Anima Café Podcast

Join Anima Leadership co-founder Shakil Choudhury [https://annahiddashtgard.com/about/] in a immersive discussion on breaking down polarization in the workplace. Conflict by its very nature emotionally divides, forcing us to “choose” sides…but then who looks after the Whole? Yet being “neutral” is not the answer as this only maintains the unjust status quo when we seek to fix systems that carry the stains of racism and sexism. In this free online Anima Cafe, we explore developing polarity management skills to move beyond either/or thinking. Anima co-founder, Shakil Choudhury, explores what it means to be a “de-polarized” leader, essential for the workplace which continues to be influenced by the political divisiveness from broader society.

Tools for Compassion & Justice Leadership Series While the psychological safety of employees is essential, a workplace is not a therapeutic space…and learning to hold the tension between personal-professional is a key leadership capacity.   This free podcast will explore the reasons why psychological safety is a critical factor for both well-being as well as performance, and strategies for leaders to nurture it on their teams. We also discuss its very real limits, as many leaders—especially in the not-for-profit context— inadvertently get their teams “stuck” in emotional quagmires because of an inability to draw healthy professional boundaries.  Shakil Choudhury, will explore this critical but deeply misunderstood topic.  This the first podcast in a fall Anima series entitled Tools for Compassion & Justice Leadership.

with Annahid Dashtgard Another way of thinking about the leader role is one who tells the best, most engaging, most believable, story.  If we don’t tell it, others will, and usually it’s the most negative version.  This cafe with Anima CEO Annahid Dashtgard, offers a framework for framing our messages so they get heard and get buy in, especially important in fostering trust in today’s diverse and increasingly polarized environments.

Join Anima Leadership co-founder Shakil Choudhury [https://annahiddashtgard.com/about/] in a conversation on how to use a system-thinking approach to politic-proof your EDI efforts. In an era of increasing political volatility, anti-EDI forces have been using social media and legal levers to successfully push back on progressive policies designed to advance historically excluded groups in both the US and Canada.  This cafe explores ways that leaders can politic-proof an organization’s EDI efforts by adopting a systems-thinking approach and de-compartmentalizing EDI by borrowing strategies to improve performance from other parts of the business. In doing so, leaders can limit their organization’s exposure to critics while supporting social justice goals.

Join Anima Leadership co-founder Shakil Choudhury [https://annahiddashtgard.com/about/] in a conversation about navigating conflict and polarizing global events as a leader. This cafe explores factors for organizational leaders to consider when real world events explode into the workplace whether it's the climate crisis, the murder of George Floyd or Israel-Palestine. How and when do you decide to lean into an issue and when do you not? How do leaders balance competing factors including psychological safety of employees, organizational values and missions, finances, and the needs of stakeholders? While there are never any easy answers, this cafe helps identify key questions and issues their teams need to map out when responding to external crises and global events.