I am an ordinary person who has been blessed with extraordinary opportunities and experiences.
Sonia SotomayorRead
We have to look and ensure that we're paying attention to what we're doing, so that we don't reflexively institute processes and procedures that exclude people without thought.
Interpretation
We must be mindful of our actions to avoid unintentionally alienating others.
This quote emphasizes the importance of being intentional and considerate in our decision-making processes. Sonia Sotomayor urges us to be aware of how our actions and established procedures can inadvertently marginalize individuals. Reflecting on our practices and ensuring inclusivity should be a priority, as thoughtless actions can lead to exclusion without us realizing it.
In practice
In a team meeting, when discussing new policies, I shared Sonia Sotomayor's quote to remind everyone to consider diverse perspectives.
I am an ordinary person who has been blessed with extraordinary opportunities and experiences.
This wealth of experiences, personal and professional, have helped me appreciate the variety of perspectives that present themselves in every case that I hear.
I was fifteen years old when I understood how it is that things break down: people can't imagine someone else's point of view.
The truth is that since childhood I had cultivated an existential independence. It came from perceiving the adults around me as unreliable, and without it I felt I wouldn't have survived. I cared deeply for everyone in my family, but in the end I depended on myself.
As you discover what strength you can draw from your community in this world from which it stands apart, look outward as well as inward. Build bridges instead of walls.
There are uses to adversity, and they don't reveal themselves until tested. Whether it's serious illness, financial hardship, or the simple constraint of parents who speak limited English, difficulty can tap unexpected strengths.
That is life for a Saudi woman: wherever we go, whatever we achieve, we are the property of a man.
With him, life was routine; without him, life was unbearable.
The secret of a happy marriage is to serve God and each other. The goal of marriage is unity and oneness, as well as self-development. Paradoxically, the more we serve one another, the greater is our spiritual and emotional growth.
I wonder what memories of yours will persist as you go on in life. My hunch is that the most important will have to do with feelings of loving and being loved - friends, family, teachers, shopkeepers - whoever's been close to you. As you continue to grow, you'll find many ways of expressing your love and you'll discover more and more ways in which others express their love for you.
I'm so lucky to have been raised the way I have, because my parents believed that everyone had the right to their own feelings, opinions, and existence; as long as they weren't harming others, you had to defend those rights.
All people have a natural desire to be needed, to have their importance to others tangibly confirmed.
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