I was once asked, "do you consider yourself more technical or more people-oriented?" At the time, I was absolutely stumped. Now, I have an answer. (Spoiler alert: it will be nerdy and heartfelt- that's just me.)
What if instead of thinking about being "technical" or "people-oriented" as mutually exclusive opposites of a single spectrum...
...we rather thought of these as two separate, even symbiotic, variables?
For a long time, I assumed that because I was a strong relationship-builder and communicator, that it must mean that I'm not very technical.
But recently, it struck me... what if my warmth is actually my superpower?
In 2023, I participated in the #30DayMapChallenge. Nearly every day for the month of November, I was hunting for data, exploring new visualization techniques, and freely creating. I would work all day training machine learning models and creating deliverables for clients, and then work all night dreaming up maps for fun. Hours would go by without me even realizing, and the impenetrable darkness of Berlin winter couldn't seem to get a hold of me.
I began to share these maps online on LinkedIn in a very open and authentic way. My inner critic was enraged- telling me not to share them, that I should be "more professional," that my creations weren't good enough.
I created anyway. I shared anyway.
Then, something interesting happened. A friend I met years ago reached out to me. He was in Saint Lucia, conducting a country-wide survey on how to best support small-holder farmers in the face of climate change- and he needed a map-maker.
He said there was two reasons he wanted to work with me:
"1. Because you're a GIS and cartography expert. It's clear through every single one of the maps you're posting online, and, 2. Because you're really nice."
I was blown away. While building my career in GIS, I had been focusing on consistently growing my technical skills. I hadn't considered that my relationship-building skills could be just as big of a factor in why someone may want to work with me. In fact, I thought that these crucial interpersonal strengths somehow made me less professional. I thought that my personality was a weakness.
These days, I am softening my inner critic. I am ready to fully embrace my ability to build rapport, facilitate collaboration, and communicate effectively with others. It's time that I recognize that these skills only add to all of the technical competencies I've been nurturing for years, instead of something that detracts from them.
All of this is to say, I hope that you embrace what makes you, you. It might just be that you stumble upon your superpower.
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