About
I'm half-Turkish half-American, and was raised in Istanbul, Turkey. I was amongst the first graduating class of an experimental Turkish school that fostered a bilingual environment. It focused on learning by doing as opposed to memorization and regurgitation. There, I fell in love with reading, collaboration and self-exploration.
In high school I read Stephen Covey’s 7 Habits of Highly Effective People and finally found the words I didn't know I was searching for. It provided a framework to understand what I had influence over in my life. In an attempt to be less reactive and more proactive, I took notes furiously, reflecting on my own habits. I made a poster of behaviors I wanted to change, and hung it on my wall. I started behaving differently, taking responsibility for my decisions. I was excited, curious, and ready for new experiences.
I came to Boston to attend college, and have been here ever since. My concentration in business school was a combination of marketing, information design, corporate communication and psychology, so I knew I wanted to do work that was both creative and analytical. For my minor, I took a class on emotional intelligence where I completed the EQ-i assessment. It was eye opening; I learned that self-awareness could be measured and improved upon. It was also in college that I was exposed t0 user experience through an internship, and am eternally grateful for it.
More than a decade into my career, I'm falling even more in love with what I do, and expanding my interests to behavioral, cognitive and humanistic psychology. I read and listen to podcasts about psychology and design every day. I'm constantly looking for ways to improve; to enable myself and others to make better decisions.
Over the years, I've become increasingly comfortable in my own skin. I don't believe everything happens for a reason, I think it's up to us to find meaning and purpose in life, and make decisions that align with our values. And when things happen to us beyond our control, we have to be honest with those we trust, to get support and continue to build lasting relationships. I now believe that showing vulnerability is courageous, and that we all have stories we tell ourselves to cope with reality. As Brené Brown says in Daring Greatly, 'to risk and to innovate is inherently vulnerable'.
