See Balance Magazine’s Feature on EcoChamber Founder, Tia Diaz-Balart
Tia is a woman whose belief in “striving for progress, not perfection” is indeed her winning formula catapulting her to perfection, indeed!
If you have a difficult decision to make, how many people do you discuss it with?
Tia Diaz-Balart's personal passion
I always involve other people in my decision-making process. I subscribe to the idea of surrounding myself with people who are smarter than me, and I value their insight and input. I confer with my husband, co-workers, partners and my closest friends. I don’t always agree with everything, but others’ views help me come up with the best decision.
Has networking with other women had a positive impact on your personal and professional life?
Absolutely! Networking with other women is really multi-faceted. I gain so much inspiration from the wonderful strength and power of women. They’ve given me the courage to take on additional responsibilities and risks and to believe in myself.
When you were a child, did you have a hero (she-ro)?
Both my Mom and Dad are my heroes. They are strong, independent, brilliant and very compassionate. And not to sound cliché, but I’ve looked up to Mother Teresa my whole life. Living in the most poverty-stricken conditions, she had such strength of character and faith, by following her beliefs and passion no matter the challenges she was faced with, to help people.
What lesson would you like women to learn from your experiences?
First, don’t be afraid of failure. You have to see why you failed, then change and improve upon it. And that leads into the next important lesson, which is perseverance. Follow your passion and what you truly believe in; keep working at it and don’t take a failure or setback as anything but a means to be better, smarter and stronger. Also, women have a tendency to be sensitive to others’ beliefs to our detriment, and that is where we need to hold strong to our own convictions and keep moving forward.
How do you define success and what qualities define YOU?
To me success is measured in ‘baby steps’ because I set up these big, big goals and it is so easy to lose sight of the little successes without evaluation steps. The qualities that define me are that I am out-of-the-box and I’m a risk taker. I’m not afraid of change or something that is out of the ordinary for the greater good. That’s part of the excitement of life!
Do you believe in the concept of “giving back,” and if so, how do you give back?
Giving back is what life is all about. I don’t think I would be satisfied or content if I weren’t giving back. Even something as simple as smiling at a stranger can make a huge difference in the world. The concept of the EcoChamber is entirely about giving back, it’s about making sure we have clean water and food and are changing the world. And, really, isn’t that what life is all about?
