#33 Exploring Sexuality and Spiritual Awakening w/ Adeline Er
I’ve been back in the San Francisco Bay Area for about two weeks now and it’s been really nice to see family, friends and show my partner my old stomping grounds. One thing that I find special about The Bay is how diverse it is. I feel right at home at the new gym I signed up with, working in a neighborhood cafe or just walking down the street and saying hello to everyone who passes by.
My experience was a little different before moving to Bali years ago. I was working in tech and my mind was consumed by my experiences at my job. Even while everything seemed fine on the surface, something still wasn’t quite right. I was passed up for promotions, ignored in meetings and even bullied by my co-workers and boss.
In the places I worked, I was often the only woman of color, POC or woman, which made me feel lonely.
The average leader of a Fortune 500 company is:
- Gender: Male
- Race: White
- Height: 6’ tall⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Me entering the corporate world:
- Gender: Female
- Race: A brown Filipina
- Height: 5’0
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Obviously I was far away from the archetype of what a successful person in corporate should look like, and I tried hard to make it a non-issue.
At the time, I wasn’t able to articulate why I was having such a hard time until recently: according to the women in the workplace report, women who are “only’s” (like me and a lot of you) have especially difficult day-to-day experiences.
“Onlys stand out, and because of that, they tend to be more heavily scrutinized. Their successes and failures are often put under a microscope, and they are more likely to encounter comments and behavior that reduce them to negative stereotypes. ‘Double Onlys’ (like women of color) face even more bias, discrimination, and pressure to perform, and they are even more likely to be experiencing burnout.”
Does this resonate? You’re not alone.
In my conversation with artist and writer Adeline Er, she shares similar challenges she experienced in the workplace and in her daily life and how in combination with her Asian background, led her to suppressing her identity and voice.
Adeline talks about her sexual and spiritual awakenings and how they led her to finding healing and her true self expression.
Have you ever experienced lonely feelings from being an “only” at work or in life in general?
Would you find it helpful to join a community of like-minded people to support and uplift you and help you achieve your biggest goals?
This is something that’s near and dear to my heart and what I’ve been considering creating for a long time. It’s so important to have people in your corner who understand you and can help you get to where you want to go.
I’m ready to connect in this way. Are you?