Pause On The Play

In the current climate, the words positive and organization can feel like they don’t belong together. But the reality is, positive change within organizations is possible, and we have an opportunity to reimagine the relationships between employees, and organizations or companies.

Kim Perkins joins Erica to discuss positive organizational psychology and how that shows up in the work she does, and they get into the nitty-gritty of shaping change within organizations.

In this discussion:

• How positive organizational psychology can help us reimagine work
• Why creating change sometimes means doing less
• How focusing on forward momentum can hinder systemic change
• Why we perceive change as loss and how to cope

Learn more about Kim Perkins:

• Facebook: @ThisIsKimPerkins
• LinkedIn: @KimPerkins1
• Winner Take None

Keep the dialogue going: DEI work can be infused with joy and positivity! Join Pause on the Play® The Community this month and be part of the discussion on voting with your dollars and how to make supporting brands and businesses that align with your values a fun, joyful process.

Join us at:

• pauseontheplay.com/community

Every time you take out your wallet is an opportunity to put your values in action.

Investing in DEI doesn’t always have to be a major initiative. Adjusting your daily actions with your values in mind can be an easy way to put those efforts into your everyday life.

Erica and India work through what it means to vote with your dollars and why it doesn’t have to be an overwhelming process.

In this discussion:

• How the choices you make on everyday spending can support your values
• Why voting with your dollar is about where you don’t spend your money too
• How customers and consumers hold power to make change

Keep the dialogue going: Concepts are better explored in community. Actions are more lasting when taken alongside other imperfect allies. Connect with a cohort of entrepreneurs and changemakers at the intersection of values and visibility.

Join us at pauseontheplay.com/community

Connect with Erica and India:

• Pause on the Play® Community
• Subscribe to the Newsletter
• LinkedIn: Erica Courdae, India Jackson

Creating a brand that’s rooted in your values and the impact you want to make in the world is a must, and using DEI as the basis for the way that you do all things is absolutely necessary.

But are you clear on your expectations for the outcomes of this work?

Erica asks two key questions to help you get clear on your goals and your timeline for integrating DEI into your business.

In this discussion:

• Why DEI has to inform the decisions and processes of your whole brand
• How to get clear on the outcomes you want and expect from your efforts
• Why discomfort is necessary to the process

Keep the dialogue going: Concepts are better explored in community. Actions are more lasting when taken alongside other imperfect allies. Connect with a cohort of entrepreneurs and changemakers at the intersection of values and visibility.

Join us at pauseontheplay.com/community

Everyone has a way that they want their brand to be positioned and perceived. But is that the same as your company culture?

The two often get conflated, and while there is overlap, they are different concepts that will require their own goals and actions to support them.

Erica and India break down the confusion over culture versus image.

In this discussion:

• What company culture is
• Why you need to develop company values, not just brand values
• Elements of your public image that you can control
• Where company culture and public image overlap

Keep the dialogue going: Concepts are better explored in community. Actions are more lasting when taken alongside other imperfect allies. Connect with a cohort of entrepreneurs and changemakers at the intersection of values and visibility.

Join us at pauseontheplay.com/community

When you’re ill, you hope that you will be cared for with compassion, consideration and competence. But that’s not always what happens.

People of marginalized identities often confront racism, bias and lack of accountability when interacting with the medical system.

Dr. Nicole Rochester joins Erica to discuss health advocacy and why it is necessary for creating health equity.

In this discussion:

• What a health advocate does
• Why we need health advocacy and equity
• How bias and prejudice impact care and patient outcomes
• Steps to take to advocate for yourself or your loved ones in healthcare settings

To learn more about Dr. Rochester:

• Your GPS Doc
• Instagram: @theGPSDoc
• Connect with Dr. Rochester on LinkedIn
• Dr. Rochester’s TEDx Talk: Overcoming Invisibility: the Doctor-Patient Relationship

Keep the dialogue going: Concepts are better explored in community. Actions are more lasting when taken alongside other imperfect allies. Connect with a cohort of entrepreneurs and changemakers at the intersection of values and visibility. 

