USING INCLUSIVE LANGUAGE

Last night I presented a workshop to a group of 26 women, some of whom new little of shamanism, and had never been on a medicine drum journey. I became aware immediately that it would be necessary to be mindful of using inclusive language so as not to exclude them from the experience. 

Using inclusive language is not a new quest for me. While I have been doing it for some time, it is more that I am now considering its use it from a different perspective. Where once I may have used it so i can be included and not find myself isolated through my difference, I now find myself using it with respect for other people's difference, and their needs. Of course, I am always mindful of other's needs, but I think of it less as an effort to let go of my own language now days. 

It is interesting also that by using other people's language, and keeping mine in brackets as per below, I can see how I am really still having the same experience, however am using another language to describe it. This reframing in my mind allows me to feel an interconnectedness that I may have once missed in my relationships in business. 

However, much like a person exhausted from speaking another country's language when they are away from home, it is so good to come  home to myself, and hang out with like-minded people who understand the shaman's path and practice. 

This morning I reflected a little more on my roles and using inclusive language:

Using inclusive language  - the consultant /servant-leader (corporate shaman/shamanic path and practice trainer-teacher) has learned non-attachment, and has the capacity to re-shape (shape-shift) his/her language so that the message sent is the message received, unencumbered by the need to dominate or be attached to the language or environment (landscape) in which the messages are delivered (birthed).

Seeking not to be understood but, for those he/she teaches (journeys with) to understand – the consultant /servant-leader (corporate shaman/shamanic path and practice trainer-teacher) understands the power created within the business when the facilitator relinquishes (surrenders) the need to be understood, or to be praised for his/her knowledge or input, and instead find his/her rewards when what he is intending to teach is finally understood by those for whom he is facilitating (inspiring/holding space).

“As I watch each person see) their own answer to the question that has presented itself, I become energized as they get closer to finding it; no longer eager to give that answer to them – instead I keep my heart open, holding space for self-discovery and empowerment, and urge them to go deeper into their ‘all knowing self’ and the inner world, out of their heads, and into their hearts and bellies, using their breath, watching, holding, and patiently waiting for the answer to rise to the surface. I know that when I do this they will walk away with a deeper understanding that will last; the belief that has come through self-discovery is something I could never create or offer them by projecting my knowledge upon them.

From time to time, I find myself, as trust and respect builds and grows between us, offering a word or two from my world to introduce them to the beauty offered there. All the while, I watch and observe the energetic dance between us”.

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