From Difference to Distance: Rethinking Diversity and Inclusion

Let’s play a game. Don’t worry it’s a very simple game, and you only need your brain to play. Here are the instructions. Imagine your finger is a pencil. Take your finger and connect the dots you see below by drawing four straight, continuous lines that pass through each of the nine dots, without lifting your finger.

Give yourself about 30-seconds to figure it out. (I’ll have the answer to this puzzle at the bottom of this piece so you can check your answer.) For those of you who solved this puzzle without googling the answer, congratulations. You’re part of the rare 10% of  people who solve this puzzle the first time they see it.

If you were apart of that 90% who got stumped on this puzzle I want you to ask yourself why. What made this puzzle so challenging? What limitations did you put on yourself to solve this simple puzzle? When you looked at those nine dots did your mind create an imaginary box around those nine dots?

Too often we create imaginary lines and invisible boundaries that inhibit us from connecting with one another as nature intended. These invisible boundaries affect our personal relationships with our neighbors, as well, our inside of the workplace. To rid ourselves of these imaginary lines and invisible boundaries we must completely rethink and transform the ways we currently see diversity and inclusion training.

Check out this quick Ted Talks clip featuring Fred Falker where he introduces the Distance Paradigm – a new way of thinking about Diversity and Inclusion, differences, and a powerful and practical new approach to connecting with others. Fred challenges us to see that there is nothing dividing us, one from another. All that lies between us is space and opportunity.

 About Fred Falker: Falker Consulting Group, Inc. is a human resource development training and consulting firm. Frederick is also the Director of Workforce Development for the Saint Louis Zoo. He has worked as an organizational development consultant for more than 30 years, helping organizations with performance management, customer service, and diversity issues. At the Saint Louis Zoo he has worked extensively on helping the organization’s efforts to establish itself as one of the best places to work, serve and volunteer in the country. He is currently working on a book detailing a fundamentally new approach to thinking about diversity entitled, Seeing the Box: Improving Interpersonal Effectiveness. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. 

Correct Answer to the Nine Dot Puzzle