NYSAE Member Spotlight – Marc Ian Tobias, CAE, CMP, Human Rights First
What do you love most about the NYSAE community?
My entire professional career has been based in the association/non-profit sector. I started my career in Washington, DC and when I relocated to New York City one of the first things I did was seek out and become a member of NYSAE because I not just wanted to but needed NYSAE and its membership events to help me build my professional network. NYSAE continues to be my go-to for professional relationship building.
When you look back on the last year, what are you most proud of accomplishing?
After twenty-three (23) years with the same organization I started a new position with a different organization. The journey from being on the interviewer side of the table to the interviewee side was tough, but one of incredible growth, and the lessons I’ve learned about myself are now deep-rooted and long-lasting.
How has the pandemic effected your personal or professional world for the better?
The pandemic has taught me the value of community and the relationships they forge. How communities can be strengthened in times of crisis from both a personal and professional perspective. It has been a learning experience for us all. Resilience is defined as “the ability of people or things to recover quickly after something unpleasant,” and this year has certainly shaped the way we adapt to significant changes.
Do you have a mentor or a coach – who do you talk to about your work life and why?
Twenty-five years ago, I was fortunate enough to be called for in for an interview at Americans for the Arts and little did I know that the person who greeted me as I walked off the elevator would become my professional role model, mentor, and lifelong friend. Mara Walker is her name, and she continues to inspire me to dream big, ask the tough questions, face adversity, and stand strong. She emulates the example of professionalism, integrity, and ethical behavior in action; behaviors that I strive to emulate every day in my career.
If you weren’t working in the field, you are in now, what would you be doing?
That’s easy, playing pickleball every day. https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/18/style/pickleball-sports.html