Belonging Does Not Happen by Accident
Posted on Aug. 28, 2026 / Chapter News / Subscribe 0
by: Charles Reader-Hernandez, Director of Inclusion and Belonging
We often talk about belonging as if it is something people either feel or they do not.
I think that lets us off the hook.
Belonging is not accidental. It is shaped by the spaces we create, the questions we ask, whose voices we make room for, and whether people feel they can show up fully without having to constantly translate, minimize, or edit themselves.
That matters in our chapter community. It also matters in every coaching relationship.
As coaches, we help create the conditions in which clients can think differently, take risks, challenge assumptions, and imagine new possibilities. But that work becomes much harder when the coaching space itself does not feel psychologically or relationally safe.
So one question I am sitting with this month is this:
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What am I doing to actively create belonging, rather than simply hoping it emerges?
That question feels especially relevant as we prepare for our upcoming Coaches Summit: A Playground of Possibilities on September 18 at the Exploratorium in San Francisco. Gatherings like this are more than professional development opportunities. At their best, they are places where people connect across differences, encounter new ideas, find community, and leave seeing themselves and their work a little differently.
The same can be true of our coaching.
Belonging does not require that everyone agree or be at the same place. It does require that people experience enough trust, curiosity, and respect to remain engaged when the conversation gets interesting.
As you enter your next coaching conversation, meeting, or community space, consider asking yourself:
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What conditions am I creating for this person to feel that they truly belong here?
And as we look ahead to the Coaches Summit, let’s continue thinking about how we can create spaces where everyone feels they truly belong.
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