Aracelis Alejandro

The thing that I am most proud of is staying true to finding that balance and not letting it compromise who I am, not just professionally, but personally. I am a person with character and integrity, and I do not want to ever lose that. I don't want to be the type of individual that's just going to do what they want me to because it's what they want. A perfect example is my previous employer - I saw some things that I did not agree with, so I ended up leaving because it was compromising who I am and my intentions. I knew something was not being done in the right way, in an acceptable manner, and because it was centralized, I didn't have control over it. So I had to terminate an employee that I knew shouldn't have been terminated, and when my hand was forced to do that, that's when I decided it was time for me to leave. I have faith in God, and that's the only way I got through it.

I would love to mentor them and coach them and prepare them for the challenges that they will face. HR has evolved in so many different ways, and I don't know if some of our younger individuals would be able to meet those challenges and put up with it. You need very, very thick skin and a lot of emotional intelligence, and that would probably have to be the first lesson that they would have to learn. You're a punching bag, and that's not something that you should take personally. It's not a reflection of who you are or your capabilities. It is not a you problem, it is a their problem. They are going through something, and your job is to support them and provide them resources so they can either get mentally fit or whatever it is that they're going through, but it is not your problem and you should not take it home with you because that can end up affecting your personal life. It's important to set boundaries. Burnout is huge in any profession, but especially in HR because we are being condensed so much. We're not just HR generalists anymore or HR managers - we're everything in between. Set the boundaries, and one thing I've learned is to put either focus blocks where you have no interruptions and you can work on strategic things versus the transactional items that will just eat up your whole day.

My personal values are my guiding principles. I have to have a moral compass that's coming through in everything I do with my integrity intact. My top 3 values are family, honesty, and loyalty. I consider myself a loyal person, and I think loyalty goes a long way. Sometimes it gets abused, but you learn to know when it's being abused and what steps to take to protect yourself from it. I value my peace, and anyone that disturbs that peace, I keep my distance from. I will always help anyone that's in need, but I know who to keep in my inner circle and who must stay outside of it, and that's very important for my mental health.