Katy Nielsen is a Colorado based, Chicago-trained performance artist, production manager and writer. You can see the embodiment of her continuing work and aesthetic at Outlaw Production Collective, creating & producing unique performance work with an awesome network of artistic associates.
Lindsay Madison is an Arbonne consultant, yoga instructor and all-around health and wellness enthusiast. She initially came to her yoga mat to combat vertigo and regain a sense of balance after a partial hearing loss and was immediately hooked. Since then, she's built a global network marketing business as a consultant with Arbonne and taught classes throughout the Midwest and Canada. Lindsay resides with her Pitbull rescue, BellaObama, just outside Detroit, Michigan and is currently working and teaching remotely. Connect with her at VisionsIncorporated.com
ontributors
C
(Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) in March. DEI initiatives are a hot topic in the legal industry and for good reason. The more law firms and legal operations teams look like the people they represent, the better they can serve them.
But it’s more than that. Without the experiences of those from a background other than ours, how can we grow and learn? How can we ensure we’re being complete, sensitive, and effective in our roles? How can diverse populations picture themselves in leadership roles without representation in those roles to look up to?
I coach a basketball team of third graders, and I volunteered to do it for a few reasons. First, I get to spend Saturdays with my younger son playing sports. I like basketball and enjoy being in charge, even if it’s a group of 9-year-olds, even though we haven’t won a game (yet – there’s one more week). But one big reason I do it is to be a role model: A woman as the Coach, the leader – not the assistant leader or a cheerleader - but the Boss. Assistants and cheerleaders are great, but that was never enough for me, and it didn’t have to be.
I’m not a size 0 and probably never was or will be. When I’m running up and down the sidelines, cheering and jumping with joy at every accomplishment this young, adorable team makes, I am not thinking about how my leggings fit or how my hair looks. I’m doing my best. I want the little girls (and boys, for that matter) on the team to see me and understand that I am the leader, the decision-maker, the one who shakes the hands of the other coaches in the league (all men).
I want the girls to realize that Leadership looks like me, and it could look like them, too.
That’s a perfect fit.
Photo Credit Jesse Orrico