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On this episode of Are You Future Ready? AdVAncing Your Professional Development Amy Parker, VA’s Chief Learning Officer, is joined by Mr. Harvey Johnson, the Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Office of Resolution Management, Diversity and Inclusion to talk about AdVAncing: Your Passion.
The Department of Veterans Affairs Human Capital Services Center proudly presents Are You Future Ready: AdVAncing Your Professional Development, a podcast about the skills you need to thrive at work and in life.
In each episode Amy Parker, VA’s Chief Learning Officer, and learning leaders from across VA will share strategies you can use to develop essential skills like emotional intelligence, problem solving, and critical thinking. Listen in as podcast guests share insights gained from leading their organizations through one of the most challenging eras in modern memory. While we cannot predict what the future holds, we can all become more future-ready by developing durable skills that empower us to confront complex problems with confidence.
Amy Parker
This is "Are You Future Ready? Advancing Your Professional Development," a podcast series for anyone who wants to grow and excel in their career or in life. I'm your host Amy Parker, the Department of Veterans Affairs Chief Learning Officer.
Amy Parker
This week we are joined by Mr. Harvey Johnson, the deputy assistant secretary for the Office of resolution management, diversity and inclusion. We know fondly as Oh, our MDI, Mr. Johnson began his career by serving 20 years as an officer in the US Army. after his retirement in 2008, he joined the Department of Defense, serving as the director of the defense travel office until he was called to serve the VA in 2015. Now as the Deputy Assistant Secretary for or MDI, he is responsible for formulating and implementing department wide policies and procedures to ensure the integrity, effectiveness and impartiality of the complaints his office receives. Mr. Johnson is a certified life coach, and a seasoned executive leader in promoting race and gender equity, resolving conflict, building a diverse and inclusive organization, wherever it may be, and strategic planning. And we're so lucky to have you here with us today. Thank you for inviting me, this is going to be a fun session. So I was wondering, have you know, it must have been interesting to go from working in commercial travel to the office of resolution management, the name of the office, when you first joined, what helps you decide to make that change?
Mr. Harvey Johnson
You know, I Amy, bottom line is, I trust my instinct. You know, I spend a lot of time resonating with it, I do that daily. And I asked myself, where do I want to be? And when the opportunity came up, and I say opportunity, because it was presented to me, I thought, wow, everything about it just sounded great. Could you tell us a little bit more about the work you do at or MDI, we're not just complaints. You know, a lot of times people think, EEO, are they limited to diversity and inclusion. But what I think we're really about is helping the VA build healthy organizations. And what's a healthy organization, a healthy organization, to me is where every employee become their higher self. And what you're doing is you're inviting everybody to the table, you're inviting everybody to play, you're removing those barriers, and you're liberating people, you're giving every human being every employee the right to become their higher self. Now whether they choose to do that that is on them. But there are no systemic barriers in place. If you told me I could do that for a living, sign me up. And that again, going back to your earlier question is why I'm here.
Amy Parker
Yeah. And it sounds like you have some passion around it. Are you consciously working on your passions, when you're in this,
Mr. Harvey Johnson
this role you have, I think the two greatest moments are the day you're born and the day you realize why you're born. Once you realize why you're born, that's when you align to your passion, the day you align with your passion, everything changes, because now your work your play your your life, the structure on what you're meant to do. So for me, that was the day again, when when I asked myself, What is it I want to do. And for me, that's what I'm doing today. And I am aligned with my passion. If I were not doing this job, I would do it when I get off. You know, this would be by hobby.
Amy Parker
And so you identified your passion. Tell us a little bit more maybe about the process of that.
Mr. Harvey Johnson
You have to spend time with yourself, right? You know, it was Ernest Hemingway, he has a great quote that I love. There's nothing noble and being superior to your fellow man. True nobility is being superior to your former self. With that said, I had to ask, you know, what is it that Harvey Johnson wants to do? I can only help our world by becoming my higher self. And that's what I had to do. So every day when I look in the mirror, am I growing? Am I evolving? I journal a lot so I sit down and I asked myself what is it I want and the universal law of attraction provides that we are creators we create with our every thought our thoughts, feelings, words and actions produce energy and attract like energies. So I have to ask my the audience, what are your thoughts? What is it you're giving energy to? And my call to action for everyone that can hear my voice is to take time and reflect resonate within? And not only ask yourself, but document what is your purpose? What's your calling, write it down. I cannot tell you how important that is.
