Getting Past "US vs THEM" w/ Laura Kriska

People Business w/ O'Brien McMahon

Laura Kriska is an expert on cross-cultural relations with more than thirty years of experience bridging gaps in diverse workplaces. She has worked with Fortune 500 companies on four continents, helping thousands of professionals build trust across Us vs. Them differences based on nationality, ethnicity, race, religion, age, or any factor of identity. Her WE-Building framework provides practical and actionable insights for creating a more inclusive and productive world.
Mentioned on the Show:

• Laura Kriska's book, The Business of We: https://a.co/d/bcm1SVq
• Learn more about Laura at her website: https://www.laurakriska.com/
• Connect with Laura on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/laura-kriska-0a93902a
• Marcus Buckingham (author): https://www.marcusbuckingham.com/
• Bonus! Twelve Hours' Sleep by Twelve Weeks Old (baby sleep training book): https://a.co/d/aklrwro

Timestamps:

(2:16) - Welcoming Laura
(3:15) - Why are we so afraid of those who are different than us and how do you see that showing up in the workplace?
(5:03) - Can you give us a little bit about your background that led you into this field?
(10:10) - What’s your response to the attitude of ‘let’s buck up and move on’ in relation to that kind of situation?
(16:44) - Are microaggressions real or no?
(21:45) - How can we 'reframe' some group identities we may hold?
(29:25) - How do we do this in corporate environments?
(35:19) - How do we open ourselves to embrace new and diverse situations?
(43:02) - Are there ways to do this that don’t fall into 'tokenism'?
(48:56) - How can leaders harness truly improve communication among various groups?
(50:29) - What do we really have to get at to be bridging these connections?
(55:49) - Do you have any suggestions for business leaders on how to make room for nuance and allow difference of opinion to exist?
(1:00:21) - Laura invites us all to WE-build