Hello, everyone. My name is Joanne Lockwood and I'm your host for the Inclusion Bites podcast. In this series, I've interviewed a number of amazing people have simply had a conversation around the subject of inclusion, belonging and generally making the world a better place for everyone to thrive. If you'd like to join me in the future, then please do drop me a line to jo.lockwood@seechangehappen.co.uk, that's S-E-E Change Happen dot co dot uk. You can catch up with all of the previous shows on itunes, Spotify and the usual places. So plug in your headphones, grab a decaf and let's get going. Today is Episode 90 with the title "Conversations Beyond Borders", and I have the absolute honour and privilege to welcome Kaumudi, Kaumudi Goda, or KG, to her friends and associates. KG is a Leadership Consultant, Executive Coach and DEIB Strategist.

When I asked KG to describe her superpower, she said it's her cross siloed perspective, passion for fact based big picture thinking and a commitment to ethical, compassionate business. Hello, Kg, welcome to the show.

Hi, Joanne. Thank you for having me.

Absolute pleasure. So you're in Amsterdam at the moment and it's a bit cold, damp and wet over there.

Is it? Yeah, the temperatures plunged this past week, so we're headed for a rather frosty winter, looks like, here.

Yeah, I guess it is the 1 December, so, yeah, I guess we've got colder weather to come, but, yeah, as long as we're wrapped up nice and warm in our own homes, that's all that matters right now.

Absolutely.

KG conversations beyond borders. Tell me more about that.

I loved when you picked that title for our conversation. Conversation is very important to me. I call my business the Human Conversation because I think if we can all rise above our little differences and have conversations at a human level, we'd definitely be able to build a better future for all of us together. And so Conversations Beyond Borders seems perfect for our conversation this morning.

Yeah, I think that's a good starting point, isn't it? Because often, and we look at the world around us at the moment where there are conflicts and tragedies happening, wars, conflicts, wherever you want to describe them, and most of them are where conversations break down. And it's really, really important that we recognise how we don't always have to be right. Not being right is really important and understanding perspectives. So for me, that's the basis of conversation. So what do you talk about in those sort of terms?

My own sensitivity and my lens is informed by the fact that I've always felt like I don't really fit in. I remember I felt like I didn't fit in as a young girl growing up in a rather patriarchal culture in South India. I didn't feel like I fit in as a young professional, pretty new in New York City, Manhattan. I spent a decade there and I think as I went through life, my realisation was. All of us are seeking that sense of community, that sense of validation, wanting to feel seen, heard, understood, accepted. That's a universal human emotion. But all of us are mired in our own little worries, feeling alone and wanting to connect and yet failing to realise everyone else is likely feeling the same. We all feel like we are islands, maroon.