By: Holly Stevenson, Ph.d., guest contributor

Women in the workplace are often asked to navigate an impossible tightrope of double 

standards. Be confident, but not intimidating. Be decisive, but not bossy. Be ambitious, but prioritize caretaking. Lead with authority, but make sure everyone likes you. These contradictions can make leadership feel like an impossible balancing act. What if we stopped measuring women against a narrow and outdated version of what a leader is supposed to look like and instead focused on how we lead?

Inclusive leadership offers a different approach. It isn’t about having all of the answers or contorting ourselves to fit a mold of how and who we should be. Instead, it is about intentionally creating an environment where people are valued, different perspectives are welcomed and everyone has the opportunity to contribute, learn, grow and thrive.

Through my work in diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging, I’ve developed what I call “Holly’s 10 C’s of Inclusive Leadership.” These are 10 qualities that, when consciously and continuously fostered, empower leaders to fulfill their potential and enable everyone to thrive as their true and best selves. These provide a framework where each quality overlaps and reinforces one another, enhancing the skillsets we already have. All of the qualities are equally necessary and important, and while a situation may necessitate us to focus intently on one or a select number, I believe each is universally essential for being a truly inclusive leader. These qualities uplift women in the workplace and develop women who are inclusive in their leadership style.

1. Commitment

Inclusive leadership without genuine commitment is performative activism. When leadership adopts the vocabulary of inclusion without backing it up with personal accountability and routine demonstration of inclusion, this superficial approach creates “optical allyship” that prioritizes corporate and individual branding over genuine inclusion and equity.

Inclusive leaders are steadfast in their “why,” consciously anchored to their motivation in order to remain steady when chaos ensues around them or they face inevitable pushback. Being committed to uplifting all people is difficult.

Making the inclusive decision, as opposed to defaulting to the easy choice or status quo consensus, can be unpopular. According to recent research from Shapeshifters, 56% of women feel pressure to be liked in the workplace, compared to 36% of men. The study also found that 50% of women report holding back their true opinions in order to be liked, compared to 35% of men. Defining what we are committed to and being able to articulate the reasoning for our dedication to inclusivity is vital in ensuring we follow through on being an inclusive leader, even when it would be easier to fold or society tells us to act alternatively.

2. Courage

As mentioned above, inclusion is not always comfortable or well-received. Courage does not always roar. Sometimes, it is our quiet internal voice telling us to try again tomorrow. True bravery is often a quiet, steady conviction rather than a spectacular public spectacle. Courage is having enough humility and self-awareness to recognize our knowledge gaps, blind spots and mistakes. According to McKinsey & Company’s 2025 report “Women in the Workplace,” even 12% of women occupying C-suite positions in Americastill feel psychologically unsafe expressing themselves. Once again, this labor of likeability can stunt our ability to be inclusive leaders.

Courage is having the strength to set boundaries and then honoring them in order to self-preserve and thrive. Brené Brown defines courage as “to speak one’s mind by telling all one’s heart,” and the inclusive leader is willing to speak up for what they know to be right while recognizing acting in accordance with their values is more important. Courage is not the absence of fear. It demands emotional exposure, risk and uncertainty. Therefore, the inclusive leader is not never afraid – they are courageous because they know that inclusion of all matters more than the fear they feel.

3. Communication

It is my conviction that great leaders communicate and great communicators lead.

Today, having the ability to communicate with anyone and embody the utmost respect in all instances is a rare quality. According to research from Reuters, 85% of respondents believe that respectful communication between people with different views has dropped sharply over the last decade.

Inclusive leaders talk with others, not at them, regardless of their seniority or experience. Mirroring language, and referring to people and their situations as they self-identity is crucial to respectful communication. Whether this be pronoun usage, remembering names and their pronunciation, retaining how colleagues refer to a disability or condition they have, or using the wording others use when they refer to their relationship or family structures, the inclusive leader is intentional in ensuring every person they encounter feels seen, valued and respected.

It is also vital to recognize that communication goes far beyond the spoken word. Inclusive leaders are fully present when interacting with all people, not distracted by a second computer screen, phone or other people. Where digital body language is concerned, having a pen visible to show we may find something said by another to be important enough to document is one small, yet powerful thing we can do in our virtual meetings.

Women are also, according to research this year from Lean In, twice as likely as men to be spoken over or interrupted in meetings. An inclusive leader always allows all voices to be heard, circling back to allow those silenced to finish their thought or repeating a question to ensure those who are less confident or need more time to develop their thoughts have the opportunity to weigh in.

