If Minimization is built on commonality, it might seem that the way forward is to throw commonality out. That is not the lesson. Bennett describes the resolution of this orientation as holding similarity and difference together: assuming similarity can help us appreciate difference, and a shared purpose gives difference a focus. The movement toward Acceptance happens when people keep their commitment to shared values while becoming able to see that the same value, such as respect or independence, is lived out differently in different cultural communities.
What helps? First, cultural self-awareness practices: comparing how members of a team were taught to show respect, disagree, ask for help or make a family decision, and noticing the range inside the room. Second, deliberate attention to difference in real work, not just in training: asking during a policy review how a rule would play out for people whose family structure, language or faith practice differs from the drafter's. Third, contact and listening done well: engaging community partners and people served as advisers, paid for their time where possible, rather than as audiences. Fourth, feedback on specific behavior over time, so people see the effect of their habits rather than being told what category they are in.
What does not help? Shaming people for emphasizing commonality usually pushes them back toward defending their position. Public comparisons of who is further along turn development into a competition and can harm colleagues from non-dominant groups who have used commonality to get by. Requiring people to share personal stories of discrimination or identity to prove a point asks for disclosure no one owes. And one-time training followed by nothing tends to fade. Development on the continuum is gradual, and the inventory's own materials describe individual development plans built after a debrief, not quick fixes.
For leaders, the most useful move is to change defaults. Build a question about cultural assumptions into the standard review of forms and notices. Test drafts with people who were not in the drafting room. Use the Equity Analysis Toolkit on routine decisions. When a team sees that noticing difference leads to better notices, fewer missed appointments and more trust from county and Tribal partners, attention to difference stops feeling like a threat to fairness and starts looking like part of doing the job well. Formal matters such as discrimination concerns or accommodation requests still go to EOAD, Human Resources or the ADA coordinator.
