From the National Guard to the Hall of Fame: A Story of Progress
If you are lucky, you might get a standing ovation at the end of your speech. It is not often that you make your way to a stage through a standing, cheering crowd, but that is exactly what happened to Ben Finley and Art Clay during their induction into the U.S. Ski...
Consciousness + Courage
The impetus behind NLYB Solutions—and my general philosophy— is that diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) must exist in the consciousness and courage of individuals. When it does not, no law, policy, or strategy can create it. Policies can be (and often are)...
The Appropriation of “American”
The Appropriation of “AMERICAN” In what ways might your language be erasing “others”? For people living in the United States, it might be surprising to realize that America is a landmass comprising the totality of North and South America. While the United States of...
The Curious Case of Centering & Othering
“African American voters are voting in just as high a percentage as Americans.” The above may be the most obvious example of a Freudian Slip. Well… maybe not. A Freudian Slip reveals some unconscious aspect of the mind, and I don’t believe this was at all unconscious....
Language Matters: Let’s Interrogate How We Use It
For several months, a commercial running on national television about tipping in the restaurant industry uses the phrase “it’s literally a slave wage”. Every time I hear this phrase on TV, the hair on the back of my neck raises, and I think (and probably make a...
Know How to Recognize and Change a Negative Self-Narrative
Have you ever told yourself a story about yourself that holds you back? Are there self-narratives that negatively impact your life? My fear of heights is one of the self-narratives I’ve had for years. Whenever I think about it, I can never really pin down the point in...
Getting Out of Your Comfort Zone
Stepping outside of our comfort zone is essential to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI). I ask clients every day to step outside of their comfort zone as it relates to their personal and organizational DEI journeys. As a DEI executive, strategist, coach, and...
Understanding the Different Forms of Bias
Implicit bias. It is a term we hear a lot, but what does it mean? The term implicit bias has come to be known (or thought of) as unconscious bias. I am less inclined to use implicit bias to mean that someone is unconscious of their bias. Rather, I am more inclined to...
Welcome
Welcome to Nicole Butts' Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion blog! Nicole Butts is an accomplished Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) executive, strategist, coach, facilitator, and sought-after public speaker. She has served as a chief diversity officer; a director...