Welcome to Inclusion Catalyst, with your host Mickey Desai. We bring diversity leaders to the table to hear about current issues in diversity and inclusion, deconstructing complex social justice issues to showcase the best practices in our workplaces and our communities.
In this second conversation with Shailvi Wakhlu, The Inclusion Catalyst explores a critical but often overlooked dimension of workplace inclusion: what happens after people are invited to the table?
Shailvi argues that inclusion cannot stop at representation or opportunity. Organizations have a responsibility to create opportunities for people to participate, but individuals also need the skills to make their voices heard, communicate their value, and take advantage of those opportunities.
That leads to the idea of the "speak-up gap"—the space between having something valuable to contribute and being able to communicate it effectively. Sometimes people lack the words. Sometimes they lack the confidence, the forum, the context, or the psychological safety to speak. And sometimes they simply haven't been taught how to advocate for themselves without feeling pushy, difficult, or aggressive.
Mickey and Shailvi discuss why self-advocacy should be treated as a professional skill rather than an innate personality trait. Just as people learn technical skills, they can learn how to communicate their accomplishments, negotiate, ask for opportunities, disagree effectively, and frame their work in terms of organizational value.
In this episode:
Why inclusion efforts can fall short without self-advocacy
What the "speak-up gap" really means
Why communication and self-advocacy are skills—not personality traits
How to make the value of your work visible
Turning everyday workplace conversations into career-building opportunities
Why connecting your work to organizational goals matters
How self-advocacy can be a win-win for employees and employers
How to practice difficult conversations before you need them
The difference between being assertive and being aggressive
How to disagree effectively without becoming adversarial
How empathy can make self-advocacy more effective
How to recognize and respond to unhealthy power dynamics
Shailvi Wakhlu is a technology leader, consultant, and author of Self-Advocacy: How to Get What You Deserve at Work (https://www.shailvi.com/self-advocacy-book.html). Her book approaches self-advocacy as a practical skill, offering playbooks, checklists, and examples for people navigating their careers.
Find Shailvi on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/ShailviW/) or visit her website (https://www.shailvi.com/) to learn more about her work.
This episode is produced in partnership with the Georgia Interfaith Public Policy Center (https://www.linkedin.com/company/georgiainterfaithcenter/).
Inclusion Catalyst invites you to become our next guest host. Learn more here: http://inclusioncatalyst.com/join-us-as-a-guest-host/ (http://inclusioncatalyst.com/join-us-as-a-guest-host/)
31 Aug 2026
When Good Work Isn’t Enough
What happens when you do excellent work, but nobody notices?
In this episode of The Inclusion Catalyst, host Mickey Desai talks with technology leader, consultant, and self-advocacy author Shailvi Wakhlu about the often-overlooked forces that shape who gets recognized, promoted, heard, and trusted at work.
Shailvi challenges the idea that merit alone determines career success. Great work matters, but so do visibility, communication, relationships, and the ability to articulate your own impact. For people who have been taught that humility is always a virtue, that can create a difficult paradox: how do you advocate for yourself without feeling as though you're being aggressive or self-promotional?
Shailvi takes on one of the most persistent workplace myths: "Good work speaks for itself." It doesn't always. Some of the most valuable work, particularly behind-the-scenes or preventative work, may be defined by what doesn't happen. The bugs that never appear. The crises that never occur. The problems prevented before anyone knew they existed.
For both employees and leaders, the challenge is learning how to make that invisible value visible.
In this episode, Mickey and Shailvi explore:
Why merit alone doesn't always determine who gets recognized at work
The difference between humility, assertiveness, and aggression
How employees can conduct a personal "career self-audit"
Why inclusion metrics can tell us who is in the room without telling us who feels heard
The importance of influence, psychological safety, dissent, and trust
Why employees may be reluctant to speak up—and what leaders can do about it
How self-advocacy can help organizations identify and reduce business risk
Why "good work speaks for itself" is one of the biggest myths of professional life
How to communicate the impact of work that is difficult to see or measure
Why employees shouldn't leave their career advancement entirely to luck
Find Shailvi on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/ShailviW/) or visit her website at shailvi.com (https://www.shailvi.com/).
This conversation only scratches the surface. The deeper question is one every organization and every individual should be asking: What valuable voices and contributions are we failing to see?
This episode is produced in partnership with the Georgia Interfaith Public Policy Center (https://www.linkedin.com/company/georgiainterfaithcenter/).
Inclusion Catalyst invites you to become our next guest host. Learn more here: http://inclusioncatalyst.com/join-us-as-a-guest-host/ (http://inclusioncatalyst.com/join-us-as-a-guest-host/)
2 Jun 2026
You Are the Tool, with Rebecca Eldgredge
What’s really at stake when you ignore your nervous system?
In this follow-up episode of Inclusion Catalyst, host Mickey Desai continues his conversation with Dr. Rebecca Eldredge, diving deeper into the real-world consequences of dysregulation—on our relationships, our communication, and our ability to lead meaningful change.
From subtle shifts in tone and perception to breakdowns in connection and trust, Dr. Eldredge explains how an unregulated nervous system quietly reshapes the way we experience—and respond to—the world around us. Even our ability to hear, interpret, and engage in conversation can be compromised, making already difficult discussions even harder.
The conversation takes a practical turn as they explore how to navigate conflict without avoiding it, including simple but powerful tools for staying grounded in high-stakes moments. Whether it’s asking better questions, anchoring to your values, or recognizing the signals your body is sending, the goal is not to eliminate tension—but to move through it constructively.
At the core of it all is a powerful reframe: as a changemaker, you are the tool. And without care, sharpening, and restoration, even the most passionate efforts can lose their impact.
This episode is produced in partnership with the Georgia Interfaith Public Policy Center (https://www.linkedin.com/company/georgiainterfaithcenter/).
Inclusion Catalyst invites you to become our next guest host. Learn more here: http://inclusioncatalyst.com/join-us-as-a-guest-host/ (http://inclusioncatalyst.com/join-us-as-a-guest-host/)
Who has been a guest on Inclusion Catalyst
Names identified in recent episode analyses. Showing up to five guests.
Charles Gibson
Nadia Mian
Theresa Lau
Teresa Lau
Dr Johanna Moya Fábregas
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Apple Podcasts (US)
5.0 / 5
10 ratings
Podcast Authority Score: 41 / 100
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Quality
61
Social presence
0
YouTube
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Engagement
51
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