RED AND YELLOW BLUE AND GREEN, WILL I BE SEEN FOR BEING ME? BY TAYLOR TINNIN

I’ve often asked myself if someone like me belongs in the business world. “Someone like me” is someone who cares about people’s emotional stability and peace. “Someone like me” is someone who needs as much time as she needs to do the job well. “Someone like me” is someone who thinks in story, in whys, and in vision. My major is Psychology, I’m a writer on the side, and my sport is distance running. In these things, I find space for my mulling and emotions and the stories of others to rattle around and settle into something meaningful to my heart. If you speak HBDI, I’m red red red and yellow yellow yellow.

351 has taught me that, if I look for it and know myself well, there is a place for me in business if I want it. Emotion, taking my time, and storytelling are not in competition with business.

There’s a place for me in storytelling and branding, there’s a place for me in vision casting, and there’s a place for me in building customer relationships. And, the other day, I found out that there’s a place for me where I can just talk empathetically with people.

For part of this particular class, we were talking about where ideas really come from. Before Friedman flashed the slides with the golden keys to success, I thought to myself, “Ideas come from empathy and actually spending time with people.” As it turns out, ideas come from insights which come from empathy. So, I was slightly wrong by mostly right. But, my heart soared because how I like to get ideas and how I like to do things was validated by someone who knows every trick of the business trade.

I can belong and that’s a sweet, sweet reality.