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Lately, it feels as if we’re all hunkering down, drawing battle lines, and promoting an "us vs. them" mentality. Too many of us are taking sides and shutting out alternative perspectives, whether it’s Democrats vs. Republicans, vegetarians vs. carnivores, dogs vs. cats, breast vs. bottle, Coke vs. Pepsi—I could go on and on. Rarely does a conversation across ideological divides result in a shift in perspective or achieve some common ground. Too often, we retreat to distinct camps, where we reinforce our own beliefs and clap each other on the back for being right.
A rise in social media shaming, hate speech, and even violence against members of targeted social groups are the pernicious outcomes of our demographically, culturally, and ideologically divided boundaries. Freedom of expression feels riskier than ever. We learn that if we speak our truth, we’re asking for trouble—so we close our mouths and our minds.
How can we push back against the tendency to retreat to our myopic information silos? When I taught in a business school over a decade ago, we used the term boundary spanning to describe organizational members who successfully linked internal networks to external sources of information. There are many examples of failed marketing campaigns in which the company would have saved millions of dollars, and avoided corporate embarrassment, if the internal team included a boundary spanner with insight and information that others inside their organization lacked access to. People who are bicultural tend to be natural boundary spanners, thanks to their large social networks and awareness of cultural differences. In fact, organizations that care about diversity have become more attentive to hiring and promoting potential boundary spanners, such as women and people of color.
Anyone who straddles discreet social worlds—immigrants, multicultural workers, biracial children, gay soldiers, members of the trans community—has a unique experience from which to create understanding and empathy. Instead of marginalizing them, we should honor and empower boundary spanners. By doing so, we may be able to break down the walls that divide us.
Hermes, the mythical Greek god who functioned as a messenger between humans and the gods, is an excellent symbol for boundary spanning. Today, real-world examples of individuals who span boundaries by virtue of their cultural and professional identities include Barack Obama, Pete Buttigieg, and Sonia Sotomayor: a biracial president, a gay mayor who served in the military, and a female, Hispanic Supreme Court Justice. Just by being themselves, they confound stereotypes and, more importantly, serve as a bridge between groups.
For powerful boundary spanners such as these extraordinary individuals, boundaries become frontiers for new possibilities. By virtue of their unique placement in two or even three worlds, they promote understanding, offer unique insights, and work to bridge demographic, cultural, and ideological divisions—all of which can decrease our judgmental, kneejerk responses to those outside our established boundaries. In fact, groups that include powerful individuals who defy stereotypes, move easily between boundaries, and encourage collaboration, reap the benefits of problem solving, fresh insights, and innovation. We should be aiming for these desirable outcomes in any social setting, whether it’s a workplace, a community group, or government.
Despite the advantage of being fluent in multiple styles of communication and becoming a bridge-building cultural interpreter, becoming a boundary spanner with clout is a significant challenge. Often folks who are bicultural, bilingual, or otherwise of “two minds” remain marginalized when boundary spanning isn’t supported or rewarded. We should encourage and empower potential boundary spanners rather than making them feel alienated or threatened by their unique in-between status.
The good news is that leaders, educators, and others who believe in the benefits of spanning boundaries can build empathy for those forced to navigate boundaries day after day. In fact, all of us can tap into challenging moments when we’ve been forced to span boundaries due to our identity or a situation we faced. When I taught at Northwestern, I used to ask my undergraduate students to hand in anonymous notes about the first time they felt different. I’d read aloud the many responses, such as cruel comments about body size, disability, race, signs of poverty, adoption, and the age of one’s parents. The exercise allowed the entire class to tap into their own feelings of “otherness” to build empathy and understanding across boundaries.
To prompt even further reflection, I would assign my students to put themselves in a situation where they stood out, because they appeared different than everyone else. A young man might attend an all-female spin class; a white student would visit a Baptist church with a majority black congregation; a student might even borrow a friend’s wheelchair. In addition to giving the students a small sense of what it’s like to be one among many, this exercise increased their sensitivity to the careful self-monitoring and discomfort that people with marginalized identities experience every day as they bridge experiences, languages, and traditions. This dance isn’t always smooth, comfortable, or even safe.
Instead of being required to deny or downplay their differences, those who feel the pull of multiple cultures should be encouraged to capitalize on their unique communication skills to be a conduit to groups that don’t usually get equal time in arenas that shape our future. These roles require humility, empathy, and resourcefulness. The cultural challenges and sensitivities that boundary spanners face are exactly the skills required of peacemakers, educators, and leaders.
Human psychology tells us that if you want to be heard, you first have to be willing to hear. If we hope to secure a future in which respect and tolerance trump disrespect and bullying, truly hearing each other is the only way forward. Let’s do our part to listen to and empower boundary spanners.
