Understanding what it means to be a child of a Tiger Mother

On March 16, psychotherapist John Tran of Capitol Hill Counseling led 22 audience members in a fun, interactive workshop entitled "Are you the child of a Tiger Mother?" at the Taiwan Center. Playing on Amy Chua's concept of a "Tiger Mother," a caricature of an overbearing Asian mother who demands nothing less than perfection from her children, Tran engaged the audience in a discussion on who we are and how we make decisions.

"I'm glad NAAAP gave me this opportunity to present it," said Tran. "I was a bit iffy on whether the topic would be well-received, but the community pulled through with some wonderful and insightful questions and comments."

The audience included old-hands and newcomers to NAAAP-Seattle.

Former NAAAP-Seattle PR/Marketing Chair and currently San Francisco-based Joneil Custodio made time for the workshop during his short stay in Seattle.

Three psychotherapy students from Argosy University came to observe. Their professor, Dr. David Walker, encouraged them to attend events organized by ethnic-based associations, including NAAAP, so that they could experience being a minority.

"We're learning to treat and assess diverse communities," said Rachel Gabriel, first-year Psych.D student. "Part of our training is to see what it's like to be the only white person in a room and to confront big issues you don't know anything about."

The students said they learned a lot from the workshop.

"It was very enlightening.," said Leonara Cabrera, a first-year Masters student. "I came from Mexico and it's really interesting to hear the Asian perspective."

"The seminar consolidated a lot of what our readings have been saying about Asian culture," said Ashely McCauley, a first-year Masters student. "It was great to get a fresh, human perspective."

"I found the Tiger Mom dialogue to be intriguing," said Tonya Knox, a State Farm Insurance Agency Field Recruiter. "To be honest, I did not understand the scope of the concept until the presentation. I see both the benefits and disadvantages of having a Tiger Mom."

Even those well-versed in the literature on the Tiger Mother attended the workshop, including Asian American Journalists Association National Secretary Athima Chansanchai, who authored her own commentary on the matter, entitled: "I still love you, Tiger mom, dad."

Professional Development Chair Michael Okimura's first time organizing event proved to be a success.

"I really enjoyed this event. We've been to three different ethnic based organizations and this group felt the most friendly and welcoming," concluded Gabriel. "I would come back to NAAAP events."

Proceeds from admission fees were donated to help Japan.

For more information on or to volunteer with NAAAP-Seattle's Professional Development program, please contact Michael Okimura at Michael.okimura@naaapseattle.org

Photos: (top, from left to right): Ashley McCauley, Leonara Cabrera, and Rachel Gabriel; (middle): crowd; (bottom, from left to right): Michael Okimura and John Tran.

The “Invasion” left lessons

On May 22, NAAAP-Seattle partnered with the Executive Development Institute (EDI) and Qwest Pacific Asian American Network (PAAN) for a 2010 Leadership Together Educational Forum entitled “Invasion of Social Media - The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly!”

Charlie Harger, Technology & Social Media Reporter for KOMO Newsradio and President for Bohado Media, spoke to 75 attendees on using social media for professional and business development.

EDI board member and the forum’s organizer, Elaine Kitamura, said she impressed by the number of attendees as well as the breadth of diversity in age and race in the audience.

The event’s sponsor, Prudential, was pleased with the outcome.

“I thought this event was terrific,” said Joneil Custodio, Prudential’s West Coast Diversity Manager and former NAAAP-Seattle PR/Marketing Chair. “My favorite part was hearing actual business owners sharing real life concerns about the use of social media with the audience that really proved the level of safety and comfort created here tonight.”

Social media, literally, brought many to this event.

Liz Shaiken, a development officer at the Wing Luke Museum, learned about the event through NAAAP-Seattle’s Facebook, along with Jeannette Roden, also with the Wing Luke, and Chakrya Lim of Red Lion. For Shaiken and Lim, it was their first time to an EDI event.

“It was a great intro for small businesses,” said Shaiken. “But I wish it showed good and bad examples of how social media is being used in business.”

“I thought it was good,” said Lim. “Though I thought it would be more on personal branding.”

Personal experience with social media varied widely among audience members.

“The content was a big basic,” said Roden, a NAAAP member. “I wish they had delved a bit deeper into the topic.”

“I still have so much more to learn,” said John Tang, EDI board member. “A few things Charlie mentioned, like putting a post up a day, I didn’t realized I could brand myself that way. I just post every now and then but now I’ll try to post more consistently.”

Vichai J. Lim, a Partner at New York Life, was invited to the event by with NAAAP-Seattle member Vanessa Diego.

“I learned a lot,” said J. Lim. “I might look into Facebook. People invite me all the time. I have to learn more about social media.”

Harger also imparted some warnings about social media.

“I learned that I shouldn’t spend too much time on Facebook because I might get addicted and Facebook might start charging me for use!” said Yuwen Dai, a NAAAP-Seattle member.

Colleen Yamaguchi, EDI board member and EDI Navigation coach, said she wished the forum focused more on how social media could be used as a strategic tool for leadership development.

The most important lesson learned?

“Don’t be annoying!” said Yamaguchi.

Photos: Top: Hang-Ping Chen (left), Starr McDonald (seated); Middle: Colleen Yamaguchi, Joneil Custodio, David Eam, Amy Duong; Bottom: Charlie Harger, Technology & Social Media Reporter for KOMO News radio and President for Bohado Media, lectures