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Acknowledging my Dark Passenger
Over the years, it’s become a bit of a habit of mine to analyze how other speakers deliver their content. I find myself pointing out the most common mistakes they make with regard to inclusion. How they address differences and diversity in the way they communicate with their audience. The kind of assumptions they make. How unaware they are of audience differences and true diversity. The type of ableist language that they use. I do it against my better judgment.
Most people would call that a professional bias, and brush it off. But I can’t. I often find that it takes all the space in my head. That might also be why I’m writing these posts. Much like Dexter in the TV show, I call it my dark passenger. Though mine is significantly less deadly, of course.
My passenger is a dark one because, really, ignorance used to be bliss. I’m not going to lie. There are moments when I’m preparing content for a presentation, where I’m fine-tuning my delivery, and I wish I didn’t know the things that I know. Days where I wish I could forget that people have such things as special or different needs. That no matter how smart I think I am, how much I think I know, or how great I think my idea might be, a one-size-fits-all approach just won’t work for everyone. This dark passenger is always there, by my side, reminding me that I need to pay attention to those details.
