00:00
Hola. I'm Claudia Romo and I'm Cynthia Klein Milner.
00:03
And this is a podcast,
00:05
a La Latina, the playbook to succeed being your authentic self
00:08
today, Gabriela Ramirez,
00:10
executive director, head of wealth management USA field and strategic hiring
00:15
at S and here are the key three takeaways.
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Number one, she gave us the tips on how to prepare
00:21
for an interview to get the job you want.
00:24
Number two, know your priorities and do not put your personal
00:27
life or hold or take it for granted.
00:30
And number three, how to use your uniqueness as your superpower
00:34
particularly what makes you different,
00:35
makes you stronger. All of that and more here at a
00:39
La Latina stick around.
00:48
We've been discussing how important it is for Latinas to generate wealth
00:52
particularly because we understand that only 33% of Latinas have retirement
00:57
income from savings or other assets.
00:59
So how can your company help in this equation?
01:02
Well, we have several options for saving and investing accounts.
01:06
The one for beginners,
01:07
if you are a beginner is our fully managed investing product,
01:11
this is perfect for those who want to set it and forget
01:14
it. You can select the risk and even choose the type
01:17
of companies you can invest in.
01:19
That's amazing. So what is the minimum needed to open an
01:22
account? $1? You just need $1 no excuses.
01:27
The earlier you begin to invest,
01:29
the sooner you will start seeing returns from your investments.
01:31
So how can people get started?
01:33
Simply download the Money Lion app and open a managed investment account
01:38
It's quick. It takes just a few minutes.
01:40
Perfect. Let's do it today.
01:42
An incredible guest, Gabriela Miz Gabriela is executive director,
01:47
head of wealth management USA field and strategic hiring at UBS.
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She's a member of the company's mosaic steering committee leading its Hispanic
01:55
Community Affairs, helping bring together and supporting the growing community of
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talented employees from all cultures and backgrounds.
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She has over 20 years in talent acquisition,
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executive recruiting, business development,
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sales and relationship management roles of some of the most reputable financial
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institutions including JP Morgan Chase Credit,
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Suisse, Black Rock and Mary Lynch Gabby.
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Such an honor to have you with us.
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Thank you. The honor is mine to ask Mucho.
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So this is very special for me any time.
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so very much, Gabby.
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We wanna know everything about you.
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Oh, we need more than one hour.
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But come on, how did it start?
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How is your background?
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Tell us more about like who,
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I have an interesting a different background.
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I grew up in very many different countries in Latin America because
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my father was a corporate executive and he was assigned Latin America
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very early on. So we would move,
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I said we started migrating south.
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So we moved to Costa Rica.
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We lived in Brazil twice,
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Argentina, Mexico, Chile.
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So I really got a very robust idea of what it was
03:04
like to live in Latin America and understand the different cultures.
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My mother is also from Spain.
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in some way, I cover all of Hispanics and Latin Hispanics
03:14
are 26 different countries,
03:17
but I really, I understand it and,
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and I'll be walking down the street and I'll hear someone and
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I'll tell my husband that person's from Ecuador and he's like,
03:23
I said, because I can hear the accent.
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So the, how did I start?
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I went to American schools.
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So I grew up learning English and Spanish and Portuguese.
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And then when I couldn't fit in Portuguese or in into
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my high school calendar,
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my teacher made an agreement and said,
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you have to learn another language then.
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So I took French and languages always came really naturally to me
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it's my ear. You should be a musician.
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I already have one at home.
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Your husband is a musician.
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My husband's a classical musician.
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He plays the trumpet and he's wonderful.
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And so I started not knowing,
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I really didn't know what I wanted to be when I grew
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I actually did and Claudia knows this.
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I wanted to be an actress and my uncle in Mexico was
04:06
a very big figure in televisa.
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My family in Mexico was actually very involved in the arts.
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I also have a part of my family that's very involved in
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bullfighting. So I knew I wanted to do something artistic.
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And then when I had a chance to actually enter the academy
04:21
for televisa for acting,
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I decided not to wait.
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My brother was in the academy.
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maybe you two know each other.
04:28
I got right when I was getting ready to start.
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And I remember it was one of those defining moments in my
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life where I came home and I was living with my brother
04:37
in Mexico City and he said what happened?
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And I started to cry and I said,
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I just, I don't think as much as I want to
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be an actress, I just don't think I can have that
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kind of invasion of privacy every day.
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very outgoing person,
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but I have a very private side to me and,
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and I just, I didn't think I could do that.
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And I also had a really strong connection with my father and
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my father had been a corporate executive and that's what I grew
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up watching, which is something that's very important for Hispanics and
05:10
for diversity. Right?
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If you see something,
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you know, they always talk about.
05:14
If you can't see it,
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So I grew up seeing a man leaving at six o'clock in
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the morning with his briefcase and his tie and coming home at
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night at eight o'clock at night and the dinner table we would
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talk about work. And so I grew up with the notion
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that you have to have a career and you have to have
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a corporate career. And it's,
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it's good to have a corporate career.
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So I didn't know which corporate career I was gonna have.
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But when I finished college,
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I didn't have a green card.
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I went to college in Boston and I was like,
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oh, what do we do now?
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Right. And I think it's something that a lot of us
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Latinos who come to the United States for an education then
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have to experience, right?
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Like, what do we do now?
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Because we have to apply for a green card.
05:53
We don't have automatic citizenship,
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even though we're well educated,
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we pay our taxes and all the things that contribute to a
06:00
really good society. But we have to go back to our
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roots. And so I went back to Mexico and I had
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the fortune of working for a Fortune 500 company at the time
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Then it became lucent Technologies and they moved us to the United
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States for for a temporary assignment that then became permanent.
