2020 continues to be a year of challenges, many of which I thought we would be over and done with. Part of this belief came from my own ignorance of the world around me and what other people are subject to all over the globe even in the most modern of metropoleis in the world.
I will be the first to admit, we have it good here.
The current issues we are seeing play out on the evening news are related to an obvious and overt bias which some people have ingrained in them. However, even the open-minded among us have an unconscious bias.
We carry it with us wherever we go and by its very nature, this type of bias is not something we’re aware of. When unconscious bias enters a work environment it’s effects are compounded by power disparity and embedded within the culture creating a cycle of harm both internal and external to the company.
Herein the problem lies part of the solution.
If we can become aware of our unconscious biases we can work against them consciously to create a more tolerant, inclusive workplace and world.
This brings me to one of the most interesting companies I’ve had a chance to work with in my consulting career.
I describe EQ Labs as socially-oriented research and development skunkworks.
Some very cool and timely software such as “buy Black app” which overlays a button in Amazon to connect to a database of black-owned small business you could buy from instead.
Another is the equally lightweight and cool EQ Daily chrome browser extension which displays a stereotype shattering profile whenever you open a fresh tab.
EQ Lab’s company mission is to use science to change manager behaviours and to disrupt the patterns of career-limiting prejudice. On the way to fulfilling this, many interesting potential products and tools have come forth.
Some of these tools are unobtrusive as a browser extension but they also go as deep as using NLP similar to Grammarly to let manager’s know why certain terms and phrases in the email they are about to send out may not go down with the recipient as intended.
The most robust of EQ Lab’s offerings is an entire mobile ed-tech microlearning system in your pocket (see Eq Nudge/Teams) that ties a curriculum together with mini video lessons and practices that stay connected to you and your workday.
These apps are designed to help a person tackle change using lessons and repetition that can make you more aware of yourself using the principles of metacognition (thinking about thinking) with a dose of microlearning to spur the change.
Like most self-improvement, the only prerequisite for engagement is having a growth mindset.
Behaviour modification and habit change are the great bastions of self-improvement and professional development. We’re certainly seeing a huge increase in how the market perceives these tools with apps like Calm and products like the Muse headband and platforms like Degreed.
The future is a scary and exciting thing to ponder.
Many industries are ripe for renewal and technology will continue to improve, but on a human level, we have to acknowledge we are the ones steering the machines and stock prices.
We’re more reliant on each other than ever before. As we become a more diverse, open and tolerant society, it’s up to us to shed the last of our pre-connected trepidations.
Now is perhaps the best opportunity we all have to not take our bullshit into the next century.
Metacognition will be one of the greatest ally’s of person kind to create cohesion and make the workplace and world a more inclusive, equitable place.
If you are interested in bringing any of EQ Labs products into your company, reach out to us at https://eqlabs.io/pages/contact.html or me at alexander@eqlabs.io
