Tagline
Hola, Hallo: A Puerto Rican Tech Consultant and Podcast Host living in Germany shows how to be a global citizen speaking from the heart.
Bio for Yadi Caro
Yadi Caro is a Puerto Rican Tech Consultant and Podcast Host. She started her career as a journalist and editor focused on Latin American affairs and Hispanics in the US. She transitioned to communications consulting over a decade ago and has been working since then in the Defense sector.
Her skills in communications, strategy and management led her to a career in Information Technology. She works with customers to define the best tools they can use and works with software developers to build great products.
Along the way, she has obtained various certifications including Project Management Professional, Certified Knowledge Manager, Scrum Product Owner, Lean Six Sigma and Business Analytics. Currently, she is also an Organizational Behavior graduate student at Harvard Extension School to learn about human behaviour at work.
As part of her learning journey, she combined her interest in human behaviour, management and working with customers in the tech world to create the Hardcore Soft Skills podcast to talk to experts about specific ‘soft’ skills needed for career success. She is a mother of two boys, ages 8 and 3, and loves running and travelling (she has been to 32 countries so far).
Episode highlight
Yadi Caro has combined her natural affinities of introversion with a deep curiosity about cultures, people and the tech world. Listen in on how she combined these passions together working as a Hispanic journalist in the US defence sector!
Links
- Email: yadiracaro@gmail.com
- Website: https://www.hardcoresoftskillspodcast.com/, https://yadicaro.wordpress.com/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/yadiraycaro/
Quotes
- “Being shy really helped me because I feel a lot of empathy in terms of… I’m always trying to be inclusive when it either comes to meetings or seeking out the opinions of others.”
- “I work in a world where most of the people are men so it’s very important to be assertive and to… not feel intimidated and it’s always good to have this group of friends that… trust you and trust that you can achieve many things.”
- “I always questioned if we have a society that wants to be equal, why do women always have to be relegated to being the supporter of the house when we can have a truly equal partnership?”
Takeaways
Childhood Incidents
Yadi claims she was an extremely shy introvert as a child and was always shielded by her family members. Moving to the University of Puerto Rico in the city, a few hours from home, was the first time she had the opportunity to “really discover who I was and… fend for myself”, she recalls.
Moving to Florida for her journalism studies helped her come out of her shell even more. Being an ambitious achiever, she knew she needed to break away from her shyness to be a good journalist. However, she is now mindful of others who may be shy and works to include and comfort them.
Influential groups
Yadi was born and raised in the countryside in Puerto Rico and lived with a “sense of community” in a family-oriented culture, which has made her inclusive and respectful. She questioned the role of women in that society, where even though her mom worked, she still had to look after the house.
In Florida, she shared a commonality with other Hispanic journalism students and was part of many such associations. She has always surrounded herself with successful women who exchange support and inspiration. As a journalist, she has learnt to ask difficult questions and unearth hard facts.
Temperament and Personality Influences
Yadi has always been a very disciplined person, a trait that helps her balance the many roles she plays today. She also has good communication and organizational skills and claims to be a Type A personality, which pushes her to overcome challenges.
Cultural Epiphanies
As a Hispanic person, family is important to Yadi and moving from Puerto Rico to the USA was a cultural shock for her, where relations aren’t as close as she was used to. She finds it strange that her non-Hispanic husband speaks to his family members only once in a while and sees them on holidays.
Yadi is planning to move her family back to Florida but fears her children missing out on European culture, which has much more relaxed weekends and proximity to other countries. She also acknowledges that small talk is not popular in Germany, whereas it is commonplace in the USA.
Advice to an Employer
For Yadi, creative freedom is important. “Give me a project then don’t necessarily tell me the way to do it”, she remarks. She enjoys “working with people that like to get things done, to solve a problem and move on to the next problem.”
More Great Insights!
Yadi’s podcast, Hardcore Soft Skills, focuses on specific soft skills in each episode, like communication, teamwork, and negotiation, that provide success in any project. She asks experts, authors and internationally recognized professionals to share their tips for developing soft skills.
Extro
Yadi’s relentless pursuit to understand human behaviour and willingness to experience it personally as she immigrated and travelled to other countries is admirable. Her focus on helping others feel they belong and are part of the family does not stop her from asking the hard questions and making sure people’s stories measure up to the facts.
