The Power Flower

The picture shows an example of a Power Flower completed during such exercise. If you look carefully you can even spot a hint of which Country this was carried out in.

The Power Flower outlines the identities that often result in a comparative advantage in life, or, to call it like it is: privilege.

Being heterosexual, well educated, white, male, with no disability will result in privilege pretty much everywhere in the world. When it comes to a workplace context, this means that the healthy carrier of such mix of characteristics will most likely find it easier to get a job, progress in it and be successful compared to others that do not share the same identity (e.g. non-white, female, LGB or disabled peers).

The point of this exercise, and the reflections it should hopefully trigger, is far from wanting to make anyone feel guilty or ashamed of their privileges; on the contrary, the aim is to make sure everyone of us is aware that the more privilege we recognise in our lives, the more power we have. Once we realise this, we can then choose to use such power to ensure others can benefit from the same opportunities we benefited from.

The second important message of this exercise is to help us all see that most of us have some privilege, whether we realise it or not. If we think hard enough, most of us will be able to identify times when an aspect of our identity or background helped us get something we wanted. Of course, on a superficial level, there is nothing wrong with getting ahead using the “assets” emerging from who we are or from our upbringings. But, if we think a bit more deeply about it, we will appreciate that for every “easy ride” we got in life, someone else was left at the bus stop and was never even given the chance to compete fairly with us.

I don’t know about you, but I wouldn’t want to live a life where everything is constantly handed over to me, where I would become unable to know what I am really worth, what I am good at. The joy and gratification of an accomplishment largely comes from knowing that you deserved that achievement, that you worked hard, that you were able to shine amongst your peers.

At this point the obvious question might be: What does that mean for me? I cannot change my upbringing or the colour of my skin, so what can I possibly do to make the playing field more level for everyone?

To adapt a famous phrase: with privilege comes responsibility.

It is our responsibility to use every ounce of privilege we have to create societies and workplaces where we can all thrive. And the great news is that the “game of privilege” is not zero-sum: using our privilege to make the game fairer does not reduce our chances, it simply gives the same to others.

And this is what being an “ally” really means: choosing to use our position (or indeed the power that comes from our privilege) to support groups or individuals that have historically not benefited from the same rights or opportunities.

But to do that authentically, we must first and foremost accept that our privilege comes from historic and institutionalised inequalities that for too long have allowed one group in the population to get ahead for no other reason than who they were, how they looked, where they came from, or the accent they spoke with. Only once we have truly grasped the negative impact of the inequalities created by privilege, can we truly embrace our role of allies.

And let us be clear on this point: we can all be allies to someone else, no one excluded. It doesn’t take expertise or extra time to be an ally. “Ally” is not a badge, it is a state of mind emerging from self-awareness.

The second responsibility that comes with the privilege of being an ally is to continuously listen to other people’s experiences and struggles and understand how we can use our voice, our position, our power to reduce that struggle and lift everyone up, ourselves included.

Finally, and perhaps most importantly, we must remember that as we constantly benefit from privilege, our role as allies must also be constant: there is no such thing as a “part-time ally”!

So, let’s acknowledge our privilege and, whether it is a lot or a little, let’s use the power that such privilege gives us to create a world of inclusion and equal opportunities.

And if you don’t know where to start, if you are not sure what being an ally really means, at least engage in the conversation. You should always feel able to ask questions. Sometimes we get it wrong, and that’s ok, as long as we keep talking to one another with respect and with the genuine intention to learn and continue making steps, even small ones, in the right direction!