Substance Abuse and Special Populations: Introduction

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Habits of a Diverse Professional

By Vivian Jenkins Nelsen, INTER-RACE

Every day, I see people and organizations that are doing wonderful diversity work. In examining both the people and the places, I see a number of things they have in common, which I call "habits" or "competencies," and these follow.

Do Regular "Personal" Work

These professionals are life-long seekers and learners regarding their personal approach to diversity. They are folks who are grounded and centered, who examine their motives, beliefs and values on a regular basis. They ask themselves: What do I believe about this? What do I need to change in order to be "whole"? What biases am I holding? They seek authentic and diverse relationships. They seek feedback from other professionals. These are folks who take time, alone, to find their center, their spiritual center, which includes but is not limited to religion. They are reflective.

Integrate Home and Work

An effective professional knows when to separate and when to integrate the values they learned at home. They know that some of what they learned at home about other religions or different races may hinder open and non-biased relationships at work. I was raised to believe that only our brand of Lutherans would get to heaven. Other Lutherans were going to burn in hell-fire. We had an expression, "Turn or Burn!" You can guess where that left gay folks, Catholics, Jews, Muslims, Methodists, people who tore Bible pages, and folks who ironed on Sunday. You get the picture.

Successful professionals "walk their diversity talk," both at home and work. The advice I got at home and church was helpful, too. I learned the Golden Rule at home and also learned, "Judge not, lest ye be judged." These universal rules of ethics have served me well through the years. Our Mom and Dad integrated us into their work. We went to school with them, sat in audiences when they made speeches and helped give communion to shut-ins. Although they both had professional and busy jobs, they made time JUST for us. If we say that our workplace values home and children, then we must model that value.

Successful professionals work at balancing their home and work lives. Work has meaning and it enriches rather than destroys their home life. They are not at work every evening or weekend. The folks at home and good friends are part of their support base. Their children understand what they do. In a recent Fortune Magazine article, a telephone company executive reported that he traveled so much that he didn't realize the impact on his children until he overheard his little girl tell her friends that, "Daddy works on airplanes." He later overheard her classmate say, "Oh, Kaitlin, I didn't think you had a daddy." As the traveler and workaholic in our household, I had to rethink a lot of things after reading that article.

Take Risks and Responsibility

These people are willing to move out of their comfort zones. These people "ask dumb questions" because they have great self-esteem and don't worry about what people might say or think. These people take initiative and face their own fears and "deal with what is real." Working with diverse folks can be messy and bumpy, and mistakes will be made. Risk and responsibility takers know how to forgive themselves and others, that's WHY they can risk!

Are Flexible

Didn't I just say that people had to be centered? Yes, "centered," not "stuck." These are people who face change with excitement. Okay, maybe not always excitement. Who doesn't get nuts when a new computer program is installed? I have had people tell me that they couldn't possibly learn a program (this is a Ph.D. talking about a program designed by a 14 year old). Successful professionals "go with the flow" and remain centered. They know their limits, yet have no limits. Flexibility is critical in this age of re-engineering, cut-backs, down-sizing and right sizing. The people getting hired are flexible, not rigid; they are willing to accept new people, new ideas and new ways of working.

Are Nurturers

Successful professionals are caring folks. They like other people. In spite of the pain, foolishness and conflict they see, they still believe in people and find ways to support them and help them grow. Lots of folks who don't really like people are in professions with high public contact. It reminds me of a Peanuts® cartoon, where Lucy says, "I love mankind, it's people I can't stand." Nurturing assumes that you like yourself. As a self-nurturer, you find fun, joy and peace. Successful nurturing professionals care about the whole person (mind, spirit and body) as well as their support groups (e.g. family, community). They understand that you can't work with a person in isolation from his or her community. This is a critical skill in working with diverse immigrant groups. Virginia Satir changed the way we do therapy, especially in chemical health and family practice, by introducing this concept to counseling. Let me share her words about how to nurture and be nurtured:

"I want to Love you without clutching, Criticize without judging, Invite without demanding, Help without insulting and if I can have the same from you, then we can truly meet and enrich each other."

Behaves Ethically

A diverse professional is clear about and committed to the mission and values of their work and workplace:

has an ethical system they can articulate,
treats everyone with respect, and
does their work well, not for personal gain or aggrandizement, but because it's the right thing to do.

These folks act courageously in the face of ambiguity and change. They speak up for the rights of others, not just their own. They work for the common good, and most especially for those who have been marginalized, disenfranchised or just ignored.

Is a Peacemaker

These professionals face and not only manage crisis, but creatively and ethically utilize conflicts for learning. I know, as you do, that there are folks who thrive on conflict and the confusion it can bring, but most of us (including me) want to run away when people get into arguments. In Minnesota, we have something we call "Minnesota Nice," which has its positive side:

People are civil and kind and they smile a lot.
The workplace and social gatherings are peaceful and predictable.
Nice people get ahead.

The down side of "Minnesota Nice" is:

It has become our own version of political correctness.
We are fearful of people who are different, especially those who aren't nice or who speak out. We label them and avoid them.
The first "Nice Rule" is never embarrass anyone by speaking up, even when they are doing something reprehensible. We become voiceless.

A peacemaker helps others find their voices and creates trust by calling forth the basic goodness in others.

Acts as a Diversity Change Agent

These people believe in and value differences while seeking commonalities. These are the people who cause real change. A big diversity issue right now is style. A change agent finds ways to address our fears and help us find our creativity. This is the person who says, "Let's try that, I'll donate some time and money to move us ahead." They believe in a vision of diversity where everyone is valued, but they also understand that both service and sacrifice are necessary. They don't have to "own" ideas.

Is a Thoughtful Change Manager

These people understand that change is permanent and that change can be both good and bad. They seek to understand the consequences for everyone. I am writing a report for a company that has just reorganized a division without looking at how it would affect various people. You can guess that there were some unintended negative effects. A change leader looks for side-effects and, once understanding what they are, revises the plan to maximize fairness.

In every workshop I do, people are complaining about political correctness, about changing language. "What do you call Negroes now? Everything is changing. I don't know what to do. Do I open a door for a handicapped person, or a woman? Everything is changing, I can't keep up with it. Why don't we just have one name for every group?" These questions reveal that we haven't done as good a job of helping people manage changes in human relations as we have in advertising groceries or tennis shoes. Think about it. We keep straight more than 500 labels of beans, corn and chips; teens are clear about hundreds of brand names of athletic shoes and clothes (along with their prices). These brands are constantly changing, there are always new versions, but people are better versed in those changes than what is happening within their own communities.

Change leaders help us understand change and how to participate in it. They help us develop our "complexity muscles" so we can deal with more than one kind of person and more than one solution to a problem.

Strive for Quality

Quality people who do quality work call me up and ask, "What can I read? Where can I go? Who can I talk to? How can I get that information?" They don't have to be dragged to training. They stay current on trends and the needs of a diverse community and workplace.

The following chapters describe substance abuse issues in various communities. The content was gathered through a process that included a survey, interviews and focus groups involving prevention leaders from a variety of cultures. For easy reference, the same ten questions were asked of each group and are presented in the same order in each chapter. The responses should start you thinking about the unique strengths, challenges, needs and attitudes of these special populations.

Keep in mind that these perspectives occurred at a specific point in time and place. Reactions from cultural populations in your area could be different, which can only enhance the discussion. We have tried to be true to the authentic voices we heard.

If you are currently working with a particular population, feel free to go directly to their chapter and be open to what is said, but resist the temptation to stop there. If time permits, review the responses of all the groups. Look for things that are unique, as well as what is common to all.

Thank you for your interest. We hope you'll find the information helpful.