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And that's really what allowed me to then explore other career opportunities
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and amongst those career opportunities,
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I was very fortunate to,
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to meet a woman who was a recruiter for Merrill Lynch.
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And she asked me if I wanted to come and talk to
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Merrill Lynch and, you know,
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like a classic Latina,
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maybe I shouldn't say this,
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but I thought I was going to interview for,
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you know, you start at the bottom like a sales assistant
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and when I get there and they start talking to me and
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I'm like, I'm really confused,
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why do I need to take all these tests for this job
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this isn't a sales assistant job where we want to know if
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you want to become a financial advisor.
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And I said, you know,
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again, like a classic Latina,
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I just said, what came to my mind?
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I'm like, I don't know anything about finance.
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I don't even know what a bond is and they're like,
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we can teach you that.
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Yeah. No, but it's true,
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you know, because I think I know we're not supposed to
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make general consensus, but as women,
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we always question how much do we really know?
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We have ongoing imposter syndrome.
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And then as Latinas even more like,
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I don't know about that.
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And so really what it was,
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it was a sales job and they really could teach you finance
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But what they really wanted to know is do you have
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the personality to go out to meet clients to find clients and
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to bring them into the organization?
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And so that's what started my career in finance now.
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You are in, in recruiting.
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So you probably have like a lot of frameworks of how you
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do. You pick somebody.
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But what do you think they saw in you that made you
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get this job? Like you didn't have the experience.
07:45
in your personality that they liked?
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if you would have asked me then,
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you know, 20 something years ago,
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I would have been like,
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I don't know today and it took a long time to really
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gather that confidence and know myself.
07:57
It's my ability to build relationships and my ability to build trust
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And I think that that is no doubt,
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a reflection of having grown up in so many different cultures,
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having to start and,
08:09
and to stop and start relationships,
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has a very taxing part.
08:16
We can get into that in a second.
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But it was my ability to connect with people because I needed
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to because I didn't have the,
08:23
the luxury to have had been somewhere for a really long time
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And so it's learning a new language,
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learning a new culture,
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it's really your ability to adapt and then it's your willingness to
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meet people to be curious and your desire to connect.
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from a very early age,
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I would watch my cousins living in one country and their relationships
08:44
and people. And I always felt this void.
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And so I always felt like I have to go and meet
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people and really go deep into their heart.
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And so I think that that has been the trademark of who
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I am. And it's really the most important thing in terms
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I love people. I want to be of service to people
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And and that's how I feel the best.
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And I think that we,
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you know, like if we would be 20 years old and
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they tell you if you have,
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you know, like if you have the ability to create relationships
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like adapt to circumstances,
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if you know, these are all the careers that you can
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have and these are all the things that we would be so
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natural into going, who knew that being a financial advisor is
09:34
really driven by your ability to generate the things that Latinos are
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so good at generating trust and women,
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generating trust and relationships and adapting and you love people that's who
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we are. Let's actually women are natural relationships,
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people, they also can manage their multi taskers.
09:54
This is a great career for women,
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great career for Latinos.
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And it's also a career that gives you a lot of flexibility
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because you're meeting with clients,
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you own your own schedule.
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And so it's, it's a great,
10:06
great career for Latins and for women,
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I want our audience to like,
10:10
really think about what you just said,
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which is number one,
10:16
what I interpreted you didn't see in yourself what others saw in
10:21
you. So sometimes we don't believe in ourselves because we don't
10:26
have the experience, the seniority,
10:27
the we haven't lived enough years to say this person has this
10:31
strength. But if somebody else sees something in you,
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you should run with it and just go for it.
10:38
Now, I was thinking Claudia this past week,
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I was thinking, what is my superpower like early on,
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what was my superpower in my first job?
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And for the first time I realized a connection between my first
10:49
job and this that we're doing together.
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I was in my first job at Nestle and I was very
10:54
comfortable presenting to the CEO and talking to the CEO.
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And now I'm talking to all these women that are very senior
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very powerful that I hear from friends.
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They're like, aren't you nervous interviewing these women?
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And I'm not nervous.
11:06
I just feel really curious about your life.
11:08
I felt that in my first job and the CEO of Nestle
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saw it and they kind of promoted me and,
11:14
and gave me room to experience that strength that I had.
11:18
But I didn't see it.
11:19
I'm now seeing. So it's interesting,
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I, I never knew I was going to be end up
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doing recruiting and,
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and I, I do recruiting so I've done executive recruiting and
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and the recruiting that I do is recruiting financial advisors,
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which is a very different,
11:32
it's a very different type of,
11:34
of recruiting because you don't have a job description that you go
11:37
and people are applying for the job and,
11:39
and you really have to develop relationships with people and,
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and in certain ways you're competing with a lot of other firms
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it's hard. And so it's a sales job.
11:48
And,, I remember when I first started calling Advisors
11:52
the sales manager at Merrill Lynch where I worked just,
11:56
I don't think he could wrap around his head that I was
11:58
getting meetings and he wasn't.
12:00
And so he called me into his office one day and he
12:02
said, do you mind making a few phone calls?
12:04
I want to hear what you say to people.
12:06
And until this day I'm,
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you know, I still speak to him and I said,
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I bet you thought I was doing something shady.
12:14
you know, he heard me on the phone and he,
12:17
you can go back to your desk and then he went and
12:18
spoke to my boss at the time and said,
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I don't think recruiting should just be like a part of her
12:24
job. I think it should be her entire job.
12:27
And that's how I went into recruiting.
12:29
And I will, I will say that to your point
12:33
about your superpower, I still question myself like this is easy
12:37
Like why is everybody complaining about calling advisors?
