Meet Claudia Irusta Vera

We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Claudia Irusta Vera. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Claudia below.

Claudia, thanks so much for taking the time to share your insights and lessons with us today. We’re particularly interested in hearing about how you became such a resilient person. Where do you get your resilience from?

Resilience was modeled by my mother, que en paz descanse. I learned so much about her life through chats over coffee or a slice of pizza. She had a rough childhood and I witnessed her go through obstacles as a mom. I thought I knew what it was but I didn’t fully understand or embody resilience until she was diagnosed with brain cancer. I see that resilience is defined by the capacity to withstand or to recover quickly from difficulties. I don’t think it was quick though. It started from the moment we got her diagnosis and all throughout the process of losing her. I learned to break down in the arms of my friends and family first before I developed resilience.

Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?

I grew up participating in after school programs, going to the Variety Boys and Girls Club during the Summers, and spent many years practicing martial arts. I loved spending time in the art room and dance studio. I was part of a dance team for several years where I got to explore choreography and created pieces for the team. Movement and crafts held me down through really hard times. I also think it’s helped me throughout my career. I’m a bilingual licensed mental health counselor and continuing to grow and practice dance and creative arts helps me stay grounded; in turn that helps me stay present with the people I work with.
Currently I’ve been brainstorming on how to start developing my own stationery and kickstart a personal project. I love hand making and binding my own notebooks, crocheting, and using watercolor. I also enjoy using my hands and making something out of nothing. Lately that’s been looking like making rings and amulets, and collaging in my journal.

There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?

I’d say curiosity, efforts to understand, and sense of humor are skills and qualities that had the most positive impact in my life. I’ve noticed curiosity can sometimes even change the tone of my thoughts when they’re not so nice or all over the place. It’s mind blowing what a game changer it is! When I start something new I can say I try my best but sometimes I have a tendency to lean toward perfectionism and wanting to “get it right.” Perfectionism wants me to get it right the first time. Curiosity lets me play.
My advice is try to practice curiosity as if things/situation were science experiment. We can have a hypothesis and then we run the experiment, there’s no right or wrong, it’s all data and information. The data helps with coming up with conclusions or results. Sometimes, even those can change.

What do you do when you feel overwhelmed? Any advice or strategies?

I start with acknowledging that I’m overwhelmed. I’ve been trying to practice moving through the overwhelm. Sometimes that looks like dancing, stretching, tapping the part of my body that feels overwhelmed, or going for a walk. Other times I talk myself through with as much love as possible. It’s also helpful to quickly vent to a friend through a voice note. I’m eternally grateful to have a circle of friends who are down to listen.
My advice? if you go out for a walk, for every time you see a dog, smile. 2. Whatever it is you’re overwhelmed about, say it out loud with an accent. It’s kind of silly but give it a go.
Full transparency, there are times all of this goes over my head and I have to let myself freak out for a little.