Whether you’re kicking off the school year with a new club activity or collaborating with an existing team to meet a project deliverable, there are always opportunities to promote inclusion and a sense of belonging. These three strategies, while not new, can be immensely powerful in helping young people, your staff, or colleagues feel a greater sense of connection to each other and even to the work at hand.

1. Learn each other’s names and the correct pronunciation

What’s in a name? Everything! As someone who has a less common name and whose legal name was regularly cut off on school attendance lists because it was too long, I know firsthand the awkward feeling and often embarrassing moments of being introduced in a new group or class. However, whenever a teacher took a moment to pause and ask me how to say my name or managed to pronounce it correctly, I would feel an instant sense of relief and a sense of being seen. Those who have names that can be pronounced multiple ways with the same spelling frequently have their names mispronounced as well, and in many cases, people don’t even realize they’re mispronouncing them.

So, the next time you have people coming together for the first time or you have new members joining a group, take a couple extra minutes to get to know each other’s names. Remember, it’s okay to ask someone how to pronounce their name or to say a name and then ask if you said it correctly. Once you know the correct pronunciation, make a note for yourself or utilize a pneumonic device to help you remember the correct spelling (note: you don’t need to share what your strategy is for helping you recall someone’s name).

One last note on this strategy: If utilizing Zoom or another virtual meeting space in which you can see folks’ names written, do not utilize the “popcorn style” of introductions in which each person randomly calls on the next person to introduce themselves. Those of us with less common names or names that could be pronounced multiple ways are often the last to be called on because no one really wants to say someone’s name wrong. Yet, it makes those of us who are called last, nearly every single time, feel like we’re the last ones being picked for the team. Alternate methods could be to invite folks to go alphabetically, call on specific organizations or teams, or list out the names in the chat box for folks to go down the list.

2. At every meeting or session, intentionally greet or welcome each person

Programs get busy. The projects pile up. Our calendars get stacked with back-to-back meetings. Yet, we can always take 1-2 minutes to ensure we’re greeting each person that joins our activity, program, or meeting. This can be as simple as saying, “Hi, Alex” or typing in the chat, “Welcome, Riley.” If you’re really pressed for time, simply start by saying something like, “It’s so good to have each of you here today” or “I’m grateful to see all of you here.” This simple step, along with the first strategy of getting names right, can help reinforce a sense of mattering. We all need to feel like our presence or our choice to attend or engage, is valued, appreciated, and makes a difference.

Tip: Our Program Quality Assessments include specific measures for providing a warm welcome and building community in youth programs, but many of the practices are also applicable to any group or team meeting. You can use the assessments to reflect on how you’re currently doing and then measure your progress on ensuring everyone is greeted or has opportunities to get to know each other.

3. Follow up with individuals who missed a session or meeting

Another strategy to support and instill a sense of inclusion and belonging is to follow up when someone has missed a meeting or program session. Taking a moment to send an email, Teams chat, text, or even make a phone call to check if someone’s okay or to simply say their presence was missed can make a huge difference. The majority of our team at the Forum works remotely and we’re spread across multiple time zones. It can be easy for any one of us to just assume that the reason a person missed a meeting was due to a conflicting meeting or obligation. Yet, without the benefit of meeting regularly in person each day, the only way to really know if our teammates are okay is to intentionally reach out and check-in, especially if we haven’t seen any other emails, chats, or online activity from them. Note that the intention here is not about accountability or making sure everyone is doing their job. The purpose is to ensure we’re all, as humans, doing okay and have what we need. It can also be to provide details or updates that folks may have missed. However, putting people first, over process and projects, is what can actually drive progress and fuel our momentum.