12:40
It's easy, you know,
12:41
you get rejected next.
12:43
And I think it was a combination of two things.
12:46
I've been described by some people as being fearless.
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And again, that that word is so big and it makes
12:52
me feel like why was it not negative?
12:55
But like, like you don't wanna like another thing that Latinas
12:58
we don't want to brag.
12:59
So it's like fearless,
13:01
like who would use that word to describe me?
13:03
But it's more of I am not afraid like my father
13:07
raised me always saying to me what's the worst thing that can
13:10
happen? Someone says no and then you go and ask again
13:13
And so I'm known for that.
13:17
one of my bosses at U BS describe me as pleasantly
13:21
annoying because I don't care.
13:24
It's not like I'm doing something that I'm embarrassed about.
13:27
And so I call people and and but but,
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I, I do want to adhere to that and I know
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you and I've been described but I think that we should remove
13:37
the word less and put it as free.
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So fear free because fear is not gonna take the decisions of
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your life and shame free because you're not ashamed to say things
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the way they are is not,
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I'm not shameless. And I like what I'm doing and by
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the way, a really important part of this,
13:54
I work for UB si love recruiting for U BS because I
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believe in the brand.
13:59
And so this is why it's really important to love what you
14:02
do and believe what you do because I couldn't be fear free
14:06
if I didn't believe in what I did.
14:07
And I didn't think I was doing the right thing.
14:09
If I didn't believe in what I did,
14:10
then it would be a challenge because then I wouldn't be able
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to call you and say Claudia,
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let's do this together or call an advisor and say you need
14:17
to come talk to UB si,
14:18
need to believe in it.
14:19
And I think that's also a very,
14:21
very characteristic of a woman and Latinos.
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We need to put our passion and believe in something.
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So I do want to repeat this piece because Anna Corrales from
14:31
Google also said it's one of the most memorable things that I
14:34
have learned through this podcast,
14:36
which is listen to yourself early on what you're good at what
14:41
comes naturally is your super talent is your super power.
14:44
And then you can start seeing like,
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OK, I love product where in which industry can I use
14:50
that to my best advantage.
14:52
And so go lean in into what comes natural to you because
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that's probably where we have the misunderstanding.
14:59
We think that education,
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formal education and the things that you put in your CV is
15:03
what is going to get you there.
15:04
But it is actually what you're good at.
15:06
And Cynthia, you asked me a question,
15:07
what do I look for in talent?
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And you just hit right on it.
15:11
I look for skills that are transferable.
15:14
I look for people who have passion,
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but most importantly, you know,
15:18
anybody can put together a really good resume.
15:21
there's people who write resumes for a living.
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And so I always tell people,
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your resume is great,
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it filters you to understand that you have the basics,
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right? But when we're talking about companies,
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like the ones that we work in,
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like, I'm already expecting a certain level of professionalism,
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what I'm really looking for is,
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is the person resilient,
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is the person honest.
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Does the person have integrity and is the person kind,
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is the person curious?
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Because those are the little things that really tell you about the
15:49
person and really tell you the story about a person,
15:52
the rest, I'm assuming they know what they're doing if they've
15:56
already gotten to where they've gotten in their career,
15:58
right? So how do you test for resilience or integrity or
16:01
kindness? I have conversations with people and I start to ask
16:04
them about themselves and then I shut up and I let them
16:07
talk and when you let people talk,
16:10
it's amazing how much they reveal about themselves.
16:12
And I believe the devil is in the details.
16:15
And so when you see how people talk about their family,
16:18
how they talk about how they've overcome obstacles,
16:21
how they've talked about different situations in their life.
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It starts to show you who they really are.
16:27
And at the end of the day,
16:29
you know, I have a rule,
16:30
I hire good people and you can't replicate good people.
16:33
You can't replicate kindness,
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you can replicate integrity.
16:36
So I ask questions that are open ended and I let people
16:40
talk. I once heard somebody,
16:43
I, I know this is like a very like rigid rule
16:46
but I maybe you will agree that it tells you something
16:49
about the person, which is somebody was somebody from my
16:52
team was interviewing a candidate that I wanted to hire.
16:55
And after the interview,
16:56
the person came to me and said,
16:58
I'm a no. And I said,
16:59
why? And he said because he only used I and when
17:04
you interview somebody and they take all the credit for the successes
17:07
of their team. And it's everything I did this,
17:09
I did this, that was his rule.
17:10
If somebody only used I and didn't say we as a team
17:14
he wouldn't hire that person.
17:15
I couldn't hire that person.
17:16
Now, you, you bring up a great point also because
17:21
I am also a big believer in giving feedback because there's a
17:24
lot of people that I've worked with,
17:26
who have interviewed candidates and they reject someone,
17:29
but then they don't tell the candidate why.
17:32
And so in the case that you're talking about,
17:34
if that person only used I and no one has taken the
17:37
time to tell this individual you really need to change things.
17:40
Like I, I had a situation where I had lost a
17:42
job and I went to meet with a headhunter and I was
17:45
still in that very raw,
17:47
not happy, kind of bitter side.
17:50
And this person was doing a friend of mine a favor to
17:55
when I sat down in his office and he said what happened
17:57
And I started talking because I was still really angry.
18:01
We finished the conversation and he said,
18:03
I'm gonna give you some advice.
18:06
You're still angry and it's coming through and that's not gonna help
18:11
And I'm grateful because if he had not told me that I
18:16
would have gone to every single other interview.
18:19
More angry bout a lot of people go to an interview and
18:24
bout the previous employer thinking that that's gonna make them look good
18:28
so I think one is I like to give people feedback.
