“Stepping back” can have a negative connotation, as it can feel like you are halting or preventing progress. Pausing and taking a step back however, is critical to build a strong reflective and reflexive practice that encourages active engagement with past learnings and further sense-making.

In sports, it’s not uncommon for coaches to review past game tapes with their teams. Doing this helps the team to strategize as they review what worked well in past games, and what didn’t. It can inspire a new and refreshed approach to game play that garners positive results. Project or client debriefs work in a similar fashion. Organizations often take the time to collect feedback from their staff and communities after deploying their equity, diversity and inclusion initiatives. Doing so helps organizations to make sense of what was successful, what was a challenge, what people enjoyed and what they found difficult. Too often such feedback is not actually leveraged for future action and strategy development. Hence the importance of dedicating time to pause and look back.

Reflection and accountability

Stepping back and reflecting on past actions is also critical to accountability.

When people speak about accountability, they are often referring to the willingness of individuals and organizations to answer for their actions, decisions and policies related to anti-racism, anti-oppression efforts. It involves taking responsibility for the outcomes, impact and results of initiatives aimed at promoting equity and justice. Moreover, in the equity and inclusion space, accountability is about creating processes, practices, checks and balances, and mechanisms that keep you true to your commitment, goals and actions. In a practical sense, accountability requires a continued openness to learning about yourself and understanding what motivates you to action.

The majority of us want to jump to the “how to” of any new project or initiative by finding a great “explainer,” instructions and/or proven template that can be easily applied. The truth is, equity and anti-racism work involves constant examination and re-examining of changing thoughts, feelings and behaviours. This examination is not an easy task. It involves looking back to understand the present thereby making further sense of where and how to move forward.

But this is the work.

While countless anti-racism, equity and inclusion tools exist, (e.g. guidebooks, articles, podcasts and templates) progress is ultimately hinged on our ability to take accountability by learning from past actions in order to apply new routines. It’s the consistent effort and commitment applied to reflective and reflexive practice to alter past (and present) behaviours in a manner that creates the conditions for better actions and engagement.

Celebration as motivation

Looking back must involve the consideration of both challenges and what worked well in your equity work. It is far too easy to become bogged down by complex challenges and what didn’t work. This is understandable as there is always work to do and we are striving to do better. It is, however, important to pay attention to the good of it all. Take time to marinate on the progress achieved, and in the positive feedback and/or feelings of what went well, and what worked.

It is critical to celebrate the wins—even small ones—because the smallest wins can have big impacts. More importantly, celebrating your wins helps us to find and foster the joy of what is regarded as difficult work. Think of joy as a catalyst that keeps you inspired and motivated to keep going.

So, “looking back” and taking the time to reflect on actions and behaviours is not about stepping away or halting your progress. Instead, think of it as a refresher that allows you to build practices that keep you focused on your values, goals and actions. In the process you will enhance sustainability and ultimately reignite the joy that furthers your progress and outcomes.

Chanel Grenaway has over 20 years of experience in the nonprofit sector focused on integrating equity and intersectionality practice into workplace cultures. She has worked with Foundations, multi-service nonprofit agencies and academic institutions. She currently supports leaders to improve their equity and inclusion outcomes through equity assessments, training and knowledge building, community engagement, and action planning. www.chanelgrenaway.com