I’m done biting my tongue — and I know I can’t be the only one. Now is the time to stop fearing being a ‘moaner’, and to start speaking up. Because sometimes that's exactly what’s needed to make things better. 

My new job, as it turns out, has really opened people up. When they hear my new title (DEI & Belonging Consultant if you were curious), they want to tell me their stories. Their experiences of discrimination, harassment, or things just not being right. 

The optimist in me wants to believe that this is because my job exists now. The realist in me, though, knows it’s actually because I’m asking questions I simply wouldn’t have asked before. 

Irrespective of the cause, this new openness has led to an interesting discovery: I’m not alone. 

Because the word I’ve heard most over the past few weeks is some version of ‘moan’. 

Or

I know I’ve got to recognise my privilege here. I’m a white, middle-class man. I know if I keep my mouth shut, I could go far in life by virtue of how I look, how I speak, and how people might perceive me. 

But I’ve got a new lease of life, and I’ve had enough. I don’t want to keep quiet anymore. I’m tired of being taken less seriously just because of who I am. And I know I’m not the only one. 

For too long I’ve been scared. Of having uncomfortable conversations. Of calling out manterrupting (google it). And most of all, of moaning. 

But my own experience shows the power of moaning. It can drive change in big ways, but in smaller ways too. 

I’ll never forget a former colleague publicly calling out the lack of period products in bathrooms. She wasn’t afraid of being seen as ‘moany’, and she made sure it was never an issue again. 

So, I’ve made up my mind. I’ve decided to stop being afraid. 

I’m going to start moaning. 

Will you?