Photo by Steve wilson

By Liz Chang

Only recently have I become quick to notice the number (read, lack) of people who look like me at conferences and professional events. At the most recent professional conference I attended for work, I spotted no more than three or four Asian Americans out of over 300 people present. After studying Marriage and Family Therapy and interning as a clinician in child and family therapy services, I recently entered into the world of substance use disorder treatment and prevention. I already knew that there were not many Asian Americans in the field of therapy and counseling in general, but I had no idea how rare it would be for me to interact with an Asian American chemical dependency professional. About this, I am not surprised. However, what surprised me at the conference was when someone looked directly at me, probably saw (read, should have seen) my adult-colored name tag, and mistook me to be a middle school student. This has never happened to me before in my adult life.

Maybe she didn’t see my name tag. Even so, I wonder if the same mistake would have been made if I were a White woman. Yes, Asian American women tend to look young. And, as for me, I already have insecurities about my age as a young professional anyway. I graduated high school, went straight to college, jumped right into graduate school, and here I am in my first full-time job. I’ll let you do the calculations. It took me two years as an intern therapist to get over my insecurities as a young clinician, but it only took one minute of being mistook as a thirteen year old for that to all come flooding back. As much as I feel confident about the quality of work, experience, and skills that I have as a therapist, I get caught up in the subtle ageism that exists in my interaction with other professionals. It certainly does not help that I, being Asian American, look younger than non-Asian coworkers who are the same age as I am.

How does my youthful face impact the perception other professionals have of my qualifications, skills, and experience?

How does their perception of me impact the way I interact with them?

And, how does my own age insecurity affect all of that?

Every now and then, I come around to thinking about these questions. To be honest, I am not always satisfied with the responses that I have.

So, I will leave you with the questions and a Bible verse that has often been a source of encouragement for me as a young Asian American woman involved in leadership and a professional career. It is a verse that speaks empowerment for young people to model discipleship, and I think it is applicable for all settings:

“Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity.” – 1 Timothy 4:12

Liz Chang resides in Seattle, WA and works for Navos as a substance abuse prevention & intervention specialist at a local middle school, and as a child and family therapist. She graduated from Seattle Pacific University with a Masters of Science degree in Marriage and Family Therapy, and is working towards certification as a Chemical Dependency Professional. She enjoys spending quality time with friends, making music, playing basketball, sunshine with a cool breeze, and mint chocolate chip ice cream.