ProWoc Celebrates | 13 Edition, February 2024
Sharda Sekaran
Writer and Communications Consultant
ProWoc Celebrates SHARDA SEKARAN, a writer and communications consultant from New York. For the past two decades, Sharda has collaborated mostly with NGOs as an advisor, strategist, and executive leader.
ProWoc recently sat down with Sharda to discuss her accomplishments and journey.
Introduction: move to Denmark
My name is Sharda Sekaran. I am a writer and communications consultant hailing from the ever dynamic city of New York. I’m a proud alum of the Bronx High School of Science. I earned an undergrad degree in international relations from a small liberal arts school all the way on the other side of the US, Pomona College in Claremont, California. I have an MBA from Emory University in Atlanta, GA. My biggest passions are promoting human rights (I co-founded an NGO called Partners for Dignity and Rights that is about to celebrate it’s 20th anniversary this year), music (I’m a former DJ and hobby vocalist who never met a karaoke mic I was unwilling to light up), and fiction writing (I’ve been working on a novel that I will soon be shopping around which, true-to-form, focuses on music).
Life in DK - how long have you lived here? What brought you to DK?
I moved in the summer of 2018 after a 7-year courtship with Denmark. First visiting for fun and conferences, and then for the Danish man I fell in love with along the way, who is now my husband. That’s the short version of the story. There was a whole bunch of kismet involved. Basically, all the stars seemed to align to bring me here from the moment I even considered the possibility.
First impressions of DK: Work, School and Social situations
I had my own consulting practice in New York. I’ve been working with mostly NGOs for two decades as an advisor, strategist, and executive leader. I’ve continued that work from Denmark through the networks I have built over the course of my career. I haven’t actually ever worked within a Danish context or organization, although I am curious about it. My impression is that Danes tend to be much more introverted than I am used to. In the US, people you’ve never met will tell you their whole life story while you’re waiting on line at the pharmacy. In Denmark, I fear that I once left a stranger in complete shock simply because I complimented her earrings! People where I come from are also always hustling and striving, maybe to a fault. Danes value their down time and leisure much more, which I personally appreciate.
What important choices have you made in your journey os far?
I think my most important career choice was to always try my best to keep my networks and relationships alive, even after I moved here. I am grateful that I am able to rely on them for opportunities. I think it would have been frustrating to have to build a professional reputation again from scratch, after already accumulating so much experience. I feel for the accomplished and professional women moving to Denmark facing this challenge. This is why a group like ProWoc is so important. I’ve met remarkable women of color from diverse backgrounds who offer talents and knowledge that can be enormously valuable to the Danish society.
Achievements
What is your greatest achievement &/or career highlight? Why ?
The achievement that will always stand out most is my first independent consulting project, which I got as a very green 23-year-old. Someone I met through a public relations agency I’d done some freelancing for, introduced me to a non-profit executive director who was invited at the last minute to partner on a couple of major media events that were much bigger than anything they’d ever done before. It involved massive stages with cameras, large crowds, and a high profile cast of community leaders, celebrities, and politicians. Somehow I’d projected enough confidence over a lunch that he entrusted me with leading the production. I was basically designing the program and running the show. For me, it felt like the Oscars! I don’t think I’ve ever worked as hard or as many hours on anything but it was phenomenal. It gave me faith in myself to see that I was capable of doing something so major without letting myself get intimidated.
What are your biggest challenges? Why ?
My biggest challenges have been the pressures I’ve faced that I think are unfortunately typical for executives who may be the first ever or only woman of color in their organization’s leadership. I found that I was expected to be exceptional in my role and also simultaneously expected to take on any and all of the organization’s race and inclusion problems as a side concern. Because I care a lot about these things, I was often willing to take on the responsibility but it wasn’t a healthy dynamic for me. It was exhausting, exasperating, and led to burn out. Part of why I enjoy being independent is it has helped me to establish better boundaries. I hope there is progress and more organizations invest in DEI, so the burden doesn’t fall on their already overstretched leaders of color.
I think my ability to think creatively and my resourcefulness are my greatest assets. I grew up as an only child of a single mom who I would describe as feminist and ahead of her time. She was very focused on the importance of early childhood education and put me in Montessori schools from the time I was 18 months old. I developed a deep curiosity about the world from a very young age, which has come to define who I am.
Aspirations
What goal/ dream would you like to accomplish?
Becoming a published fiction author is my longest life dream that I have yet to fulfill. I always wanted to write. My justifiable fear of poverty made me put those dreams on the back burner but I am a big believer that it is never too late. I’ve been working on a novel for a quite a while about a fictional music scene in 1990s New York City whose legacy inspires a young man today to overcome his unresolved trauma and loss. I am hoping very hard that it will be my debut.
What inspires and motivates you every day?
I’ve made choices in my life that I sometimes question, wondering if perhaps I was too cautious in one way or not cautious enough in another, and so forth. There are innumerable ways to imagine how the decision trees of our life could have been plotted differently. When I need to lift myself up or feel inspired, I sometimes think of the young girl version of myself, and how unapologetic she felt about some of the choices I’ve made that I question today. I try to borrow her confidence and fierceness.
The best piece of advice I have received was from a family friend who I called “Aunt Margaret.” She took me under her wing when I was soon turning 12 and helped me get into a much better school than the one designated for my neighborhood. At the time, I believe she was in her 70s and working on her 3rd doctoral degree!” Aunt Margaret told me, “Never stop learning.”
So much of my work has been motivated by my concerns for human rights. I was drawn to social causes from a very young age. I can get completely caught up in concern for others, sometime at the expense of myself. I think I would go back in time and tell younger me to make sure you look out for yourself and get paid appropriately for what you are contributing. Don’t be so well meaning that you let people take advantage of you!
Rapid fire questions to Sharda
1. Who is one of your role models and why?
Maya Angelou came to speak at my college when I was a student. She’s a big role model and icon for me, and she really lit a fire of inspiration under all of us in that audience. She focused her talk on the quote, “I am a human being. Nothing human can be alien to me” from Terentius Afer, an African once enslaved in Ancient Rome, who went on become an acclaimed playwright. I have often thought of that quote when confronted with people whose views and perspectives are widely different from mine. I summon Maya Angelou to help guide me towards our shared humanity.
2. What is one book you think everyone should read?
One book that really changed me is “Secrets of the Talking Jaguar” by artist and shaman Martín Prechtel. It was given to me by an amazing woman I met when a friend and I were traveling and learning Spanish in Guatemala. It was during a transformative moment in my life, when I needed inspiration. The book describes the value system of a Mayan village on lake Atitlán where the author lived and became a shaman. Their belief is that we are all born with a debt to the earth and must compensate for the resources we require to live through our art, creativity, and beauty. This idea was revelatory for me and offered a whole new vision about what it means to be accomplished and successful.
3. If you could live and work in any country, which one would it be?
4. What would be the title of your autobiography?
Ha. Maybe my autobiography could be called “DIY (Do-It-Yourself)” because my attitude has always been to imagine limitless possibilities and if you don’t see a path laid out to get where you want to be, “make the road by walking.”
5. How has your membership in ProWoC enriched your life or career?
ProWoc been excellent for networking, which is especially valuable to me because my work projects are not yet based in Denmark. It’s an invaluable resource for making contacts and meeting talented professionals who I might like to team up with. I’ve already had a couple of collaborations with a ProWoc friend, Sondra Duckert, who I’ve brought onto projects requiring website expertise.
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