Written by Dr. Golnaz Golnaraghi, Founder and President of Accelerate Her Future
The phrase “bring your whole self to work” is often celebrated as a hallmark of progressive workplaces. On the surface, it sounds empowering, an invitation to show up fully, authentically, and unapologetically. But for Indigenous, Black, and racialized women, this idealistic notion often clashes with systemic inequities and cultural realities.
Bringing your whole self to work refers to the idea of showing up in professional spaces with the entirety of your identity without having to mask or alter significant aspects of who you are. According to Deloitte’s 2023 Global Human Capital Trends report, this concept emerged as a response to the need for more inclusive workplaces, advocating for environments where individuals feel psychologically safe to be authentic. Yet, this well-intentioned ideal often overlooks the unique challenges faced by Indigenous, Black, and racialized women in workplaces that still perpetuate systemic inequities.
Prasanna Ranganathan, a documentary film producer, Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Accessibility and Belonging (DEIAB) Consultant, speaker and writer, challenged this concept at the Accelerate Her Future Virtual Summit on the panel titled “New Ways of Being: Cultivating Joy, Creativity, and Flourishing at Work”, moderated by Chantaie Allick, along with speakers Janice Liu and Ting Ting Pan.
This insight resonated deeply. Bringing your whole self to work isn’t always safe, realistic, or even advisable when navigating environments shaped by bias, microaggressions, and exclusionary norms.
Organizations frequently promise psychological safety but fail to dismantle the systems of oppression that make “bringing your whole self” perilous. For Indigenous, Black, and racialized women, sharing personal experiences or cultural identities can often open the door to tokenism, stereotyping, or unwarranted scrutiny.
For example, workplace initiatives such as listening circles with equity deserving groups, while designed to foster inclusion and dialogue, can sometimes inadvertently place undue emotional labor on Indigenous and racialized employees who are asked to share their experiences without corresponding systemic changes to address their concerns.
In workplaces shaped by systemic inequities, the notion of “bringing your whole self to work” requires a more nuanced approach.
Ritu Bhasin, the author of The Authenticity Principle provides a valuable lens in her book for navigating these complexities. Rather than demanding an all-or-nothing approach of being authentic or inauthentic, Ritu introduces the Three-Selves Continuum where it’s about choosing how much of yourself to bring to different spaces.
For Indigenous, Black, and racialized women, strategic authenticity can mean discerning where to invest emotional labor and protecting one’s energy in environments that may not fully embrace inclusivity and belonging. By aligning authenticity with personal boundaries and care, we reclaim the narrative of how and where we show up as our true selves.
For Individuals:
For Organizations:
The heart of this conversation is about reclaiming agency. As Indigenous, Black, and racialized women, we can choose to bring elements of ourselves to work without giving everything away. We can find fulfillment in our careers without centering them in our lives. And we can demand workplaces that don’t just invite authenticity but earn it.
As Prasanna reminded us, the key is to “allow yourself to build a life with care and intention. You are the sun in your life. Let everything else revolve around your light.”
Accelerate Her Future® was founded on land and waters of the traditional territory of many nations including the Haudenosaunee, Anishnaabeg, the Attawandaron, and the Metis within the lands protected by the “Dish with One Spoon” wampum agreement. We respect Indigenous peoples’ deep connections to the land and waters, and affirm our commitment to continued learning while engaging our head, heart and hands to advance the TRC Calls to Action 92 and the MMIWG2S+ Calls to Justice 6.1, 11.1 and 15. We invite you to learn more about the history and presence of the Indigenous communities on the land and waters you gather on and work to build a better future for all. We encourage visitors to our website to learn about the land they are currently on.