18:32
And I also think it's really important that people also recognize,
18:36
I get calls from people saying I didn't get the job.
18:38
Like sometimes the job you don't get is the best job is
18:42
the best thing that could have happened to you.
18:43
And I, I really believe in that.
18:45
I think that not every opportunity is for you and it's not
18:48
a bad thing because not everybody belongs everywhere.
18:52
And there are different phases in our lives and life takes us
18:56
where we are. I really believe.
18:57
And again, that I think that only comes with age,
19:00
but I really believe that it gets to a point in your
19:02
career where you, where if you're happy and you've done the
19:05
homework, you realize that you are where you have to be
19:08
and you own your career.
19:11
And you know, my father,
19:13
again, you ask who my father was.
19:15
Everything to me. One of the things he always said to
19:18
me is just because you haven't gotten to where you're going or
19:23
your journey to get there is different than someone else's.
19:26
It doesn't mean you're not going to get there and it doesn't
19:29
mean your journey is wrong.
19:32
there's a song in Mexico,
19:35
which is one of my favorite songs,
19:36
the Mariachi songs, the El Caminos,
19:39
you know, important,
19:40
right? It doesn't matter how quick you get there,
19:43
the important thing is getting there.
19:44
And so that's also really important.
19:48
We have, but I do want to like,
19:51
we're so happy to learn.
19:54
I think that for the audience tips and tricks about like how
19:57
to interview, right?
19:58
And so I think that what you're saying is do not only
20:02
come with your resume about the things that you have accomplished,
20:07
let the recruiter feel who you are and Latinas were wonderful.
20:12
So let that kindness and let that transparency of caring for your
20:16
family and your everything show don't repress it in interviews.
20:21
Just put the academic and the,
20:24
and the things that you have managed,
20:26
but also yourself. Is that what you're saying?
20:29
I actually think that most minorities it,
20:34
so it's, it's un un undisputable,
20:36
unnegotiable. You have to show up 100% or more like you
20:40
just have to like you,
20:41
you can't rely on anything like you.
20:43
The job is the job and you have to do it better
20:45
than anybody else that,
20:46
that, that's, you have to demonstrate that in your interview
20:49
yeah, you, you have to be prepared there,
20:51
there is no substitute for preparation and being ready.
20:57
you're talking about a whole another layer that comes of complexity,
20:59
which is beautiful. I think Latinas are caring people.
21:02
I think they articulate well,
21:05
I think they're warm,
21:06
but again, it depends on the job,
21:08
you know, because not every job is gonna require those,
21:10
those qualifications. But what is undeniable for me?
21:14
And I tell this to Latinos and I tell this to
21:16
any diverse person that,
21:18
that I coach or that I speak with is your preparation and
21:22
and being, you know,
21:23
doing what you need to do is non negotiable.
21:27
You have to show up and sometimes you have to show up
21:28
100 and 50%. But you know what,
21:30
I'm so sorry, just like I do want to get a
21:32
little deeper because we've been talking in this podcast about flipping the
21:35
script and when you come to an interview,
21:39
you don't know if the other person knows or has unconscious
21:43
biases because they're unconscious.
21:45
look, I have an accent because I speak different languages and
21:49
that means that I can speak to different groups and that I'm
21:51
great at negotiation. And,
21:53
you know, I'm as a Latina,
21:55
I'm caring, which means I can build relationships so you can
21:59
help your recruiter turn those,
22:01
you know, flip the script in case you don't know that
22:04
you know, like you're loud,
22:05
but that means that you're committed that you have an accent,
22:08
which means that you're bilingual,
22:09
that you can talk to different groups.
22:10
So I think that we just have to be better prepared and
22:13
better understand power and help the recruiter understand that those things are
22:20
actually quite positive no,
22:24
you know, another thing that happens very early on.
22:26
People are trying to figure out what they want to do or
22:29
but they don't know what it is.
22:30
I always tell people nobody's going to know what you want better
22:34
than you. People will tell you what they think is good
22:37
for you, but nobody's gonna know you better than you and
22:39
what other people tell you isn't necessarily the truth.
22:43
you have to be careful because you don't wanna be typecast,
22:45
you don't wanna be put in a job because somebody thinks that's
22:48
the right job for you.
22:49
If you want something,
22:50
you need to advocate for yourself and you need to know what
22:52
you want and once you know what you want,
22:54
don't settle for less.
22:56
All right. So how did you do it because you've been
22:59
into some of the most like reputable financial services companies in the
23:03
US and you've climbed the ladder,
23:06
what, what has been your recipe?
23:08
How, how have you advocated for yourself to get?
23:11
I've built great relationships.
23:13
But I don't want to fool anyone.
23:15
My my ladder had lots of mistakes and sometimes I've had to
23:20
go several steps down to go,
23:22
move back up. So I think it's also important not to
23:25
create an illusion that the latter is vertical.
23:28
Sometimes it's like a jungle gym,
23:30
sometimes you have to go around,
23:32
sometimes you have. And so this is why I mentioned earlier
23:35
resilience is so important and not giving up some of the
23:40
greatest minds in, in any profession that you think of,
23:44
have tried something multiple times before it actually became successful.
23:49
And sometimes it takes people rejecting you,
23:52
sometimes it takes getting fired.
23:53
Sometimes it takes really painful situations.
23:57
And I actually believe wholeheartedly that one of the things I look
24:00
for the most to your question earlier is people who've overcome challenges
24:04
and who've overcome. I,
24:06
I don't like to use the word when you failure
24:10
because failure has such a negative connotation,
24:13
but someone who has had a set has had a setback.
24:17
And I, I really look for people with setbacks because I
24:20
think the world that we live in today is so complicated.
