We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Yadira Santana-Dowling a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Yadira, thank you so much for joining us today. Let’s jump right into something we’re really interested in hearing about from you – being the only one in the room. So many of us find ourselves as the only woman in the room, the only immigrant or the only artist in the room, etc. Can you talk to us about how you have learned to be effective and successful in situations where you are the only one in the room like you?
I have grown to love sharing my perspective understanding that being the only one in the room gives me a unique vantage point and frame of reference that I get to share with those around me. As an AfroLatina, with a 20 year career as a communications strategist, I’ve often been “the only” since entering higher education. I recall walking into my graduate school class determined to get a master’s degree to be able to authentically speak about our culture and people with corporations that wanted to know more about us. I was driven by the pride I feel in my Latin culture, the excitement I feel for having the ability to navigate between two languages and knowing that I was creating a path for many others to follow. In hindsight I can now see that setting down on this path was a bold move and it taught me that I could make this choice over and over again to create realities that first exist only in my imagination. I did this again when I developed a mentorship program between an ad agency and an HBCU, and I did it again when I developed a stationery line of products that celebrates the beauty I see in diversity.
Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?
I am a director of brand strategy and my business is Inspira Communications. For the past 20 years I’ve helped brands in the US and beyond connect with diverse audiences, leaning into my on passion for the duality of my bicultural life experience.
I have also recently launched a stationery line that celebrates diversity, representation and our intersections. This line is meant to foster personal connection and pride in our diverse heritage and encourages connection to ourselves and others. I developed these tools to help people connect and appreciate one another and ultimately see the beauty that I see in our differences.
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
The first one would be trust, knowing that what we imagine can be created. I have found that sometimes we get discouraged when we imagine something that we haven’t seen and I think that instead of getting discouraged, we can get excited that we are the ones that are enlightened with the idea because that means we are the ones that get to create it and bring it to this world.
The second one would be perseverance. Considering the discouragement that we may feel based on my earlier point, the down time will come, feel the feelings and dust yourself off and keep on going. Your dreams are worth pursuing, they might take longer than you thought, don’t give up on yourself, get up and try again. We often give others so many chances and benefit of the doubt but we don’t offer ourselves the same grace, it’s time we showed ourselves that same grace and persevere in pursuing what we want.
The third would be to seek help and support throughout the process. We can go much further when we don’t go at it alone. As a mom, wife and working woman I can say that I have support on all fronts, at home and in the work I do. Community has helped me do much more than what I would’ve been able to do if I attempted to do all of this alone.
What has been your biggest area of growth or improvement in the past 12 months?
My biggest area of growth this past year has been acknowledging that I get in my own way; my most rewarding work and also greatest challenge has been my own mindset. Once I figured that out, I’ve been relentless in getting the work done, it’s not easy since it’s me against me but it has been the most significant and progress inducing work I’ve done.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.inspiracommunications.com
- Instagram: @inspiracommunications
Image Credits
Image Credits: Kennedy Creative Studios by Karina Kennedy
