Mary Balderaz.
I come from an immigrant family who moved to the US in 1973. My parents came from a generation of being very strict with children so most of my life we remained sheltered and did not have the real world experience. When I joined the corporate world I felt out of place due to not having a silver tongue per say or finding the right words to express myself so I would remain silent and did not truly have a voice due to my insecurities of finding the perfect words to express myself. I had a mentor who opened my eyes and helped me find accept, love myself on who I was and the culture I grew up in. I remember her saying just say what you feel and do not worry about making it sound perfect. Once I did that it opened my world in learning about so many things and not being afraid to ask if I did not know or understand something, it was going to be ok. For the first time in my life I felt comfortable in my own skin being who I was and learned to love myself with all my imperfections that are perfect in my eyes.