24:24
There are so many challenges going on everywhere and I look for
24:27
people who are able to get past that go through challenging times
24:31
manage to change and lead through that and we're resilient.
24:36
You have shared with us some of your superpowers you have shared
24:40
The the latter has been,
24:42
you know, like very shaky at times how much of your
24:46
success has been enhanced and how was your journey in actually getting
24:51
recognized as well? Because we see you in all the magazines
24:54
and you know, like in all the lists and so on
24:56
How much does that help?
24:58
And it helps a lot go on.
25:01
I mean, I think that when I hear people say,
25:03
oh, just do your job and it,
25:07
you have to do your job.
25:08
Going back to what I said,
25:09
you have to show up 100 and 10%.
25:11
But having recognition, having support,
25:15
having sponsorship absolutely goes a long way.
25:17
And anyone who says it doesn't is lying.
25:19
It absolutely goes a long way.
25:21
But a lot of the times the sponsorship and the recognition comes
25:24
from doing a good job.
25:26
And so again, it's about staying in the race.
25:28
You know, I also had a mentor who said to me
25:30
once your career is not a sprint,
25:33
it's a marathon. So keep going.
25:36
And so what that means is,
25:39
you know, find mentors,
25:42
I truly believe that if you,
25:44
if you do write by others and you do a good job
25:47
somebody somewhere is watching and eventually you,
25:50
you, you'll get that recognition.
25:52
But I also think that you can't sit back and wait for
25:54
people to come and tap you on the shoulder and say,
25:57
hey, do you want this next job or I'm thinking about
25:59
you for this, you have to advocate for yourself.
26:01
And that's something that,
26:02
you know, particularly,
26:03
I think corporate America really teaches people,
26:08
you're in it for yourself.
26:09
And that's something that in our culture sometimes can be very challenging
26:13
because Latins are all about family,
26:16
they're all about helping each other.
26:18
And then Latinas, we have a double whammy,
26:20
right? Because it's not just about helping being a good sister
26:25
a good friend. We're always taking care of everybody and sometimes
26:30
that's a little bit at odds with corporate America.
26:34
we don't do self advocacy or self promotion as much because we're
26:37
family oriented and community oriented.
26:40
But we do have to find a way uncomfortable because you feel
26:43
uncomfortable, but we should find a way in which the community
26:47
pushes you up. I mean,
26:48
like pretty much we've seen it in other communities which is like
26:50
you give to una Parana parados.
26:53
No. So like the community pushes you up and open the
26:55
doors for each other if we would be all family.
26:58
But then the family opens your door and you know,
27:00
showcase you and put you in this podcast and in this magazine
27:03
then the, so it's interesting,
27:04
some of the Latinas that I know who've been very successful,
27:08
they met somebody, I have a lot of white male allies
27:13
and they say I had a Latina assistant or I had a
27:15
Latina working for me and they see how they work with them
27:20
and they see the passion they bring to work and then they
27:23
promote that person. And so I think the more Latinos and
27:26
the more Latinas we start to see which I think we've already
27:28
we're coming a long way,
27:30
the more we have people like that,
27:32
the more people are going to take notice and say Wow.
27:35
My team, we have a lot of Latinas on our team
27:37
and it wasn't, I don't think my boss picked them on
27:41
purpose, but I think he probably loves the fact that we
27:45
have a lot of strong opinions and passionate women and we're strong
27:52
I wanna go back to your career because I was very interested
27:55
when I, when I saw your,
27:57
your journey and there's something that I saw there that it's
28:01
not very common, which is you left jobs multiple times and
28:05
then went back to that company.
28:07
How did you leave the doors open for you to be
28:15
I do it pretty well.
28:17
Even that makes me feel uncomfortable saying it,
28:19
but I do, I do it really well again.
28:20
Let's record it. Ok.
28:22
I'm really good at what I do.
28:24
It took me a really long time to say that and not
28:26
not like, be embarrassed about it,
28:27
but I am, I'm really good at what I do and
28:29
I've only gotten better because I've gotten more confident and I've had
28:32
more experience and I've,
28:35
I've built relationships with people who have opened those doors for me
28:39
again. And I actually one time said,
28:41
well, am I being hired back because I'm liked and on
28:45
Wall Street, nobody does anything because they like you.
28:47
It's because you're, you're good,
28:49
but it helps to have those relationships because,
28:53
in the, in the thought of people.
28:55
And so I think that I've been able to go back because
28:58
I had good relationships in the places that I worked in and
29:02
I was really good at something that was useful to that company
29:04
But is there like a more like a,
29:07
these are the three things you should do?
29:08
Like, always, like transitional,
29:10
very well, stay in touch with the people from your company
29:13
So I haven't always done that and I haven't full disclosure
29:18
and I've learned my lessons from that,
29:20
but it's very important that you transition with Grace.
29:25
It's very important that,
29:27
you know, one of the things I hear a lot of
29:28
people do really well and I really admire is when they,
29:33
the, when you're getting interviewed for a job,
29:35
it's usually a lengthy time.
29:36
It could be anywhere from 3 to 6 months or longer.
29:38
So there are people that knowing that they're going to leave,
29:41
you could kind of say,
29:43
yeah, and the people that I respect the most are the
29:46
people that knowing that they're going to leave,
29:48
they run even faster because they want to leave saying I did
29:55
I'm leaving and miss me now.
29:58
And so I think it's really important when you transition,
30:01
you transition with class or,
30:04
you know, Grace that you don't burn any bridges and
30:09
that and that you all,
30:11
you do a very good job until the very last day at
30:13
that company. And by the way,
30:15
you know, Wall Street is no,
30:18
no stranger to mergers.
