This weeks TED Talk Tuesday is brought to you by Rebeca Hwang, an inventor, entrepreneur, social innovator, investor, teacher, and a female leader in technology. Currently Mrs. Hwang serves as the co-founder and managing director of Rivet Ventures, a company helping female decision makers, creators, and investors get involved in women-led markets. Rebeca’s TED Talk is about embracing the many elements of your identity to make diversity a characteristic of your success.  

 Some quotes from Rebeca Hwang:

• “I felt as though I could be either Korean or Argentinian, but not both. It felt like a zero-sum game, where I had to give up my old identity to be able to gain or earn a new one.”

• “Perhaps this could be an advantage. It was easy for me to stand out, which couldn't hurt in a world that was rapidly changing.”

• “Now, today my identity quest is no longer to find my tribe. It's more about allowing myself to embrace all of the possible permutations of myself and cultivating diversity within me and not just around me.”

• “I hope that instead of feeling anxious and worried that they don't fit in that one box or that their identity will become irrelevant someday, that they can feel free to experiment and to take control of their personal narrative and identity.”

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“In a world continuing to adapt and change with globalization, embracing diversity in your background is not only personal beneficial, but pride in that diversity combats racism, discrimination, and prejudice. Our communities and our country are made up of people with complex identities, where those complexities should be viewed as a strength rather than used as a platform to alienate others.”

— Wayne Powell

Wayne Powell believes the best way to incorporate diversity in your life is to embrace new culture and to travel. As a member of the International Association of Lawyers, and during his time in the United States Army, Wayne traveled and lived abroad, developing respect and appreciation for cultures, languages, and customs around the work that have influenced his professional and personal beliefs.

Para nuestras lectores bilingües y hispanohablantes, por favor visite https://www.ted.com/talks/rebeca_hwang_el_valor_de_nuestra_diversidad_interna para ver esta conversación como fue originalmente escrito en español.

In this TED Talk Tuesday piece, we explore the complexity of our current times. Elif Shafak, a writer blending East and West, feminism and traditional, shares her perspective of today’s trend toward tribalism that pulls us apart and her hope for humanity’s ability to move towards multiplicity as the antidote and nuance as the connector.

Noting her multicultural, multinational, complex experience self, Shafak shares her appreciation of storytelling and individual human rights, much like Wayne Powell. A white man born and raised in the south can quickly get a label and tossed into a tribe before opening their mouth. The same way a black man can be labeled as he walks across the street at night or a Latino-looking woman getting out of her car with many children might begin a story in one’s mind that assumes something about them. Sadly, research today shows social media drives tribalism and this “clash between two certainties” that Shafak speaks of is highlighted. She points out how we are being denied the right to be complex. And complex the Powell Law Group knows the world is.

Wayne learned from his heritage, both good and bad, and crafted his future to treasure the nuance. His education steeped in learning multiple languages to better understand others, rooted in belief for our country, as well as helping other countries, and a burning passion to help the “common man” when life is at its most bleak, it’s the unique story of each client that keeps Wayne passionate about his legal practice of almost 40 years.

“So from populist demagogues, we will learn the indispensability of democracy. And from isolationists, we will learn the need for global solidarity. And from tribalists, we will learn the beauty of cosmopolitanism and the beauty of diversity.”

— Elif Shafak

Above we give you a glimpse of Elik Shafak’s literary works. They are all available on Amazon and worth checking out, if you enjoyed her TED Talk like we did.

Also, if you or a loved one face a dark time due to an injury, you don’t have to feel alone no matter if your far from your “motherland” or in the same town you were born. From traumatic brain injuries to back problems and mental health, Powell Law Group understands the “what happened to you” for each client is going to be different and range from simple to complex, but we go into every case with the same goal: Make sure our clients are getting the best medical care possible and receive maximum compensation to live the best life possible for their unique personal situation. Case reviews are free and our experience in helping people find justice is vast.

Diversity in companies. Yes, thankfully these days people are trying to be more thoughtful with their hiring strategy and team structure. But why? Just because “diversity” is a buzz word. NO. Because diversity matters.

In this 2017 TED Talk by Rocío Lorenzo, a telecom and media company consultant for the current digital age, she walks us through the research of 171 companies that clearly outlines how a company can be more innovative through diversity. Bolstering up your company’s competitive advantage through more original ideas by attaining a richer diversity, now that’s a TED Talk you should have 11 minutes and six seconds for!

For the last fifteen years, Lorenzo has worked extensively in telecommunications and media, advising senior executives across Europe and the US on strategy development, growth programs and large scale transformations. Below are a few noteworthy excerpts from her TED Talk:

• Many leaders I met saw diversity as something to comply with out of political correctness, or, best case, the right thing to do, but not as a business priority.

• Our data shows that for gender diversity to have an impact on innovation, you need to have more than 20 percent women in leadership.

• My generation, your generation, represent the best-educated female generation in history, but we have failed to achieve leadership in significant numbers. Education just did not translate into leadership.

• Making or breaking the success of diversity in your business boils down to two things: Who to hire, and who to develop and promote.

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“Diversity in the workplace is one of the things that set the Powell Law Group apart from other small law firms. It is one thing to be able to provide a service in Spanish, it is another altogether to have an understanding for cultural norms and customs, and respect for the humanity of others.”

— Wayne Powell

Wayne Powell believes in the innovative nature and ideas that a diverse team bring to his business. With native Spanish speakers, a predominantly female staff, and a broad range of ages, we embrace the diverse demographics that make up our staff. Check out Powell Law Group’s amazingly talented and experienced staff, both in life breadth and legal help.

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And just in case you need a visual reason to listen to this TED Talk, these slides are just a few of Lorenzo’s interesting findings.