directly manage people, effective collaboration requires us to cultivate a greater awareness of people’s working styles and preferences. The most rewarding teams strive for the platinum rule, which states you should always treat others the way they want to be treated.

Though “appropriate physical touch” can include a handshake or pat on the back, the role of physical proximity in workplace relationships has taken on a new meaning following remote work at the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Members of the DEI Committee shared their strategies for building relationships and showing appreciation in hybrid workplace settings, often without the benefit of body language and casual connections that built relationships in the office. Many of these strategies are modeled in the DEI Committee’s regular meetings, including personal greetings, space for shared learning and feedback, and opportunities to connect or follow-up on a particular topic one-on-one.

We welcome all WGR members to join DEI Committee Meetings on the third Tuesday of each month. Register here for the next meeting on March 21st from 11:30 - 1pm Eastern Time. For more information on WGR’s DEI Committee, please reach out to dei.wgr@gmail.com.

DEI Committee Co-Vice Chair Larkin Willis authored this month’s blog.