Creating Change without Authority

Often, we look at the world around us, and we find we wish it were better. But the parts that we most wish to change don't always have to do as we say. That does not, however, mean that we are powerless.

In this keynote, we explore how small actions, supporting ourselves, and broadening our perspectives, we can enable us to create change—even without the official authority to do so. By the end, you'll not only have tactics to try, but will feel it is possible to achieve what you imagine.

Transcript

1. “The Making of the J. B. Grinnell Class” Daniel Kisslinger, Grace Gallagher, Kesho Scott Mathew Brady, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
2. “The Making of the J. B. Grinnell Class” Daniel Kisslinger, Grace Gallagher, Kesho Scott Mathew Brady, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
3. Mathew Brady, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons “The Making of the J. B. Grinnell Class” Daniel Kisslinger, Grace Gallagher, Kesho Scott
4. Mathew Brady, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons “The Making of the J. B. Grinnell Class” Daniel Kisslinger, Grace Gallagher, Kesho Scott
5. Mathew Brady, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons “The Making of the J. B. Grinnell Class” Daniel Kisslinger, Grace Gallagher, Kesho Scott
6. * Mathew Brady, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons “The Making of the J. B. Grinnell Class” Daniel Kisslinger, Grace Gallagher, Kesho Scott
7. What does it mean to be a change maker?
8. Creating Change without Authority Veronica Erb | Designing for Digital 2018 @verbistheword
9. =
11. What does it mean to be a change maker?
12. Inspire change Sustainably Together
13. Take small actions Support myself Broaden my perspective
14. Take small actions
15. “The most common way people give up their power is by thinking they don’t have any.” — Alice Walker
19. Remote work culture
22. I acted in a way that wasn’t normal to make it normal.
23. Inclusive remote culture
24. Inclusive remote culture
25. Inclusive remote culture Address directly
26. Inclusive remote culture Address directly Opt out
27. Inclusive remote culture Address directly Divert attention Opt out
28. Address directly Address indirectly Divert attention Opt out Inclusive remote culture
29. Address directly Address indirectly Divert attention Opt out Work remotely myself Inclusive remote culture
30. This. Is. Hard.
31. Take small actions
32. Support myself
33. “It is untenable to go through life as an exposed wound.” — Roxane Gay “The Illusion of Safety/The Safety of Illusion” Bad Feminist
34. Support myself ?
35. Support thoughts, relationships, emotion
36. Externalize my thoughts
37. Habitual thought capture to understand and decide what to do
41. Address directly Address indirectly Divert attention Opt out Understand and decide what to do Externalize my thoughts
42. We need to externalize our thoughts so we can decide what to change and how to make it happen.
43. Externalize my thoughts
44. Build my relationships
45. Regular two-way human interaction to help make and evaluate change
48. “In 2006, a survey in the American Sociological Review famously reported... that the number of Americans who felt they had no confidants at all had more than doubled, from 10 [percent in 1985] to 24.6 percent [in 2004].” — Jennifer Senior, All Joy and No Fun
50. Address directly Address indirectly Divert attention Opt out Make and evaluate change Build my relationships
51. By building communities around ourselves, we can stay connected and motivated.
52. Build my relationships
53. Release my emotion
54. Habitual emotional release to be able to take small actions
57. spire.io
58. spire.io
59. Address directly Address indirectly Divert attention Opt out Be able to take small actions Release my emotion
60. We need to release our stress so that we can live healthy lives and create change.
61. Release my emotion
62. Support thoughts, relationships, emotion
63. Address directly Address indirectly Divert attention Opt out Take small actions Care for myself
64. Address directly Address indirectly Divert attention Opt out Inclusive remote culture Care for myself
65. Support thoughts, relationships, emotion
66. Support myself
67. Broaden my perspective
68. “If you want to make the world a better place \ Take a look at yourself, and then make a change” —Glen Ballard & Siedah Garrett, for Michael Jackson, “Man in the Mirror”
69. As we create change, we gain power.
71. As we create change, we gain power.
72. Avoid assimilating the compromises that we have made.
73. ` Notorious RBG: The Life and Times of Ruth Bader Ginsburg Irin Carmon, Shana Knizhnik Lynn Gilbert CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
74. Lynn Gilbert CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons Notorious RBG: The Life and Times of Ruth Bader Ginsburg Irin Carmon, Shana Knizhnik
75. Lynn Gilbert CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons Notorious RBG: The Life and Times of Ruth Bader Ginsburg Irin Carmon, Shana Knizhnik
76. Lynn Gilbert CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons Notorious RBG: The Life and Times of Ruth Bader Ginsburg Irin Carmon, Shana Knizhnik
77. Avoid assimilating the compromises that we have made.
78. Train ourselves to manage our biases.
79. Maanvi Singh “So You Flunked A Racism Test. Now What?” npr.org
80. “And, voila! When participants took the same implicit-bias tests after the nap, they were up to 50 percent less biased.” — Maanvi Singh, “So You Flunked A Racism Test. Now What?” npr.org
82. Address directly Address indirectly Divert attention Opt out Work together Expand my perspectives
83. Train ourselves to manage our biases.
84. By noticing my power, avoiding assimilation, and managing my bias, I support the change we each seek.
85. Create change without authority
86. What does it mean to be a change maker?
87. Inspire change Sustainably Together
88. Take small actions Support myself Broaden my perspective
89. Take small actions Support thoughts, relationships, emotion Broaden my perspective
90. Mathew Brady, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons * “The Making of the J. B. Grinnell Class” Daniel Kisslinger, Grace Gallagher, Kesho Scott
91. Address directly Address indirectly Divert attention Opt out Inclusive remote culture Externalize my thoughts Build my relationships Release my emotion Expand my perspectives Be able to take small actions Understand and decide what to do Make and evaluate change
92. Lynn Gilbert CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons Notorious RBG: The Life and Times of Ruth Bader Ginsburg Irin Carmon, Shana Knizhnik
93. Even if when we don’t have a budget, a title, or a team, we can create change.
94. With persistent small actions, self-care, and a broad mind, we can change the way things work.
95. Together, we can even change the things that we may have thought “are just the way they are.”
96. Veronica Erb @verbistheword Creating Change without Authority Designing for Digital 2018
97. Thank you to all the people who supported this presentation! Anthony Pitale, Dan Newman, Erica Liao, Esmé Middaugh, Ijeoma Ezeonyebuchi, Janeen Williamson, Julie Rogers, Justin Lucas, Kaytee Nesmith, Libby Bawcombe, Liz Danzico, Mary Glendinning, Megan Williams, Tommy O'Keefe, Wanyu Zhang, Erin Teare Martin, Lauren Bracey Shiedt, McCaul Baggett, Anne Leyh, Millie Erb, Ron Erb, Tony Pitale, Durrie Bouscaren, LA Johnson, Sarah Knight, Willy Tekeu, Jason Alderman, Elissa Frankle Olinsky, and many more
98. Veronica Erb @verbistheword Creating Change without Authority Designing for Digital 2018