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Skillsoft Blended Learning Resource

Using Inclusive Language – Activity Guide

The more you can really connect with each of your team members, the more you'll be able to create a highly productive environment. Once you've established your initial approach to managing diversity by building diversity awareness in yourself and your team, you need to use different techniques to maintain the approach.

One of the techniques for managing a diverse team is to communicate inclusively. This means being careful that your language doesn't make anyone feel marginalized. All team members should feel comfortable and know their contributions matter. As well as listening actively to what team members have to say and being clear when you communicate, using inclusive language is an important technique for ensuring all team members feel included, especially in a diverse environment.

This activity gives you an opportunity to plan how you can communicate inclusively with your team.

Using Inclusive Language

Because language is powerful, you need to be careful you don't use language that makes others feel excluded. Inclusive language is nonsexist and nonracist. Some people think using “politically correct” phrasing is a trivial matter, but words can shape people's realities.

Using inclusive language means avoidinggender-specific pronouns, calling people by their preferred names and avoiding stereotyping, and avoiding using metaphors that may exclude someone from a different background.

Gender

To make everyone in your team feel more included, you should avoid using gender-specific pronouns. And avoid using language that suggests human beings only come in one gender. If you can't avoid gender-specific pronouns altogether, alternate them by using “he” and “she” equally or change to a gender-neutral plural form such as “they”,“their”, or “them”.

Stereotypes

Respect team members' desires to name themselves by using the language they prefer. But equally importantly, avoid stereotypes and labels.Ask team members what term they prefer to be referred to by, such as African American, Asian, or Senior. But remember, there's no need to refer to someone as a member of this group unless it's relevant.Team members should be defined by who they are as individuals and what they accomplish, rather than by their religion, race, age, or cultural background.

Metaphors

Avoid using metaphors or other comparisons that can cause confusion and be off-putting to someone who doesn't know what they mean.When communicating with people from different backgrounds, the image a metaphor creates is often unclear and, as a result, they can feel left out. Sports metaphors are particularly problematic. A baseball metaphor like “three strikes and you're out” will exclude people from the conversation if they don't understand it.

CommunicatingInclusively Activity

Complete the following three tables to plan how you can use more inclusive language when communicating with your team.

Gender

In the table provided, list some gender-specific terms you might use and then come up with more inclusive alternatives that could help make everyone on your team feel more included.

Gender-specific term / Inclusive alternative
e.g. Chairman. / e.g. Chairperson.

Stereotypes

Complete the table provided by determing how each of the members ofyour team prefers to be referred to.

Team member / Preferred names/language
e.g. Paolo. / Senior.

Metaphors

List the metaphors you often use and then try to come up with some alternatives which convey the same meaning, but more clearly.

Metaphor / Possible alternative
e.g. We need to get all our ducks in a row. / We need to get ourselves organized.
e.g. They weren’t singing from the same hymn sheet. / They didn’t have the same opinions.
e.g. I’ll give you the 411 after the meeting. / I’ll send you the information you need after the meeting.