Volume 23, Issue 1, February 13, 2025

In the middle of the day, a petite woman walks confidently into a conference center in a bold, colorful, strapless ball gown . . . (you can’t miss her!)

Is she early for the ball?  Is she in the right place?  Does she belong?

Turns out she absolutely, positively belongs, and she’s right on time. She’s the conference keynote speaker.

Her name is Shelley Brown, and she’s about to take the stage to talk about the critical importance of belonging.

 

Shelley Brown
Something about Belonging

If she’s going to be talking about belonging, it might seem odd that she shows up as “different”, yet that’s exactly the point.

Shelley started her career in the hospitality industry. “I love people,” she says, “so what better industry to work in than hospitality, where you’re in the business of serving people?” After several years, however, she felt that there was a problem in that field in how employees were being evaluated: their humanity was getting lost in the metrics.

It’s that humanity piece that led her to uncover the importance of belonging — not only in organizations, but in society and culture in general.  And, interestingly, that sense of belonging is rooted in acknowledging and appreciating our differences. She says that recognizing our differences amplifies the individuality and the humanity of each person’s own gifts and talents.

“When we do that,” she said, “people experience a sense of belonging, which is what we all need. It doesn’t matter what industry you’re in; we all need to belong. And when we feel like we belong, we show up well, we feel well, we perform well, and we contribute to the bottom line.”

“So my why is really about helping teams, helping leaders foster a sense of belonging,” she continued. “That starts out by first fostering our own sense of belonging, because that is the foundation for every kind of belonging. To feel like we belong within ourselves, we need to notice our own narratives —  the biases, the stories that we tell ourselves — that can put a roadblock to our own sense of belonging and therefore block our sense of belonging with the people that we’re interacting with.

Belonging is a fundamental human need, rooted in our desire for connection, acceptance, and identity within a group. Social and cultural norms shape how belonging is expressed and experienced, influencing the way individuals interact with their communities. These norms often define who is considered an insider and who an outsider, based on factors such as shared values, traditions, language, and social behaviors. While inclusion fosters a sense of unity and collective identity, exclusion can create feelings of isolation or alienation.

 

“I think that more and more people are really wanting that human element,” she told me. “They’re wanting to be recognized as human beings first and foremost. And so I think that it’s about reaching the humanity of each person. I’ve put this into what I call the belonging equation, which is Safety + Choice = Belonging.

“It’s about feeling safe about the things we don’t have a choice about —  skin color, ethnic background, sexual orientation, abilities, neurodiversity. And then being able to choose our level of authenticity, because not everybody wants to bring their whole selves to work,” she continued. “What we want is the choice about the things that we want to share about ourselves that are going to contribute to our sense of belonging at work – and maybe thereby contribute to our ability to do the job in the best way we can.

At the heart of every presentation is Shelley’s driving message — when we recognize that the experience of belonging starts with allowing our own individuality — i.e., honoring our own differences or unique characteristics –we can then amplify the experience for others in a meaningful way.

In our chaotic world these days it may be more important than ever to foster a sense of belonging in our work groups. You can learn more about Shelley and her programs, and watch a video of  her in action on our website here.  Give me a call at 503-699-5031 or email barbara@speakwellbeing.com to explore bringing Shelley Brown to your company, community, or organization.

 

MENTAL HEALTH BREAKS

I realized early in the year that I was going to need to take care of my mental health to stay on some kind of even keel while surrounded by so many heartbreaking events and the crazy news bombarding us all the time. So my husband and I have initiated Mental Health Breaks. For us, that means getting out into the beautiful countryside that is in every direction from us at least a couple of times a month.

The weather has been cold, but often sunny. So dressed appropriately, I’m ready to go!  A couple of weeks ago we drove to Silver Falls State Park and walked around in the sunshine. It’s a huge park and we only explored a small part of it —  pictured are the South Falls with icicles on the cliffs. The drive alone through the beautiful Willamette Valley was relaxing and peaceful.

This past Sunday, we headed for the Columbia River Gorge, just driving into the spectacular mountain vistas there with no agenda of what to do or see. Like tourists in our own hometown, we stopped at Multnomah Falls, which in the summertime is so popular that they have to limit the cars in the parking lot and bus people in by reservation from another lot a few miles away. It was still busy (even on Super Bowl Sunday), but it was accessible. So we walked under the highway and simply stood watching the falls for a few minutes. Then we went to Cascade Locks (where we often buy salmon or steelhead from the Indians but not at this time of year), got out of the car, and just poked around on the waterfront.

Next stop on the way back home, was the Bonneville Dam Visitor Center where there’s an interesting place for viewing the fish ladder for salmon but, again, no fish this time of year. We had not been there in years – maybe a decade or more – and we were inspired to come back in the spring, when the salmon are running.

These outings are giving me a sense of normalcy. If only for a few hours, it feels like people are out and about enjoying nature and life, and all is well.

I urge you to get out and about too – to take care of yourself for your well being and those you love.

Barbara

For Your Well Being is published with the intention of bringing you insider speaker reports, exclusive stories about special events around the country, meeting planner tips, and fun stuff from the worlds of health and well being. Be well and be in the know!

The Speak Well Being Group is a specialized speakers bureau, focusing on health and wellness for all types of organizations that want to foster health and well being for their employees, members, clients, and in their communities.

Our speakers are hand-selected. They are not only experts in their fields; they connect with their audiences while bringing them life-changing information, smiles of recognition, and ultimately a sense of well being and hope.

Finding the perfect keynote speaker for your special event or conference is my personal passion, not just once, but year after year. It brings me great joy to know that your audience was delighted and moved by the speaker we selected together. I’m committed to making the process easy, pleasant and fun.