Amy Parker
What if your passion is something non work related or above or below the line, maybe any tips For how to prioritizing fostering that passion while still developing professionally in a work setting?
Mr. Harvey Johnson
Well, let me say this, when you say above and below the line, if I were in an auditorium with everybody, I would draw that line, a horizontal line on a whiteboard. And above it, I would write love. And below it, I would write hate. And then I would ask the audience give me words synonymous with love. And typically I get words like, happiness, joy, empathy, compassion, and I always put conscious there, then I would do the same with Hey, give me words, synonymous with hate. And I would get fear, envy, anger, jealousy, ego, pride, and I put drifting, and I purposely put conscious and drifting, because in order to stay above the line, you have to be conscious, because things will naturally draw you below the line. So if you're below the line, you can't align with your passion, because it's at the expense of other people above the line is where we become productive to society. And that's where you have to study now, if you have something. And Amy, I gotta tell you, I don't know what that would be. So I would love to hear from the audience what is above the line, that's not work related. I said that what a listener poet wants and I thought, What is a listener poem? And she said, I'm a poet, I'm going to interview you. And she took the words that I said, she coalesce them, and she made them into a poem. Now, when I graduated from school, I didn't see that as a career choice. That just goes to show though, what is out there that you can align with your passion.
Amy Parker
I love the way you said that. And I've made some career moves. I've shared those before with VA employees, they haven't been linear in every way. They've almost seemed like jagad jumps in different directions. You know, I was a chef, as my first career. And then I was in a, I was in a job in a big building in Arlington, Virginia. And I wasn't having the best time, and I remembered my passion. And then I found the volunteering opportunity. Then I remembered, gosh, how much I enjoyed working with children. What if you see when your passion is changing? And do you have any recommendations on helping our audience work through that?
Mr. Harvey Johnson
So what I will tell you is when the passion changes, and you've read my bio, you know, and DLD I was in charge of commercial travel. Here, I'm in charge of resolution management, diversity and inclusion. When my passions changed. So did I. And I had fun doing that job. I loved my last job I did. And it took something great to make me to leave. But again, I trust my inner voice, which told me this sounds like the right opportunity. The biggest thing that holds people down sphere, you know, I don't want to make a mistake. I can tell you, Amy, I could care less about mistakes I really don't care about one of my favorite things, and everybody has it in her house is wd 40. And that stands for water displacement 40, if a tent now what if they had stopped after 17? Right, we wouldn't have this great product. So So failing is not bad.
Amy Parker
So your passion now about helping to create helping others to create a diverse, inclusive You and I have also I think in conversations added civil, I'm excited to have this opportunity to talk about this next section of equality versus equity. You know, as it relates to being a leader at VA and supporting our teams and co workers you have I think this one belongs to you've coined this phrase around conscious idea.
Mr. Harvey Johnson
Conscious idea is conscious inclusion, diversity, equity, and access. Conscious idea is the bedrock of our nation's democracy as I look at it, our our nation's people, our veterans, our employees, our students, every one of us deserves an ambitious, conscious idea agenda that matches the scale of the challenges we faced it and I happen to read this the other day, and it just blew me away. The French philosopher Horatio gates famously said, there's nothing more powerful than an idea whose time has come will across ba we are now introducing conscious idea because the time has come where this must be woven into the very fabric of everything we do. I heard you talk about equality versus equity a little bit. So equality has given people the same thing whereas equity is giving people what they need to be successful. So when you look at conscious idea, we want a diverse population that reflects the communities we serve. Diversity is being invited to the game inclusions being asked to play equity is given people the The resources they need and the access to it. Why would we not want to embrace conscious idea for everyone? Because you'll never get to your higher self if there are systemic barriers in place?
Amy Parker
So can the conscious idea framework be used outside of the workplace?
