This month we have a bonus guest blog post!: a book recommendation from Djaz Zulida, one of the Job Information Resource Librarians in the Business & Career Center.
The Queer Advantage: Conversations with LGBTQ+ Leaders on the Power of Identity by Andrew Gelwicks is a fascinating book of interviews with notables including George Takei, Lee Daniels, and Blair Imani, just to name a few. Published in 2020, this book has athletes, entertainers, CEOs, and politicians from the queer community talking about their lives and careers. Many of them also offer advice and inspiration for LGBTQ+ professionals.
Although this book features LGBTQ+ leaders and is geared towards the LGBTQ+ community, the advice being shared is helpful for every professional. One of the biggest pieces of advice was about how important authenticity is in your work and personal life. Many interviewees also mentioned fighting against discrimination and adversity and how that’s impacted their career path. Below are some of the most impactful quotes from the book. I urge you to pick up this book or others about amazing LGBTQ+ professionals!
“The toughest times... those are the times where you work the hardest. Those are the times you look at yourself and say, I have to get up and go into the office in the morning. And if I go into the office, then I’m going to get what I want.”
- Dominique Jackson, Actress
“If you look at all of the queer artists out there, there’s such exceptional talent that is born out of this drive to be counted as equal. And because of that, drive really sets us apart."
- Margaret Cho, Actress & Comedian
"Going above and beyond is what’s gotten me here. Being gay has forced me to dig deeper and have more ambition, to prove doubters wrong. It pushed me to be much more thoughtful and intentional about my choices and what I wanted to do, what I wanted to achieve, and how I wanted to be perceived.”
- Cliff Hopkins, Marketing Pro & Broadway Producer
“Being queer has helped me in so many different ways... I’ve been able to use both my personal experience as an athlete and my experience with policy... I also think it helped me with confidence in navigating professional situations as well as personal situations. I know exactly who I am and I’m very clear about the person I want to be and my mission every single day.”
- Chris Mosier, Triathlete
“Everyone should be able to bring all of themselves to the workplace and feel like they don’t have to hide or cover. You can only be your best when you embrace your authentic self... [It] is my lifelong commitment to achieving equality for all that has always been the driving force in everything I do.”
- Billie Jean King, Professional Tennis Player
“Anytime you go through a marginalized experience, there’s a drive to attain what the privileged people have. Not necessarily to duplicate it... but to say, I absolutely deserve the things I need and want to be successful in life... When you have the opportunity... to determine who you are... we get self-actualization and self-agency. Those things are crucial to being a whole person. ”
- Blair Imani, Activist
“The way I’ve been advantaged by being openly gay is that it set a tone going into all of my work environments of being honest, courageous, unafraid, and open. Those are assets I didn’t realize would be so powerful.”
- Sally Susman, Executive
“I spent a lot of my early career feeling insecure about who I was and wanting to be more like other people; to play by the rules. I wish I had embraced my authenticity more and doubted it less in my career... Be who you are and trust that that will be rewarded. Trust yourself, trust your instincts, be authentic, and shine.”
- Sam Lansky, Writer
“Be confident. It’s the hardest thing you can possibly do... [If] you don’t show up really owning your space and feeling confident in your idea and in your vision, someone behind you will do that.”
- Dan Levy, Actor
“...I genuinely believe that life only works, and success only works, if you’re being authentically yourself.... [The] only way to achieve success is by sticking to what is authentically true to you.”
- Adam Eli, Activist
Thank you, Djaz!
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Job seekers: Check out the Business & Career Center's LibGuides on job searching, resume and cover letter writing, interviewing, job training resources, and more! This information is free and available to all - no library card required.
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