When I moved to the US I was only me, Mariela Tinoco-Aramburu, but then it hit me that I may have become someone else once I started getting some Diversity and Inclusion training related to the whole legal and cultural aspects as per the differences and commonalities we all share (or not). Woao! I was shocked! I also started getting questions related to my professional knowledge as whether I knew things that were pretty common HR knowledge unrelated to my nationality. I could write a separate entry on my blog including all the ‘silly’ questions, comments and huge tagging I felt myself trapped by when I was living under my first year induction in a country characterized by its diversity.
More than 9 years experiencing the presuming new me and I’ve found quite a level of comfort in the attributes I’ve chosen to give to each of my tags. Here I go:
Latino: Undetermined race not given by color or language. Alive and diverse all Latinos come from an extensive region with a variety of countries that sometimes share a lot of cultural values and some other times have not even the language in common. Winter and summer can be experienced or not. Poverty or richness. Happiness or sadness. Everything in Latin America is a matter of choice (not that different from anywhere else, don’t you think?).
Female: A wonderful genetic combination that happens to some amazing people called women. It comprises a variety and out-of-the-box category that it is impossible to tag into any other self-described attribute but the one given in the biology class.
Minority: A group that is not numerically bigger than another one. A growing number of people with the power to make sustainable changes in our society.
Alien: It is work in progress. A person from ‘somewhere else’ not to be taken with fear. An explorer looking for a better life, seeking a dream and contributing to the fun diversity of our society with its own differences. A real barrier breaker. Innovative, brave and determined to make it.
What tags have you identified for yourself? Introverted or Extroverted? Emotional or Analytical? Do they trap your potential or move you forward to success? Do you consider yourself pre-determined and self-contained by a set of categories defined by someone else or have you chosen to live your life by your own chosen standards?
I couldn’t resist the urge to re-invent the definitions given to tags as life probes constantly that nothing is like it seems and how my grandmother would say: ‘the world is upside down’. It opens all sorts of possibilities to explore the life you have always wanted to live if you give it a try. Make your own definitions and get-out-of-the box!
Your life, your tag definition and your ultimate choice! Let's play!
Your Coach,
Mariela
P.S. For those looking for the legal information on how to deal with interviewing illegal questions, wait for a future entry on that matter coming soon!
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