Training Your Brain for Equity: Approaching Equity Like Daily Practice
- Dr Shungu Hilda M’gadzah
- Aug 2
- 2 min read
A Reflective Episode from the Six Stages Framework
By Dr. Shungu H. M’gadzah
Listen to the podcast recording on Spotify:
Summary:
Welcome to Building Bridges of Empathy. This is your space for reflection, transformation, and grounding in truth.
Today’s episode is titled: Training Your Brain for Equity.
🌱 Part One: From Calm to Equity
You may have heard people talk about training the body for calm—building mental resilience, rewiring the brain to respond to life’s stressors without spiralling.
This got me thinking: Can we train the brain—not just for calm—but for equity?
What would it mean to approach equity like a daily practice, the same way we train our breath, our focus, or our bodies?
🧠 Part Two: Rewiring for Equity Literacy
We are all carrying beliefs, values, and assumptions that we didn’t choose. Some are rooted in bias. Others in trauma or fear.
In the Six Stages Framework, we begin with Stage 0—Locate Yourself. Before we challenge the world around us, we must observe the world within us.
These are not fixed. They are habits. And like all habits, they can be rewired.
🪞 Part Three: Becoming Conscious of Equity Threats
Training your brain for equity means becoming more conscious of in-equity threats—not just in society but within our own thoughts.
These responses are signs of Stage 1 or 2 in the Six Stages: denial or minimisation.
Just as we observe our breath when meditating, we can learn to observe our thoughts—with curiosity, not judgment.
🔄 Part Four: From Reaction to Response
Equity work is not about perfection. It’s about practice.
Pause. Breathe. Create space between stimulus and response. This is where equity lives.
Over time, these new choices form new pathways.
🧘🏽♀️ Part Five: Visualising Equity Practice
Visualise yourself in a moment of challenge. Notice your breath. Ground yourself.
You don’t shut down. You don’t explode. You stay present.
This is training your brain for equity.
🌿 Closing Reflection
Equity is not a destination—it’s a practice.
The Six Stages Framework offers a map. This work offers you the tools. Your life offers you the moments.
Take a breath. Recall your values. You are not just reacting to the world. You are helping to reshape it.
To find out more about the Six Stage
Check out my book:
📘 Understanding and Dealing with Everyday Racism – The Six Stages Framework (2022).
A must-read for individuals and organisations committed to personal and systemic change. This book introduces the Six Stages Framework, a structured path to greater self-awareness and action.
#SelfAwareness #EquityInAction #BuildingBridgesOfEmpathy #ReflectivePractice #ProfessionalDevelopment #PersonalDevelopment#EquityMindfulness #EquityGuidedReflection #EquityFitness
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