Each of us brings our own cultural identity and experiences of interacting cross-culturally to our work in leadership. Some of us have lived and worked in diverse environments and developed strong cultural competency through that experience. Others of us may live and work in more culturally homogenous environments and have less experience interacting with people of cultures different from our own. Regardless of our experience, our level of cultural competency will influence our effectiveness as leaders. As part of your reflective practice, you can benefit from engaging in self-assessment of your own cultural competence.
Consider your own exposure to people from other cultures in your family, community, employment, place of worship, and country, considering both your childhood and adulthood.
Complete one of these cultural competency self-assessment tools.
Cultural Competence Self-Assessment Checklist. (upload meterial)
Cultural Competency Pre-Assessment Tool. Human Resources Professionals Association.(https://www.hrpa.ca/future-members-and-students/)
The Self-Assessment for Cultural Competence from ASHA.(https://www.asha.org/practice/multicultural/self/)
After individually completing the assessment, take a moment in your reflective journal to write five SHORT observations about cultural competency (Part 1) in general or your own cultural competence.
PART 2
Take a moment to think about ways you are unique. Ask a friend or family member to describe your unique qualities. In your Reflective Journal (Part 2) write a short paragraph describing your uniqueness.