4. Curiosity

A curious leader tolerates ambiguity, reserves judgment and adopts a growth mindset at all opportunities. To be open to new ideas and ways of thinking without feeling threatened or undermined is a challenge, yet it empowers all team members to feel able to present new ideas and challenge existing practices. The truly inclusive leader genuinely wants to hear from everyone, regardless of title, age, gender, role, etc., as they know each individual brings a unique perspective of immense value that is worthy of being heard and acknowledged.

For women leaders, curiosity can be especially powerful because it creates an alternative to the pressure to always have the answer. The aforementioned “Women in the Workplace” report by McKinsey and Company found that women are 2.5 times more likely to have their expertise questioned and their mistakes remembered longer than men. When women leaders feel this unfair pressure, it can lead to decision paralysis, isolation and overcautious leadership.

Instead, curiosity enables us to foster environments where it is encouraged to ask questions and challenge norms, where mistakes are data points instead of personal failures and where everyone is included in brainstorming, problem solving and the collective pursuit of growth.

5. Collaboration

Inclusive leaders do not simply invite people to the table; they empower them to participate and feel valued once they’re there. Collaborative leaders create safe and brave environments for people to want to be active participants in discussions, as opposed to feeling like simply a seat-filler or a tokenized pawn. Collaborating is a vehicle allowing us to move from ideas being fiercely guarded or individualistically owned to a place where they are built upon collectively.

Back in 2012, the “Ikea Effect” study found that individuals who built the boxes themselves were willing to pay 63% more than those who were given the exact same pre-assembled boxes. It has been proven repeatedly across different industries and identity groups that involving employees in the decision-making process is crucial for retention and engagement. However, according to recent research from Queen’s University, although almost 75% of employers rate collaboration as “very important,” 39% of employees say their organization does not collaborate enough.

Recognizing that people are more inclined to care about what they helped to create, and therefore nurturing a workplace culture of collaboration, transforms passive compliance into active stewardship by empowering individuals to take ownership of their contribution and be part of projects that fulfill them.

6. Consistency

Consistently inclusive leaders understand that inclusion operates in micro-moments. It can be tempting to believe that inclusion requires grandiose displays of acceptance, demanding significant finances and an audience. However, inclusion begins with our everyday, seemingly insignificant and mundane intentions and choices. It is not the changing of company logos to rainbow colors that shows authentic commitment to inclusion and celebration of all people. Research from the Journal of Communication and Language in Business shows that consumers remain highly skeptical of brands using LGBTQ+ symbols without portraying consistent conviction to support the community.

Instead, widespread pronoun usage in email signatures and having gender-neutral bathrooms in offices communicates acceptance in more authentic, commonplace ways. Grand gestures are important, but not at the expense of the routine interactions that communicate inclusion or exclusion. Inclusive leadership is noticing who hasn’t spoken up in a meeting, giving credit to the correct individuals for their contributions and saying hello to each person in the hallway. The truly inclusive leader knows that small choices, repeated consistently, become culture.

7. Cognizance of Bias

Inclusive leaders are deeply cognizant of biases, operating with the understanding that everyone, including themselves, possesses them. Rather than viewing bias as a personal failing, they accept it as a human reality that nonetheless requires intentional effort to reduce. This self-awareness enables leaders to understand how they are perceived by others, actively hunt for personal, organizational and societal blind spots, and continuously seek opportunities for growth.

For women, understanding bias can help us recognize that not every barrier is a reflection of our capabilities or worthiness. At the same time, recognizing bias does not mean assuming every difficulty experienced is caused by bias. It helps us to be measured and rational in our conclusions. 

A comprehensive, decade-long study analyzing over 5 million data points from Project Implicit found that corporate managers routinely exhibit moderate to high levels of implicit bias favoring majority groups across race, gender and sexual orientation. However, experiments such as the Harvard University Implicit Association Tests demonstrate that unconscious attitudes and stereotypes affect decisions across nearly all populations, regardless of a person’s explicit, declared beliefs. Having the courage to inwardly reflect and question our assumptions empowers us to be more inclusive leaders, breaking barriers for ourselves and others and equipping everyone with the tools required for them to thrive.

8. Critical Thinking

Critical thinking is the cognitive engine of inclusive leadership, transforming well-intentioned goals into robust inclusive performance. In a world of increasing automation, the ability to distinguish fact from fiction, to be objective yet human in our approach, is all the more desired by employers and essential for inclusivity. Korn Ferry found in their latest survey that 73% of leaders view critical thinking as the most necessary skill in the workplace.