Join us at pauseontheplay.com/communit

Sometimes it’s just time to move on.

But it can be hard to judge when a situation has moved beyond the ability to heal, especially if you’re the kind of person who always wants to see the good in people and situations, or when you find yourself asking “am I just being too sensitive?”

Erica recounts her experience with an environment that turned toxic and how she knew it was time to let go.

In this discussion:

• Erica’s story of how an environment slowly changed from a positive to a toxic space
• Her process of evaluating when to speak up and when to let go
• A framework for determining what your path to healing might look like
• What you and your team can do now to make sure you respond in keeping with your values when challenges arise

Keep the dialogue going: Concepts are better explored in community. Actions are more lasting when taken alongside other imperfect allies. Connect with a cohort of entrepreneurs and changemakers at the intersection of values and visibility.

Join us at pauseontheplay.com/community

Are you able to connect with your team outside of the trauma and adrenaline? Or is it only when things are wrong?

Are you able to connect when things are filled with ease or even joy?

Erica and India discuss the lack of human connection they’re noticing among teams and the hazards of only bonding when something goes wrong. 

In this discussion:

• What trauma bonding is and how it impacts company culture
• Why adrenaline-fueled moments don’t have to be a bad thing
• How to ask your team about their values to facilitate connection
• How values-based bonds improve employee retention 

Keep the dialogue going: Concepts are better explored in community. Actions are more lasting when taken alongside other imperfect allies. Connect with a cohort of entrepreneurs and changemakers at the intersection of values and visibility. 

Join us at pauseontheplay.com/community

When you think about reconsidering your normal, do you think about language? And not just specific word choices, but about how our language is perceived?

Erica and India are getting into it with E.K. Powell, creator of the What’s Good English TikTok account and YouTube channel.

They dig into African American Vernacular English (AAVE), the perceptions of it, appropriation of it, and an unpopular opinion or two.

In this discussion:

• The origins of African American Vernacular English
• The concise, expressive grammar of AAVE
• Who gets a pass when they say words “wrong”
• Why recognizing, celebrating and crediting AAVE is important

To learn more about E.K. Powell:

• TikTok: @WhatsGoodEnglish
• What’s Good English on YouTube
• Instagram: @nodoz88

To learn more about code-switching, check out Episode 115: Challenge the Politics in Your Workplace

Keep the dialogue going: Concepts are better explored in community. Actions are more lasting when taken alongside other imperfect allies. Connect with a cohort of entrepreneurs and changemakers at the intersection of values and visibility.

Join us at:

pauseontheplay.com/community

There are a lot of conversations happening about hiring, how to do things differently and how to shift the narrative of how hiring has to be done. 

Erica brings you three key questions to ask yourself, or your team, as you’re planning out your goals for the fall and beyond, so you can have clarity and intention in the shifts you make to grow your business.

In this discussion:

• Why you need to shift your network
• Three prompts to consider as your begin changing your practices
• Why you need to know how your opportunity benefits the candidate
• How to expand your concept of workplace safety

Keep the dialogue going: Concepts are better explored in community. Actions are more lasting when taken alongside other imperfect allies. Connect with a cohort of entrepreneurs and changemakers at the intersection of values and visibility. 

Join us at pauseontheplay.com/community

As we start looking towards the fourth quarter and even into 2022, it’s a good time to check in with how your values are aligning with your goals and your actions.

Erica brings you three key questions to ask yourself, or your team, as you’re planning out your goals for the fall and beyond, so you can have clarity and intention in the shifts you make to grow your business.

In this discussion:

• Three questions to answer to create authentic, cohesive messaging
• Avoiding pandering
• Creating the basis to support expanding your business

Keep the dialogue going: Concepts are better explored in community. Actions are more lasting when taken alongside other imperfect allies. Connect with a cohort of entrepreneurs and changemakers at the intersection of values and visibility.

Join us at

pauseontheplay.com/community