Mr. Harvey Johnson
I believe it's about our world. Because it does VA no good to embrace conscious idea and the rest of the world not what to do that we have, you know, how do we supplant deeply ingrained beliefs? How do we eradicate that fear based mind one that may have been taught to believe all people are not created equal conscious idea is about putting that out there. And when I do that, I don't isolate anybody. I don't say that this population deserves it more than this population, because the one thing we all have in common is we're all human beings. E Pluribus Unum, it's an it's Latin for out of many one, it was the founding model of our nation. Well, 2021, we can learn that again. E Pluribus Unum, we are one VA of many races, genders, religions, etc. But we are one VA serving our customers. And that is the only way we will be effective as an organization
Amy Parker
is our differences that make us strongest? Absolutely. What would you recommend for us if we're going to go about measuring our diversity and inclusion?
Mr. Harvey Johnson
You know, so often and VA people think of us as taking the temperature of our patients. And I do believe we also need to take our cultural health temperature. And there are a number of ways to do that. Um, certainly, you look at things like the old employee survey. For me, I look at how many complaints that we get an EEO this year, you can look at whistleblower, you can look at absenteeism, there's a number of things you can look at to see, are we in a healthy environment? Are we attracting the the Gen Z? Or are they choosing us these things all speak to our brand. And I'm glad to see that VA is constantly improving and Best Places to Work. irreversible momentum is what we need when it comes to conscious idea. And all of these things I could not agree more.
Amy Parker
This is going to cultural health, too. So how do you think we're doing today, and any tips for whether you're a leader or whether you're a frontline contributor to support better cultural health?
Mr. Harvey Johnson
Amy, I believe we are seeing revolutionary changes across VA, when I look at the messages coming from Secretary MacDonough when I look at test for standing up when more and more people start to understand what conscious AI here is about when I see these special emphasis programs blossoming, you start to realize that changes is coming. You know, it's here. And I think now is the time, the momentum of the moment, this point of inflection is so very right. And here's the other thing, not everybody has to be a leader, because every leader needs, you know, loyal, dedicated, hard working followers. So if you don't want to lead your behind the scenes person, go find and attach yourself to one of these leaders and be part of something great.
Amy Parker
Absolutely. I would also like to say that I support federal women patch maybe you've earned because I recall that you were the supportive leader behind that group getting started. And I want to recognize how important that is to have not just women leaders, but male leaders support because those ideas, they that's how they gain momentum. That's how they are really blossoming.
Mr. Harvey Johnson
Baby, I have to echo that point. Because anytime I go to a special emphasis program, whether it's, you know, women, Asian American Pacific Islanders have black history. The last thing I want to see is an auditorium full of people simply indigenous to that group, the more eclectic the audience, the better when I go to events that I am not familiar with, I've learned so much. And that is the only way I can learn, you know, cultural humility, empathy and love. For those who are not white. Don't who don't identify like me. It is so important to do that. So for me, you better believe I'm going to be at the federal women's program, Asian American Pacific Islander and every other program because I'm there to learn and hear their story, their journey.
Amy Parker
Yeah, absolutely. So I'm going to plug my summer reading list, which is available to VA employees on our SharePoint site. One of the books on that list is by an author who champions the habit of staying curious that links to humility and you know, just exactly as you described it, what can I learn? What can I open myself up to To be participating in these different ways.
Mr. Harvey Johnson
I will I haven't read that one, but I will. Thank you, Amy. Sure.
Amy Parker
So diversity and inclusion initiatives within an organization can also lead to greater performance and productivity. The research is solid, irrefutable. attracting and retaining highly talented workforce is another benefit. A workplace where innovation thrives, and more opportunities to address the needs of the diverse customers. What can VA employees do to support your office's mission? RM di,
Mr. Harvey Johnson
I think that's where the consciousness comes about. If you drift, you're going to build homogeneous organizations, it's human instinct, it's only natural to succumb to the affinity like me bias. It's through that conscious, elevated, heightened awareness that we start to embrace idea, right? It's something you have to think about when we're recruiting when we're hiring when we're looking at the operations, the budget. So for me, there's an old saying, right on, say, I say it's important. But hey, I walk the walk, and then operate. And that's where we have to do we have to operate in that manner. And again, operating is dedicating those resources that's making sure your hiring panels are diverse alumni, including everybody in my organization. And it's being conscious of that and thought of those things.