For women in leadership specifically, critical thinking can also mean resisting the pressure to make decisions based solely on how palatable such decisions may be to others. Critical thinking asks us to examine our own reactions with honesty, ensure our decisions are made with integrity and enables us to ultimately treat everyone equally by focusing on objective reality instead of subjective opinions. It can be uncomfortable to look back at an encounter and sit with the complexity of ourselves, introspectively determining when and why we acted contrary to our values or instances of being guided by irrational emotions.

Inclusive leaders care more about getting to the truth of a matter than winning an argument, and are always seeking out opportunities to challenge their thinking or be exposed to new perspectives.

9. Calmness

Life is chaotic, and leadership rarely comes without pressure. Inclusive leaders understand that their response to a difficult moment can drastically influence the people around them. Calmness, however, does not mean suppressing emotion or sugarcoating unideal situations. Contrastingly, calm leaders respond intentionally and are a constant source of stability for those they work alongside.

Research from TalentSmart determined that 90% of top performers are skilled at remaining calm and controlled in high pressure situations. Calmness fosters trust, allowing others not to feel overwhelmed or to be excessively pessimistic. For women leaders, discussion of presenting emotion in the workplace can be particularly nuanced. Women can face expectations to be both emotionally intelligent and emotionally controlled.

To portray oneself as empathetic yet not overly emotional is a narrow tightrope to walk, as the threshold for mislabeling women as emotionally fragile or volatile is much higher than in the instance of men. A 2024 study by Textio found that 76% of women reported being labeled “emotional” on a performance review, compared to 11% of men. Being authentic and relatable is important in fostering safety, but this can be done while maintaining calmness. For example, having the vulnerability to say that you need time to digest information, pausing before responding to a question and allowing extra time in our busy schedules to ensure everyone has the opportunity to contribute are all manifestations of calmness.

We should not strive to show up in the workplace as an emotionless robot in order to achieve calmness. Instead, we should strive to maintain a balance of being human in our approach while sustaining professionalism. Calmness sets all of us up for success, ensuring people truly hear our thoughts and enabling individuals to avoid being placed in stereotypical boxes pertaining to biased views on gender.

10.  Candor

Inclusive leadership requires candor – the willingness to be open, honest and direct while maintaining respect for the other party. Kim Scott, in her work “Radical Candor,” argues that we must care personally and challenge directly in equal amounts simultaneously to be appropriately candid. 

The research from Textio found that 88% of high-performing women report receiving feedback about their personality rather than their work, compared with just 12% of high-performing men. Therefore, it is crucial we ensure our feedback to all people, irrespective of gender or any identity they may possess, is clear and fair. Focusing on specific incidences of behavior, instead of attacking another’s character by making generalized statements, enables us to be inclusive and fair in our leadership. Furthermore, we must resist the urge to only provide necessary and timely feedback to those who are similar to us or who we like.

The truly inclusive leader acknowledges that everyone deserves transparency and the opportunity to better themselves. In addition, it is vital to remember that candid feedback does not exclusively refer to constructive criticism. Praise is also a valuable and essential form of feedback and all wins, small and big, deserve to be acknowledged to show that we are observant and care about those we work alongside.

Women can also face a difficult double bind as a leader where candor is concerned: being direct can invite criticism for being bossy or abrasive, while being indirect can make it difficult to be viewed as authoritative. The solution to this dilemma is not for women to stray away from candor. Instead, we must all become better at separating a person’s identity from their behavior and creating cultures where honest feedback is expected from everyone.

Showing up

Inclusive leadership is not about getting it right every time. Rather, it is about being willing to show up with intention each day and the desire to grow. Developing these 10 C’s is an iterative, lifelong practice rather than an objective to be achieved and checked off. This framework provides a lens for reflecting on the leader we are and the experience we create for the people around us.

By utilizing this framework, we can adjust our approach to increase inclusivity and heighten our accountability to ensure that we do not stray far from our goal of being an inclusive leader who elevates all. For women in leadership, the mindset shift of stopping the worry associated with whether we’re doing the “right” thing, and instead focusing on whether we are leading in a way that feels authentic to us and empowers others to thrive alongside us, is life-changing — not only for us but for those we lead.

Ultimately, leadership is only in part about the results we achieve — it is also concerned with who has the opportunity to reach their full potential alongside us.