Best of N.A.H. February 2017

March 1, 2017

On the 1st of each month, I share links to some of the best posts from my blog, Notes from an Aspiring Humanitarian.

Here are selected notes from February 2017.

For When Imposter Syndrome Creeps In

“When that imposter syndrome kicks in, it’s okay to acknowledge it to yourself, and to trusted folks whom you are in community with.

I feel making our experiences accessible in this way are acts of kindness…”

Toxic Masculinity

“As we talked about common messages that we’ve been taught about what being a man is supposed to look like, I was reminded that adhering so closely to those rules and expectations often means wearing a mask, being fake, living a lie. The key to emancipation lies in challenging those false notions, discarding them, and making room for new ways of thinking and being. In the spirit of critical thinking, I share this old post.”

The Importance of Empathy

“In the note “Getting In Our Own Way: 2 Barriers We Contribute To That Limit Social Change“, I named egocentrism and ethnocentrism as two important roadblocks to overcome….One way to resist those roadblocks is to work at developing a sense of empathy.”

Overwhelmed

“This note isn’t about platitudes that while well intended, can feel empty, silencing, and invalidating to folks who are really having a hard time regardless of how they feel about themselves as individuals. This note isn’t about moving quickly to “solutions” without acknowledging legitimate feelings and concerns whatever they might be. This note is about acknowledging our need to sit with things for a time, and acknowledging a very human experience of feeling exhausted, depleted, overwhelmed.”

6 Reasons Colleges and Universities Should Face Race and Not Ignore it

“In a talk on campus climate in a post-election era, Dr. Shaun Harper shared a number of themes that arose from his over 10 years of experience evaluating the campus climate of institutions across the country. I took some rough notes on a few of them that I’ll share here.”