30:20
You know, I always tell people and there's a saying Wall
30:22
Street is a small street.
30:25
today and I always tell advisor when I talk to them,
30:29
you know, have a conversation with us because you never know
30:32
if one day we're all gonna work in the same company.
30:34
And there's plenty of examples of that Bank of America Merrill Lynch
30:37
Smith, Barney Morgan Stanley.
30:38
And so I believe it's really important to maintain really good relationships
30:42
with people all across because you never know when you're gonna run
30:44
Wall Street is a small street.
30:46
Are Latinos walking in the street would look,
30:49
knowing how much wealth we're gonna be generating,
30:52
knowing how much our purchasing power is $3.7 trillion knowing that Latinas
30:58
generate $1.3 trillion which is amazing.
31:01
I would assume that all eyes on us will be the the
31:05
the case and that Wall Street will want Latino money.
31:08
Do we have Latinos in financial institutions?
31:10
You didn't mention Latinas are the number one business owners as well
31:13
right? I think there are quite a bit of Latinos
31:17
in financial institutions. I would say that in the last 10
31:20
years, I am seeing a lot of them advance even more
31:24
in high positions. Well,
31:27
yeah, actually we have a couple of like number twos,
31:29
at least I don't think we are where we should be
31:33
yet. And I think you bring up a great point,
31:36
which is the wealth creation and just having the wealth.
31:40
you have a lot of Latinos who have come from countries
31:42
where they've had to leave because of geopolitical reasons.
31:46
People who come here for a higher education,
31:47
people who have come here with their companies.
31:49
And so you, you have a lot of very well educated
31:52
professionals and people who've created a lot of businesses and wealth that
31:56
are Latinos. And so I,
31:58
I think it is still that we're underrepresented in financial services.
32:04
And I think at some point it's going to be the tipping
32:07
point because I think there's a lot of opportunities with high net
32:11
worth and ultra high net worth Latinos.
32:14
And probably it would be helpful to have people with the same
32:17
cultural affinity servicing those clients.
32:21
let me, let me ask you,
32:23
you know, like better are Latinos are,
32:27
are the financial institutions having the culture and the adaptation to
32:32
attract more and more Latinos in as you like as,
32:35
as part of their staff.
32:37
I think some are doing it better than others.
32:40
Yeah. So I do think everything else in life all lies
32:43
on our wallets. I just wanted to know whether all eyes
32:45
in our recruit like in recruitment as well.
32:47
I think it's, it's definitely in conversation.
32:51
I think it's, it's something that everybody's probably paying attention to
32:56
Some people are probably a little more advanced than others.
32:59
So if we, if we let's assume that we have like
33:01
three buckets of Latinas listening to this podcast,
33:04
young Latinas who just are graduating from college,
33:07
then some that are early in their career and some that are
33:10
already at a, at a director level.
33:14
how can they get a job in U BS?
33:16
Like, what does somebody early in their career should do like
33:19
today if they want a job in U BS,
33:20
et cetera, if they're like recent graduates,
33:23
recent graduates. So there's a lot of opportunities at U BS
33:26
We have what we call our Wealth Advice Center
33:30
which is a great opportunity for people who are not licensed
33:33
who wanna understand financial services.
33:35
So you for people who were like me 20 something years ago
33:38
I don't know what a bond is.
33:40
It's, it's a great opportunity because they teach you about financial
33:43
planning, they teach you about asset allocation,
33:46
you get licensed. It's a great way to start working with
33:49
smaller clients. And then you are also exposed to some of
33:53
the larger teams at U BS,
33:54
right? You, you get to network,
33:56
you're already in the system and when they are looking to hire
33:59
someone younger or you know,
34:01
with a different background to complement skills that they already have on
34:05
their team, you're there and it's an obvious place to,
34:09
there's no experience needed.
34:11
You have to have a college education internships.
34:14
And again, you bring up a great point,
34:16
internships going to events like your career is also have to be
34:21
self directed. Like I nobody gives you anything.
34:24
my things that, you know,
34:27
Now you like, you have to go after the things you
34:30
want. But we want to give them some advice.
34:36
And then if somebody,
34:37
let's say that somebody already started their career and regardless of if
34:42
they're in financial services or not,
34:43
because you'd be that you have a change.
34:45
You started at Zara,
34:46
you, no, I actually started as a financial advisor at
34:49
Merrill Lynch. And then II I went to bear Stearns and
34:53
one of my clients was the head of Z Indite in the
34:56
United States. And when I was having one of my many
35:00
moments which I think we all have of like,
35:03
this is what I want to do for the rest of my
35:04
life. I like fashion.
35:05
I like, I like I love and then she went to
35:12
and I said operations and he said,
35:13
no, I need somebody.
35:14
Again. The skill set was relationship management because I had to
35:18
deal with all the providers with the people who,
35:20
you know, all the partners that would,
35:22
would work on the stores,
35:23
anything from real estate,
35:24
air conditioning supplies. So it was really a relationship job.
35:29
but fashion is very different financial services.
35:31
And I think that my,
35:33
my father's roots were really heavy and I needed the structure and
35:36
I needed more of that corporate world.
35:38
It was a great experience.
35:39
It was when Zara was growing,
35:41
it was a great experience.
35:42
So there's so many things that you can do when you're good
35:44
at relationship management operations.
35:47
No, no A I applications gonna replace good relationship.
35:51
That's right. So I want to go back to you and
35:55
like knowing you. Also did you have to dial down
36:00
Like when did you have to dial down?
36:01
Tell us about the bruises of being Latina in an environment that
36:09
I lived in Switzerland for almost 20 years.
