Can We Share Our Faith at Work, or Is It Still Taboo?

I attended SHRM26 as media and had the opportunity to enjoy an amazing evening at Disney’s Hollywood Studios, sponsored by Paycom Software. Star Wars was amazing. So was the food. And the ice cream. But the best part of the night was completely unexpected. It was the end of the evening. I had gone on Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance. All was well until it wasn’t. The ride malfunctioned.

While I was on the ride, I could actually see the end-of-night fireworks through one of the transitions. The ride is divided into different segments, and it malfunctioned near the end. I was thankful it wasn’t one of those upside-down rides. We simply sat there in our seat belts waiting. People around me began talking. Some had 5 a.m. flights. Others had 7 a.m. departures. I was planning to stay up because I had a later flight the next day and wanted to cover Oprah at SHRM.

Eventually we were escorted off the attraction. By the time we reached the bus area, the buses sponsored by Paycom had already left.

Catch an Uber or Lyft?

Not so easy.

Hundreds of people were trying to do exactly the same thing.

Many attendees had reported walking 45,000 steps a day during the conference, and now we had added even more walking trying to figure out how to get back to our hotels.

As I engaged people and made eye contact, I met Leslie and Matthew Carver. They shared they were in the line for the same ride I was in, however were turned away when the ride malfunctioned. They shared how much this ride meant to them because of the memories they had made with family when it first opened. They also shared how they experience Disney as VIP guests by staying at Disney’s Art of Animation Resort, where a Disney cast member provides limousine transportation to and from the parks. They were sitting in the wrong pickup area. Their limousine was actually arriving on the opposite side where there was almost no crowd and very little traffic. They generously offered to take me to their resort so I could call an Uber from there.

I do have to mention something else.

Just as we began walking toward the other side, a man offered to let me share his Uber at no cost. I said no, not because he wasn’t kind, but because I had already experienced a human connection with Leslie and Matthew. I also noticed he was offering rides to others around him. His kindness deserves to be recognized too.

Soon we climbed into the pink polka-dotted limousine van.

Leslie handed me a bottle of water. I chugged it. I sat in the front seat with the air conditioning blasting on me. Our driver seemed shaken. She shared that while trying to get through the traffic, a man with a conference badge had gotten out of his vehicle and yelled at her.

Oof.

If you’ve never been to Hollywood Studios at closing time, there is an incredible bottleneck at the entry and exit. No exceptions for anyone. Everyone is frustrated. Even though Leslie and Matthew had paid extra for VIP transportation, their driver still had to fight through that traffic to reach them. We all looked at each other. “He yelled at you? Why?”

When we arrived at Disney’s Art of Animation Resort, something happened that I will never forget. Before leaving the vehicle, Leslie asked if she could pray with our driver. As she prayed, the driver began to cry. Not just a few tears. She cried. Almost sobbing. It was one of those moments where you know the presence of Jesus is real. I felt it. So did she. I told her, “He is so real.” He hears our frustrations. He sees when we are treated unfairly. He cares.

That was the connection.

If I had judged the situation differently and left earlier...

If the ride had never malfunctioned...

If I hadn’t made eye contact with people while waiting...

That connection never would have happened.

For me, this became one of the most meaningful moments of SHRM26. It also made me think about something much bigger. We live in a time where talking about our faith, especially at work, often feels taboo.

Immediately after the panel, HR Executive Insights: Architecting the Future of the Global Frontline Workforce, moderated by Njsane Courtney, I interviewed him. I had noticed he openly shared his faith. As an executive member of SHRM, I asked him how I could also share my faith when I speak. He encouraged me to do it. He told me it is my personal experience. It is what helps me. That conversation stayed with me.

I don’t want to sound preachy because I know that turns some people away. Yet I teach happiness. The joy I experience through Jesus truly fuels my happiness. I have started to feel like I am doing my audience a disservice by leaving that part out.

During SHRM26 I also attended a Braindate called “Christian Ministry: Come meet up with other Christian HR professionals working in ministry.” I shared with the group that I have a podcast, Life Betterment Through God, where I’ve read the entire Bible. I also shared that I am finding my footing speaking to business audiences after retiring as a mental health therapist.

That is an entirely different world. Throughout much of my career in the mental health profession, talking openly about my faith was discouraged. The helping professions often did not have much respect for Christians or our beliefs. No, I did not feel respected or free to share my faith.

Now I find myself speaking with business leaders.

Recently, while teaching Executive Presence at the University of Tennessee, I shared a coaching story. One teen client had significant bias toward Christians. About two years into our four-year coaching relationship, I finally told him that his parents knew I was a Christian when they hired me. Why did they choose me? Because they wanted someone who could help him develop character. They were concerned because he believed his own lies.

• Character is part of executive presence.

• Communication is part of executive presence.

• Listening is part of executive presence.

• Empathy is part of executive presence.

In that Executive Presence class, I knew one participant had openly shared bias toward Christians in another class he had previously taken with me. I intentionally told this story because I wanted to demonstrate that executive presence requires us to listen with empathy, even when someone believes differently than we do. We are wishing death upon one another over belief systems and this was his story; and he goes to therapy for it.

The research tells us something different. Faith strengthens people. People who actively live their faith consistently report higher levels of optimism and hope. Another executive I interviewed at SHRM26, Camille Chang Gilmore, Senior Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer of Avanos Medical and Chair of the SHRM Foundation Board, shared that she and her husband wake up every morning to read the Bible, pray, and meditate before doing anything else.

So what is this article about?

Is it about faith?

Is it about the kindness of strangers?

Is it about human judgment?

Is it about human connection?

It’s about all of these things. What I know is this. If faith is part of the story, share it. If someone is open to it, pray for them. Don’t replace Jesus with “good thoughts” simply because it sounds more acceptable or more tolerant or more likeable. Say Jesus. I am not ashamed of the Gospel of Jesus Christ for it is the power of God to salvation.

I went to SHRM26 expecting to cover the future of work. I also found something that changed me. From now on, when I speak about happiness, flourishing, leadership, and the future of work, I will also share where my strength comes from. Jesus is my strength. My faith is one of my greatest character strengths. It is deeply woven into who I am. And flourishing would not be complete without telling that part of the story.