Need a playbook on combatting just about any personal or professional roadblock, ladder, detour or “Karen” standing in your way, Cynthia “Cynt” Marshall is your go-to. She was the first black cheerleader at the University of California, Berkeley in the late 1970s, and shortly after her collegiate career, climbed the corporate ladder to become a top executive at AT&T where she spent 36 years with the organization. She is also a proud cancer survivor and made history in 2018 as the first Black, female CEO in the NBA where she currently leads the Dallas Mavericks. In short, she’s #Goals.

But aside from her unmatched business acumen and superhero-like ability to shatter glass ceilings and dismantle formidable obstacles all seemingly with a crack of her infectiously warming smile, perhaps what’s most impressive is Marshall’s eagerness (some would argue it’s her calling) to share her life and career lessons and strategies learned with others, particularly women and people of color. Quick to point out she’s a person before a title, and a wife and mother to young black men and women, it’s this lens of humanity that makes her views on race and inclusion that much more insightful.

Confronting racism in the workplace

A corporate leader with more than 30 years of experience, one would imagine Marshall is no stranger to an off-collar joke at the water cooler, or some passive aggressive (but not really) behavior only reserved for Black employees, particularly early on in her career. Her approach to dealing with these microaggressions, blatant or implicit is simple, nip it.

“When it comes to conversations dealing with race or where someone feels personally offended, I like to have direct conversations, don’t let it fester,” Marshall said. “I like to have a direct conversation in way that works for [the other person], which is why you have to know your audience and who you’re speaking with. With us currently operating in a virtual environment, I tend to stay away from [having tough conversations on] Fridays because I don’t want anyone going into the weekend, taking time away from their families, trying to process something I’ve had to ‘nip.’”

“I like to steer away from email for serious conversations – emails have tones and can get misconstrued. You’ll spend weeks trying to undo an email, which then overshadows your original point. You don’t need that.”

Do your research, take a strategic approach and ALWAYS bring receipts

In the words of Lauryn Hill, it could all be so simple…but chains of command make it hard, especially when escalating sensitive matters such as code of conduct violations and workplace discrimination to leadership. If an issue requires a supervisor’s attention, operate on facts not feelings. Marshall advises keeping a journal to document occurrences, and also having an HR rep or trusted ally in the room for transparency when having critical conversations. Also, go into the conversation with expectant outcomes and leave with an action-oriented plan of what will be done following the meeting.

“Take all those microaggressions, jot them down and when you’re with your supervisor or whoever, present the facts, discuss what is wrong with the situation and connect them back to the company’s values,” she said. “Always end a conversation with what will be done differently going forward. If people refuse to change or if your perception of things can’t change because of the reality you’re facing, then you’ve gotten to the point where you may need to make hard decisions. You know your threshold and how long you can deal with something.”

Pick your battles

While it may seem good in theory to meet every off-handed comment with a protest rally or Beyoncé’s “hot sauce” bat, the reality is every battle isn’t meant to be fought. And truth be told, for many it’d be a lifetime of warfare. Instead pick your battles based on impact — the impact it’s had on you, the impact of the relief you stand to gain, and the lasting impact it may have for colleagues and your work culture as a whole; chances are you’re not the only one experiencing microaggressions in the workplace.

“When there’s something stopping me from being at my best, to the point where I’m distracted, it’s time for me to do something,” Marshall said. “When you’re trying to fight every battle, you end-up off your game. And yes, you can blame it on somebody else but some of that is on you. Not every battle needs to be fought every day, you do have a job to do.”

Matters of race can be exhausting. Realize then vocalize when you need to take a break

In a recent survey conducted by Essence magazine, 45 percent of Black women shared the place they most often experience racism is the workplace. In light of the recent killings of Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Elijah McClain and too many others, many of these feelings of anger, emotional fatigue and reclusiveness were magnified. Couple that with a global pandemic, an 8-hour workday and Karens being Karen, and you’ve got well, a day.

As a direct and immediate response to the murder of George Floyd, Marshall provided mental health breaks to team members, resource guides to staff on how to understand the situation, and also brought in a therapist to help staffers process their emotions. Marshall also penned a personal memo to staffers addressing the situation, and the Mavs held an all-day seminar, Courageous Conversations, with staff, coaches, players and community leaders, to provide an open forum to discuss matters of race. But every boss is not Cynt and every organization is not the Mavs.

In situations where your employer may not be proactive in addressing racial issues, internal and external, and its impact on employees, it’s perfectly normal to request a mental health day to process things if needed. Additionally, these situations may lend itself to an opportunity for you to lead transformational cultural change within your organization, introducing new programs and systems to directly address matters of race and discrimination.

“Oftentimes we’re not the only ones dealing with a situation, so I appreciate when my team brings me issues and proposed solutions when it comes to our work culture and wellness,” Marshall said. [Around the time of George Floyd’s death], we weren’t productive for a couple of weeks and I was at the top of the list with everybody else. I’m a black woman and I’m also processing things professionally and personally. My husband is George Floyd, my sons are George Floyd, and my daughters and I are Breonna Taylor.”

In situations like those, if you have an idea or suggestion that will benefit you and others within the organization, speak up. Write a proposal, round up a posse of support with team members and executive sponsors, present it to me and take it across the finish line. As a leader you have no idea how helpful it is to have employees come-up with ideas. Sometimes we’re running so hard we don’t realize there are people on your team you may not have heard from, and meanwhile they’re sitting in the house losing their minds.

Physical, mental, spiritual and emotional health are critical, in and out the of the workplace, now more than ever. You have to take on leadership who won’t address your overall wellbeing and mental health, because at the end of the day mental health is real.”

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C-Suite Maverick Cynt Marshall On Confronting Workplace Microaggressions…#NipIt

“I like to steer away from email for serious conversations – emails have tones and can get misconstrued. You’ll spend weeks trying to undo an email, which then overshadows your original point. You don’t need that.”