36:11
I'm like, where did it hurt the most?
36:14
I, one of the things that people would say to me
36:17
early on in my career was that I was very emotional.
36:23
I think of the word emotion as a positive thing,
36:25
like it's good to have emotion,
36:27
right? You have blood in your veins,
36:28
you love people like it's great to be emotional.
36:30
And I didn't understand when people would keep saying that to me
36:33
And it wasn't until not so long ago.
36:35
That I understood and I started doing some work and reading that
36:39
what they meant by emotional is that you could have,
36:43
you know, ups and downs that I think are very
36:47
innate in the Latin culture because we,
36:50
we, we talk with our hands.
36:52
We're very expressive Latinas are also very intense.
36:56
And so I've had several people in my career slowly but surely
37:02
tell me the same message and it's good to have emotion,
37:05
it's good to have passion,
37:07
but you have to learn how to dial it down and know
37:10
And that took time for me to realize.
37:12
And so I thought just bringing myself and being who I was
37:18
but not everywhere. And so the bruises came from realizing that
37:23
sometimes know your audience,
37:28
it, it really comes down to that know your audience
37:30
know yourself and know that you can't always express everything everywhere
37:35
And so that took time for me to realize.
37:38
when I've gotten to know myself,
37:39
and I also know you,
37:41
you're also not satisfied with injustice and things.
37:45
So I can only imagine you biting your tongue and you like
37:49
holding yourself to the chair when you see that,
37:52
you know, like there's some,
37:53
some sort of like discrimination or biases against,
37:56
you know, like I have learned to some times an advice
38:01
that was given to me many years ago and I didn't apply
38:03
it until recently. The last couple of years,
38:05
sometimes a good night's sleep is the best thing in the world
38:09
It takes a lot of training.
38:11
It's hard not to react and to take a step back.
38:15
And also my boss always tells me,
38:17
assume positive intent. It was such a hard thing because as
38:21
Latinos, we're always suspicious.
38:23
Where are they going to take advantage of me?
38:24
This person is going to do something.
38:27
And so we're always like,
38:28
almost anticipating that something's gonna go wrong because it's so ingrained in
38:32
our culture. And so I think 24 hour rule,
38:37
maybe even taking a walk around the block,
38:39
maybe calling a friend.
38:41
It takes training it,
38:42
it, I'm, I'm not gonna lie.
38:43
It does not come easy for me.
38:45
It does not come easy.
38:46
And so it's taken a lot of training and it,
38:50
again to my point of resilience,
38:52
if I had not had those bruises,
38:55
I might have never learned this if I had not had some
38:57
people say some things to me that were really painful when they
39:00
But thank you so much that they said them to me because
39:03
if they hadn't, I would be a train wreck.
39:06
Absolutely. Ok. Well,
39:08
it seems like you have,
39:09
you gained a lot of perspective and even though you look 20
39:13
it seems like you have the perspective of somebody that is older
39:16
than 20. But I do want to stay there just like
39:19
on the, on the learning and the flipping the script.
39:21
I have to thank my mom for that because I've mentioned my
39:23
dad a lot and I love my father and my father's past
39:25
and he was the best thing in the world for me.
39:28
Thank God, I met my husband the jeans,
39:31
the jeans and she would be really mad at me if she
39:33
heard this podcast. And I didn't say that because she always
39:35
says TP familia, que por familia.
39:45
yeah, I learned how to dress because of my mother,
39:48
I learned how to present because of my mother,
39:50
I learned how to put on my makeup because of my mother
39:52
And these are all things that should as superficial and fluffy
39:56
as they sound. It's important to have a first good impression
40:00
and I owe that to my mother wholeheartedly.
40:03
Yeah, absolutely. So,
40:05
on flipping the script,
40:07
you've been there, done that particularly in the financial sector.
40:11
What are things that what you just said?
40:13
Emotion is perceived as negative?
40:16
But in reality, if you flip,
40:18
it could be a positive.
40:20
What are the things that you see that are more unconscious biases
40:23
in corporate America, particularly in the financial sector that are Latinos
40:27
that could be flipped if we put into the service into
40:30
the service surface, I think emotion.
40:33
So I've had people say,
40:35
I had a situation where I was on a call with a
40:37
bunch of people and somebody asked a question about something and it
40:42
was ac suite executive on the call.
40:45
And I wanted to get my point across and I,
40:49
and I, and I was very emotional and passionate about,
40:52
let me explain to you how this works and somebody was on
40:56
the call and said to me,
40:59
you're talking to ac suite executive,
41:01
like they sent me a message like tone it down.
41:04
And then when I got off the call,
41:05
I said to this person was I that bad and the person
41:07
said, maybe a little.
41:08
And so I was so mortified that I sent an email to
41:12
the person saying I am so sorry,
41:13
I'm just really passionate about that.
41:15
I didn't, I don't think I even said passionate.
41:16
I'm so sorry. I'm just,
41:17
I feel very strongly about this because a lot of people don't
41:20
realize how this is done.
41:23
it's what I've been doing for a long time.
41:25
And again, I went to bed,
41:26
I went home, I was like,
41:27
oh my God, this person is gonna think I'm crazy.
41:30
The next morning I get to the office and this email from
41:32
my inbox from this person again is ac suite executive at the
41:36
firm saying Gabriella, you did nothing wrong.
41:39
I actually really appreciate you being so passionate and wanting to,
41:44
to explain things the way that you did and owning them.
41:47
And so you, you're not gonna make everybody happy,
41:50
right? And so what somebody perceives as you're coming across really
41:54
emotional, somebody else perceived as I love your passion.
