“I’ve been challenged a lot. I believe in challenge, I love to be challenged. Always put in your mind that your current situation is not your future measurement. Be confident, have hope, and never give up.”
Zinah lived with her family in the center of Baghdad, Iraq, until 2006 when the war destroyed their tranquil life. The family fled their home, spending the next ten years as refugees in Jordan and Oman.
With each move, Zinah worked to rebuild her career in HR. She obtained a master’s degree in business administration and worked her way up to HR manager in a global logistics company – the only female manager in her department. Almost a decade after initially applying for resettlement in the U.S., Zinah and her family learned they had been approved. Unfortunately, due to travel restrictions, her younger brother was not able to travel with them, and the family faced being separated for the first time.
Hoping to find security and a permanent place to put down roots, they took a leap and arrived in Dallas in 2016. With her education and experience, Zinah thought she would easily land a job in her field, but found that many employers did not recognize her foreign experience. Upwardly Global gave her encouragement, and helped her to develop the networking skills to land her first professional interview in the U.S. Zinah is now working in HR at Reddy Ice, where she is forging meaningful relationships with her coworkers.