Amy Parker
And so we're gonna pretend that every VA leader is listening to this podcast, you can speak directly to them, what do you want to tell them?
Mr. Harvey Johnson
You don't have to be an expert in this topic. And I think sometimes that holds people back. They they say, Well, you know, I haven't read the book, or I haven't had the training, you don't have to, you just simply have to want to help people. I think, if you care about people, and you want to help them, start the conversations, you can do that in small groups, large groups. And then what you do is you talk about topics, you talk about world events, you talk about VA events, and you seek input. And what you'll find is you don't have to be an expert in, you know, as long as you have certain guiding principles, do no harm, operate above the line, and you have constructive conversations, the employees of that you work with will contribute to that. And as a leader, you simply have to champion those ideas. Don't wait to be an expert in just have those conversations, open it up and see what leaders come forth in the light. Yeah, yeah, these insights about how we can all reflect on our mindsets, and then take the personal responsibility to be part of a more inclusive culture here at VA. It's so important. I'm with you, I think the revolution is starting. And it's exciting to be seeing the changes that are that are happening, and then your passion around this conscious idea. It's infectious, that that's really what it is. And I think that's how it's it's catching fire so fast. our listeners I think are going to be inspired today, to take your advice to pursue and find their own passion and contribute to the conscious idea and build better Cultural Health, with diversity and inclusion. So what is your vision or dream for vas future as it relates to the inclusivity of our workforce? I have two ways to answer that. Amy. The first is in a time where we seem to have extreme polarization, there's violence, there's hatred, we must shift and practice extreme forgiveness. And a time where we have five generations of employees in the workplace, we must learn to coexist. And in order to coexist, we must learn to forgive and accept forgiving so radically requires this deep maturity, grace and mercy. forgiving will start the healing process in 2021. I see us headed in that direction. It's time for people to voice their opposition and take action and stand against disruptive behavior. We all want the civil enlightened equitable society. And if you want, I can share my dream with you as well. That would be the second part of the answer. Yes, I was hoping you would say that. Okay. So in October 2020. Last year, I sat with a listener poet Jenny headwind, and she interviewed me, and she captured my words in a poem. So this is my dream for our VA. The VA of the future I see is the VA. I've wanted to be, I see a VA where 100% of our people are physically and psychologically safe. I see a VA that's diverse, inclusive and fairly represents those we serve in our communities. I see a VA we're not only doctors but all of us find our purpose in helping to heal our veterans. I see a VA we're asking what about cultural health as much as we're taking physical temperatures. I see a VA where millennials and Gen Z are is choose us because there's no other reason of choice. I see a VA where employees are free to innovate not trapped by dogma. I see a VA with less structure, hierarchy rules, more openness, inclusion principles, acceptance. I see a scientifically an intelligent VA, a microcosm of our nation holding hands. I see a VA that's evolving, transforming progressing into alignment. civility, conscious idea. I see us awakening reimagining reemerging from a slumber into our role in a new enlightened era. Always walking in kindness. We've got this evil or this unknown out of many one. That is my dream, baby. That is awesome. I do want to ask one more question. Before we wrap up, we
Amy Parker
with each of our guests, we usually ask where they can go to to see other materials if they want to do a little more studying a little more learning. So anything else you'd like to say to our listeners
Mr. Harvey Johnson
today? Support your special emphasis programs. I went to two of them yesterday. And I heard people that brought the audience to tears because they were so powerful. They have some of the greatest speakers attend those programs. So I will tell you, that's one way to do it across VA. I love what you share. By the way me it is always a pleasure to team up with you.
Amy Parker
Likewise, Harvey, thank you so much.
Unknown Speaker
Thanks for joining us on "Are You Future Ready? Advancing Your Professional Development." To find the resources highlighted today. Check out the blog linked in this episode's show notes. If you enjoyed listening, please share this episode with a colleague friend or on your LinkedIn network.