41:57
And again, if you're interviewing for a job,
42:01
if you're emotional and passionate,
42:02
just say that translates to commitment,
42:06
that translates to loyalty so that people know it 100%.
42:09
And when you put it on the surface is like,
42:11
OK, done. I know that I can try,
42:14
I can like, if I need someone to explain the,
42:16
the cover to evangelist something,
42:18
I'm gonna put this Latina because she's like,
42:21
and you know, another,
42:22
another word that's used all the time.
42:23
It's kind of like cliche,
42:24
but it's true. It's used for women all the time.
42:27
She's too aggressive. But when you hear it for a man
42:31
he's too aggressive.
42:33
And you know, I have some colleagues that are Latinos men
42:36
who had an amazing career on Wall Street because they're passionate
42:41
because they're aggressive. But when you see a man do it
42:44
it's unconsciously, it's like,
42:46
it's OK. It's acceptable when you see a woman,
42:48
a Latina, a 5 ft tall Latina,
42:51
it's kind of like what's going on here,
42:53
I imagine a 6 ft tall.
42:55
So, so I'm gonna tell you what my 6 ft tall
42:58
co-host would say if,
42:59
if you were in that situation and you ask her,
43:02
should I send this email?
43:03
She always tells me,
43:05
do not apologize. Of course,
43:07
you apologize if you did something wrong.
43:08
But if not, it's like you,
43:10
you did what you thought was right and do not have apologies
43:13
because it's almost like I find myself writing emails or,
43:16
or starting conversations with,
43:18
I'm sorry, but X and she's like,
43:20
I don't think I've heard you say I'm sorry once since I've
43:23
met you and I call you more often because I apologize for
43:26
everything. And I i it's something that is so difficult to
43:29
break that habit and I've become very aware of it.
43:32
I shouldn't be apologizing,
43:34
but I just turn tables and I think that this is the
43:37
end of the flipping the script,
43:38
we have to turn tables and understand that what we think it
43:43
like it's negative is only because other people are saying it's negative
43:47
Nothing. It doesn't take the value away from that commitment
43:51
and that passion. So you just have to be aware and
43:55
present it to others so that we can turn tables and be
43:57
in the position of power and be confident.
44:00
Ok. Now, with all your perspective,
44:04
what would, what advice would you give your 30 year old
44:08
self? So it's not a professional advice,
44:10
is a personal advice,
44:12
but it's important for women.
44:14
I think I did not get this advice and I put my
44:18
career ahead of my personal life and I always thought that because
44:24
I was young and young looking and felt young.
44:27
My fertility and my ability to have Children would be extended and
44:34
it wasn't. And so I made some very,
44:37
very big personal sacrifices because I always felt like I can't take
44:40
my, my foot off the pedal because it's not,
44:43
I'm not ready right now.
44:44
I'm not ready right now.
44:45
And by the time my husband said this is a priority,
44:52
And my spiritual side will never allow me to regret things because
44:57
I think God has a plan for everybody.
44:59
And, and I believe in God wholeheartedly,
45:04
but I wish I would have been able to be a mother
45:07
So I always tell young people that don't take your fertility
45:12
for granted a job as important as it is.
45:15
your family and the people you love are way more important than
45:19
any job. Your health is way more important than any job
45:23
And if you want something in your life,
45:24
don't put it off for a job.
45:26
And if you do it's because you really love your job more
45:34
freeze your eggs, you know,
45:36
make the time. I cannot be more grateful for your vulnerability
45:40
to share it because I think that a number of us think
45:44
and do things and sacrifice things and never share them.
45:47
And we don't, we don't share them with people in early
45:51
enough in their lives.
45:53
You know, you don't have to be a mother to be
45:55
motherly. And everybody who knows me and my firm knows
46:03
I treat my cats like my family.
46:06
I have found other ways to basically nurture and this is
46:10
why Latinas and young women are so important to me because I
46:14
really want to nurture them as a,
46:16
as a mother, even though they're not my Children.
46:18
But it's the one regret that I wish all women would know
46:21
that their time passes and it really does.
46:24
There's I think this is a conversation that in behind closed doors
46:28
happens a lot, but it's not happening in the professional setting
46:34
I think hearing from you,
46:35
hopefully, fertility and menopause have been taboo topics.
46:40
Very important topics that affect women that I think should be
46:44
normalized just like mental health is becoming more normalized because they're real
46:49
and, and it's important to feel natural about it.
46:51
And I think that the El Rey la Canon plus the knowledge
46:59
that everything will be ok would probably lead people to take decisions
47:05
early on about saying like it's gonna be OK.
47:09
I'm gonna make it maybe later.
47:10
So you can pedal down and you can actually put your life
47:13
100%. Life is very long when we're young.
47:16
We think we have to have everything ready and done because time
47:20
is running out and it.
47:23
It's a marathon and it's everything will be ok.
47:25
Everything will be fine.
47:26
No como and the other great thing that my mother always said
47:32
is no car. So I'm not a gold coin.
47:36
Not everybody has to like me.
47:37
We like you, we love you,
47:39
we love you. Incredible.
47:41
Thank you so so much for saying this and doing this gaby
47:45
We cannot be more grateful for you sharing your story being
47:49
so vulnerable and being with us today.
47:53
Thank you so very much.
47:55
And thanks you're doing this honestly because it's,
47:57
it's such a great platform for women and,
47:59
and it's a great platform for Latina women.
48:03
that's another thing that happens a lot on Wall Street,
48:05
right? Like people support each other in groups and I think
48:08
Latinos need to raise each other and,
48:11
and, and, and really help each other because at the
48:14
we're here to stay and that's exactly what we want because with
48:18
people like you, we're gonna be able to lead and succeed
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