When most people go into a ‘womens’ or ‘mums’ group, and refer to them collectively as “ladies” …
When most speakers and presenters address their mixed gender groups as “ladies and gentlemen”..
And/or most of the coaches and experts who state their niche is e.g. “women in business“, or “midlife men”…
… I feel certain they don’t intend to discriminate, exclude, or cause offence to their audience.
That’s the thing about being gender inclusive though… we don’t know what we cannot yet recognise through the lens of our biased life experiences.
We trot these terms out without even thinking, habits built over years and decades.
Sadly, when we do, we unintentionally hurt some of the very people we want to help.
My friend G is non-binary and they regularly write content compassionately inviting their followers to question what we think we mean when we communicate about genders, against what members of the LGBTQ+ community hear us say.
I avidly devour their posts and I speak about what I have learned with my clients too.
These conversations often lead onto them saying they’ve been wanting to learn more but are worried:
“What if I say the wrong thing?”
“Will I be shot down or cancelled for being ‘ignorant’?”
“When is it safe to ask for clarification?”
If you have the desire to learn and have the same concerns about who or where to ask, then I recommend you watch this interview I did with my friend G Sabini-Roberts where they compassionately answered the questions you’re probably asking yourself, such as:
- Which term/s we should use instead of “ladies and gentlemen” to address a multi-gender community so everyone in your audience feels heard and seen by you…
- How terms like ‘womxn’ are NOT inclusive, and the inclusive way to address someone whose gender identity you are unsure of so you instantly demonstrate your business is sensitive to the needs of the LBGTQ+ community …
- Why what you THINK you mean when you refer to people as “women” and “men” is NOT what you are actually saying, meaning you’ll avoid clumsily leaving people who you see as your DREAM clients feeling unseen and unimportant.
Watch this interview to discover how you can become more inclusive to the LGBTQ+ community within your audience, so more of your dream clients feel seen and heard by you.
Veronica Pullen
Latest posts by Veronica Pullen (see all)
- Somatic Copy Case Study: Turning Katya Varbanova’s Difficult Announcement Into 100% Positive Feedback - April 1, 2026
- The Secret Envy That Drives Sales - December 18, 2025
- Is Love Silently Vetoing Your Sales? - December 11, 2025
Connect on Social Media