Entry 07
It’s my experience of writing a personal Code of Inclusion. How are you practicing inclusion in your life and in your work as a vocal coach?
As a vocal coach, music therapist, team lead, and small business owner, I work with a diverse range of individuals and groups: children, adults, seniors, those who are healthy, and those who are unhealthy and in need of treatment, guidance, or learning. My colleagues come from different backgrounds, speak various mother tongues, and follow diverse religions.
This year, I have been leading a community INCLUSIVE choir, and the topic of inclusion has been on my mind for a while. It's been buzzing in my thoughts, but I hadn't found the time to sit down and wrestle with it until recently.
A series of events in my personal and professional life, as well as my observations of the outside world, led me to finally grab a pen and scribble down my thoughts.
I listed my personal experiences of being included, actively including myself and others, and excluding myself and others, intentionally or unintentionally. I noted what I observed, why certain actions acted as barriers, and how they impacted connections and achievements.
Many people in the healthcare field have been educated on the idea of inclusion, but I felt a rising urge to personally address its definition and practice in my life.
After 2-3 hours of juggling my thoughts, I developed my personalized code of practice for inclusion, grounded in the KISS approach (Keep It Stupidly Simple). While our interactions are always 'case by case,' this framework at least sets up some basic codes. I feel happy that I have written this for myself and incorporated my learnings from training in my own way.
I'm sharing it below with an invitation for anyone to join in any form you'd like to.
Level 1 - Basic Principles
Invite myself to decide, express, and act on behalf of myself.
Invite myself to be part of group interactions and decision-making.
Invite others to decide, express, and act on behalf of themselves.
Invite (relevant) others to be part of group interactions and decision-making.
Level 2 - Case Applications
Case 1: When another person’s decisions and actions disregard me.
Watch my reaction: It’s totally understandable that someone else may not know my wish to be included, may simply forget about me or my context, or may be a biased person who dislikes me.
Inclusion first calls me to act for myself, not for others to act for me. So if I am excluded, it does not mean that I should immediately feel bad or harmed.
Request the space for myself to be included in the interaction, expression, action, and decision-making process.
Case 2: When a person dismisses my 'right' to decide, express, and act on behalf of myself.
Highlight and make clear that the person is not letting me decide, express, and act for myself. Insist that the person include me in matters that greatly affect me.
Case 3: When I have to exclude myself and others from decision-making and interactions, especially those decisions that might affect others and their livelihood (directly or indirectly).
Evaluate the decision-making process and find the right tools to evaluate the process and conclusion.
Make it as explicit as possible to communicate why such decisions have been made.
Case 4: What overrides Level 1?
When immediate actions need to be taken against significant harm to myself, my community, or the world (universe).
Condition: This still doesn't justify my actions harming the person of such action.
Codes are for actions for myself, not for vengeance against others.
Are there any more areas to consider?
