Episode Transcript
Hello, my name is Aziz and I'm the son of a divorced mother.
She is really my superhero.
That's why it's important for me to support women to share their uniqueness, their personalities,
perspectives, and emotions about this world.
In these difficult times in human history, we need to bring the people of the world together.
And when we hear the voices of women, when we listen to real lives of women from other
countries, we connect our cultures without differences or stereotypes, and we get inspired
by their stories to live a better life.
That's what this podcast is all about.
My guest today is Sema Nalbantoglu.
Sema is a Turkish-Bulgarian woman living in Istanbul who loves traveling, cooking, dancing,
trekking, camping, playing piano, and HR management.
She works in recruitment and training as an HR executive, and she loves to travel the
to camp and to take travel photos.
Sema, how are you today?
I'm fine.
I'm so excited that I conversate with you, and now I'm so happy to hear you.
Me too, very, very much.
Thank you, Sema.
I'm so honored and lucky and so happy to see you and to talk to you today.
And I'm so happy to share your perspective and personality.
So I'll begin with this nice first question.
Sema, if the people who know you best could describe your personality, what would they
say about you?
First, if I can say three things, first, they can say that I'm helpful.
And second, they can say that I like human and also of the human beings, the animals,
and I'm hardworking.
Maybe these three things.
That sounds like a perfect HR executive.
Did you join that field because you love humans and you're very kind?
Or how is the story of you choosing to focus on training, on recruitment, on HR?
First, when I was in high school, I would like to study music, music and arts.
But I'm playing piano since when I was three years old.
And now it's my hobby.
But then I decided that I can play piano like my hobby.
And I decided to study in human resources management because I want to help people
for their recruitment or their training, would like to help in the career management,
their performance management.
And I studied business administration and I had a master's degree in organizational behavior.
And now I love my job.
And I'm doing my job for, I think, 17, 18 years and I'm happy with my job.
Thank you.
That's really, really great.
At the same time, how does travel be a part of you loving humans, loving cats and the
world?
Is it because you love to see people from different countries, learn from them?
How is it related to everything?
Now I like to recognize different cultures, different people, different cities, different
foods, all about different things for human beings.
Because I like humanity and this is the part of my life.
I love traveling so much.
And in my free time, maybe for one day or for two days, maybe for a week, I can go if
I have a free time and would like to recognize people from other countries, maybe people
from in Turkey, but in different cities.
Thank you.
And as someone who loves music, are you someone, do you have like a way of thinking about
travel, like you're making a new music piece and the experiences are different kind of
music that you experience or it's different to you?
Travel, humans and music are very, very separate.
I think they are not separate because music is a culture of human, I think.
And when I travel, maybe in Spain, I would like to listen to their music, feel their
culture, their dancing, this, like this.
Thank you.
And can you share your story from like where you were born, how you grew up, what made
you become the woman you are today so that you keep your love for humanity, even though
sometimes life can be difficult and some people will hate humans because of what life
happens, you know?
Yes, I was born in Bulgaria.
Exactly, I'm Turkish, but my family is also Turkish, but we lived in Bulgaria.
In 1989, we came to Turkey with this immigration, big immigration.
And I began here in elementary school here.
But my heart was in Bulgaria because my childhood was, I was a very happy child because I have
friends.
I can, I could have a long time with my mother and my father, but in Turkey with this working
hours, there are longer working hours in Turkey.
I couldn't be with them when I was a young girl.
And so I can, I could be with them only when I was in holiday.
And because of this, when we were in holiday with my mother and father, because I'm only
one, I have no brother or sister, we were traveling with my mother and father.
And that was my lifestyle, that began to be my lifestyle.
And I decided when I was a young girl, when I grow up, I will be a traveler and like this.
And then I decided to study in business administration and organizational behavior because
it was so similar with my lifestyle, with my maybe soul.
And I decided to study like that.
I have a daughter, 14 years old.
She's with me.
I'm now, and I work and sometimes we, together we go to traveling, to camping,
to visit museums like this.
We are, we like that, I can say.
Thank you.
So connecting with the human culture, with other people, with your daughter, with family
was and is always important for you.
Is this correct?
Yes, yes.
How do you keep the professional side of work, but still feel that connection with people,
especially at the HR?
Sometimes you need to fire some people, which could be heartbreaking.
So how do you do it?
Do you try to be someone who you keep your heart closed when at work and then you open it to after?
Or how do you deal with it?
I'm so lucky that I'm not at this part of the HR.
I'm so happy that.
And but sometimes I see this part in HR.
It's so close to me.
When I see it, sometimes and when I want to help these people and
and have a communication with them and say to send their CVs to me,
and maybe I can share with my friends.
And sometimes I get them in another job.
And so that's good for me.
But not, I'm only in a hiring and in recruitment and in training now,
not in the worried part.
Thank you.
I understand fully and completely.
And we're in a time now where maybe many people lost their jobs.
You hear a lot about software companies laying off people,
people searching, maybe young women who want to find their first job after graduation,
not just a small job like at McDonald's or something.
What is your advice to them?
How should they go about it?
Because some people say,
Oh, like finding a good job is not about going after job ads.
Maybe you need to know someone in the company and then they introduce you.
That's better or not.
