Eighteenth International Conference on Diversity in Organizations, Communities & Nations

Abstract

Where culture, etiquette, generation gaps, gender and religious differences and personal preferences overlap: What can I do to integrate better with other personality types? How can we leverage and celebrate diversity? How can we improve our understanding of each other? Diversity goes well beyond ethnicity. Workplace and community diversity takes into account gender, age, race, color, country of origin, religion, sexual orientation, and mental and physical special talents and special needs.Tolerance, coming from an attitude of judgment, is where we tolerate others being different through the spirit of permission, leniency, or allowance for their freedom to live differently. From this perspective of tolerance, our preference is probably that we wish the person would be more like us, as we may have some negativity towards their ‘differences’, particularly their choices, behaviors, values, and beliefs. However, tolerance coming from an attitude of respect is where we tolerate others being different through the spirit of recognition, appreciation, and acceptance for their freedom to live differently. From this perspective of tolerance, our preference is that we wish the person to be themselves, and not us, as we have positivity towards ‘differences’ in general. Join this lively and timely discussion on how applying courtesy, respect, understanding and etiquette can create and foster not only tolerance but an internal desire to allow other’s to be the best, most genuine version of themselves.