Vernā Myers
Inclusion Strategist/Cultural Innovator
Vernā Myers is an inclusion strategist, cultural change catalyst, influencer, thought leader, social commentator, and author. She’s known for her high-energy keynotes, her captivating insights, and her ability to help people bridge differences and connect more meaningfully. A Harvard-trained lawyer and founder of The Vernā Myers Company, Vernā speaks at conferences and events around the globe including SXSW, Relate Live by Zendesk, and the Massachusetts Conference for Women, and helps Fortune 500 companies like Qualcomm, entertainment companies like Warner Brothers and 21st Century Fox, NGOs, Wall Street and other powerhouse clients succeed by building more inclusive workplaces. Vernā is the author of Moving Diversity Forward: How to Go From Well-Meaning to Well-Doing and What If I Say the Wrong Thing? 25 Habits for Culturally Effective People. Her inspiring TED talk, “How to Overcome Our Biases? Walk Boldly Toward Them,” offers three ways any person can become an active participant in countering bias in themselves and in others to create a more just world. Vernā is also a contributor to Refinery 29 and Huffington Post, and a cited expert for The Atlantic, Forbes, the Harvard Business Review, and TED NPR Radio. For the last two decades The Vernā Myers Company has helped organizations eradicate barriers based on race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation and other differences with the aim of establishing a new, more productive and just status quo. As Vernā puts it, “Diversity is being invited to the party. Inclusion is being asked to dance.”
Vernā calls Baltimore home and when she’s not working, she’s unwinding on long road bike rides, visiting with family, or traveling the globe with her son, Tres.
Content
“How to Overcome Our Biases? Walk Toward Them!”
Questions
Vernā Myers TED Talk Back Discussion Questions (PDF for Print)
“How to Overcome Our Biases? Walk Toward Them!”
1. What are your reactions to the TED Talk? What resonated with you and why?
2. Do you see racism and implicit bias in yourselves? In others? How does it show up?
3. Do you have any personal experiences with encountering racial bias (positive or negative, conscious or unconscious) based on race?
4. How does racism impact your personal and professional lives?
5. What about the 3 steps that the talk suggests? (i.e. Go Looking for Your Biases, Walk Toward Your Discomfort, Have the Courage to Say Something) a. Do they seem actionable? Which one(s)? b. What questions do you have about making them actionable? c. What actions are you prepared to take to stand against racism?