Welcome to the Water Trough where we can't make you drink, but we will make you think. My name is Ed Draws to the Small Business Doctor, and I'm really excited you chose to join me here as we discuss topics that are important for small business folks just like you. If you're looking for ideas, inspiration, and possibility, you've come to the right place. Join us as we take steps to help you create the healthy business that you've all. Always wanted.

Welcome back to the water trough. This is Ed Draws to the small business doctor. I don't think you need to be reminded that we're living in some rather peculiar times. There's a lot of things going on out here that make us question fundamental principles that for so long we've taken for granted. in some way it's good that we are shaking up our thoughts and processes so that we can evaluate what we've done, that which we've taken for granted, and possibly find new ways to look at things. But some of these fundamental changes are resoundingly difficult for many of us.

Speaking for myself, one that comes to mind is DEI. It's really hard to keep the political connotations out of this discussion, but I'll do my best. I would like to consider DEI from the perspective of what it means to me personally and what I believe it means to those of us in business.

Consider the word diversity. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, diversity is defined as the practice or quality of including or involving people from a range of different social and ethnic backgrounds and of different genders, sexual orientations, In a business, one of our most important. Elements is our people, bringing people into the business that have a host of backgrounds that come from different perspectives, regardless of their gender, their sexual orientation. A business that is comprised of individuals who all think alike, who all come from the same background, who are all comprised of the same color, the same creed, and the same way of thinking

Can be limited in its scope.

The second word, equity is defined as the quality of being fair and impartial. if one is being fair and impartial, that diversity would be a given in a business situation, the quality of being fair and impartial means that we're accepting. different sorts of people. We're being fair and impartial about the existence of different kinds of people in a business. If we operate in an equitable manner, we are open to allowing different ideas, different kinds of people to participate and to help us grow. Much as diversity is a fundamental concept of having a variety of people onboard. Equity is the act of accepting these people being on board. Impartial about where they've come from, how they define themselves, and so on the third word is inclusion.

Inclusion is defined as the practice or policy

of providing equal access to opportunities and resources for people who might otherwise be excluded or marginalized, such as those. Who have physical or intellectual disabilities, and members of other minority groups

DEI, in my opinion, does not force us to bring people on board who are not qualified to accomplish the jobs that need to be done.

I believe DEI gives us a greater pool of applicants to consider.

It does not diminish that which we look for in terms of education, experience, and potential. It is designed to increase the pool of opportunity for us To cater to a very fundamental human need, and that is to be accepting and to be accepted. I don't think that's a farfetched expectation. The notion that we can weaponize DEI by taking away funding for those that are doing it, the notion that we can weaponize DEI. In such a fashion that brings people to their knees, giving up things that they truly believe in because they're afraid of the consequences of being open to individuals as they are. It boggles my mind. It really does. I believe it denigrates the whole concept of business integrity. I believe DEI is about culture. It is a choice that a business makes to be accepting, to be open, to be. Willing to explore different people and different possibilities. The idea that my funding is gonna be taken away and that I have to make a choice between being a constable business owner and getting money that I need to get things done, it just seems totally wrong to me.

Once again, I did not want to look at this from a political perspective, but I can't help to mention these things because I really believe that businesses have to find a way to serve their own will. They need to find a way to be able to live in integrity, to find ways to make a difference despite the potential damage,

What might be taken away from them if they choose to follow a DEI path?

DEI is not designed to distract us from what we're trying to accomplish in business. It's important that we're open to possibility, and one of the most important and relevant things about possibility is that we're able to broaden the horizons by bringing different people with different ideas to the table.

If we close the door on diversity, if we. Limit ourselves to that, which is like us, we have lost a tremendous amount of possibility Businesses need to be open to diversity. There needs to be the opportunity to bring in different ideas from different people with different backgrounds, with different considerations than what we bring to the table.

I strongly feel that we're at a crossroads. The intersection between integrity and acquiescence, between possibility and reversal. Of course, these are things that each business person needs to take a good hard look at. Surrendering ourselves to the. Whims or the dictums of others is not sufficient. We did not get into business because we chose to follow the piper. We got into business because we chose to be the leader, to be the one that others wanted to mimic and be like,

We have a choice. We can accept the status quo and let it lead us where it may, or we can choose to do what we believe is appropriate and follow the course of our own integrity. That latter choice, of course, maybe difficult for some, maybe extremely difficult for some. But the ingenuity and the potential for each business person, for each business is substantial. I believe that surrendering for the sake of circumstances that are not aligned with our own integrity, is not an acceptable choice. So I encourage you to think about this and you're certainly not gonna have an opportunity to avoid it in the current environment. You'll be reminded of this daily, multiple times every day until we speak again. I want to wish you the very best in the tumultuous times. This is Ed draws with a small business doctor. I hope that your business will remain healthy.