Is that real?
Is that a myth?
Can you share what is your advice to many women who maybe now are looking for a job
so that they're more likely to find one?
First, my first advice will be to trust themselves.
Because trusting themselves is very important for a woman.
And secondly, they don't have to lose their imaginations, you know, and I can say that.
And always they have to study, work hard for all these things, I think.
Thank you.
And when raising your daughter, who you said is 14 years old,
what did you focus on as a parent?
What is your advice maybe to women who soon will become a mother and they don't know how it is?
How, from your experience, is a good way to raise a daughter in a time where maybe there
is social media where she thinks, wow, I'm ugly or anything like that?
First, they have to be a friend, first of all, with their daughters or their sons.
It doesn't matter.
Then the second thing is to be a mother.
But first, friend.
And they can share everything with their daughters or their sons.
And like this, now I can say that we trust each other so strongly.
And that's the way she can tell me everything in her life.
And she can ask me something and I can talk with her.
I listen to her.
Listening is so important for them, for all children.
And maybe people or mothers, I can say, have not to remember that they are again in these years.
And first of all, they have to feel that they are in these years, in 14 or 15.
And they have to think, oh, what I felt when I was 14 years old.
And maybe they have to behave like that.
Thank you.
That is absolutely really, really great advice.
And to ask, because, you know, education is very hard and all that.
Do you often take your daughter with you when you go camping, when you're traveling?
Or because she should be studying?
It's a different thing.
Like, can you share more about that?
Yes, not always, but usually I bring my daughter with me.
Exactly in a cultural traveling or when I go in summer holiday, I always bring my daughter with me.
And exactly when I was in Istanbul or I'm in Istanbul, I usually bring my daughter to museums.
And she can have another look to life when she gets this culture.
Thank you.
And because you grew up as one child to your parents, the only daughter, did that make you
desire to feel that all of humanity is your brother or sister?
It encouraged you even more to want that connection with people or it's separate.
It's a totally different reason.
Maybe you're born that way or your mother is that way or how does it go?
That's not separate.
I think our beginning and our last is the same.
And because of this, only our lifestyles are different.
Our cultures maybe are different, but I think we are the same.
We are born and we die.
And because of this, I think everyone is the same in the world.
I agree 100%.
And is there a country in the world, maybe like you mentioned Spain or a specific city in
Istanbul or a town that when you go, you feel I belong or maybe you said Bulgaria is near your
heart.
What is, did you find a place in this world where you feel really like, oh, I love this
place so much.
I can live here forever.
Or are you so excited about travel?
You will never want only one place.
You want everything.
Sometimes I want everything, but my place in my heart is in Italy.
I think Rome is my favorite city in the world.
But I haven't seen so many, many cities.
But first I can say that I think first Rome, second Prague is my favorite city and I can
live here forever.
But again, I have to travel.
I have to travel.
Travel is my lifestyle because.
Why are those cities your favorite?
Is it because there is so much culture and history?
Is it because there are so many tourists from so many countries or what makes you love it
more than any other place?
In Rome, there is so many culture.
And I love when I'm in a historical place to drink my wine, to feel the historical culture.
It's so fantastic for me.
And Prague is like a fairytale for me.
I don't know why, because I think it's a beautiful city.
I love the culture in Prague.
And also people are so happy and nearly, I think.
And because of this, maybe.
I understand.
And since you are fascinated by the cities and the culture of the world.
Maybe some people hear about Istanbul where you live, but they don't know how it is.
Or maybe they visited just as tourists and they see the tourist part.
Can you describe how is the real life in Istanbul?
How is the culture there?
What is it to be alive in Istanbul and not just a tourist?
I think in Istanbul, the life is so hard.
I can say the truth.
Because it is so crowded.
And unfortunately, between people, there is no respect, I think, in Istanbul.
I don't know why.
Maybe it is because of the crowd.
I don't know.
But it's so hard to live here.
Because of traffic jam.
Because of far destinations between your home and your workplace.
You can't see your friends usually here.
Only maybe on weekends.
Or if you want to have a time with yourself on weekends, maybe you can't see your friends.
And life, I think, here is so hard.
Yes, there is so many cultures.
It is so beautiful, so exciting city.
But it's a little bit bad, I think.
I understand.
And you are someone who has life experience, who's helping your daughter as well.
What is the advice maybe you give to your daughter and to other women
who maybe don't have so much confidence to go for their goals in life
so that they will not worry what people think or what people say?
And those women can live their dream and follow their real goals.
First, again, being a woman is really hard.
Exactly in Turkey, maybe I can say that.
But first, they have to trust themselves.
And if they need help, they have to want a hand from help without thinking.
Because here I can say that people are helpful to each other.
Exactly women to women, because there is a strong communication.
Because I think in Istanbul or in Turkey,
60 or 70 percent women are living the same hard things.
I agree 100 million percent.
Thank you so much, Sema, for being in this podcast,
for sharing your voice and your perspective.
It's my honor and my privilege to have you here.
I thank you so much for participating.
I wish you all the success to you and your daughter and everyone you love.
And thank you again.
Thank you very much too.
Because I'm so happy to be a part of this podcast.
And thank you for your invitation, me.
It's a really great thing for me.
You are welcome.
