The Importance of Identity and Feeling Like You Belong

Ruchika Malhotra is a keynote speaker, inclusion strategist, and the bestselling author of Inclusion on Purpose—an intersectional approach to creating a culture of belonging at work. She is also the founder of the inclusion strategy practice CANDOR.

Amalia and Ruchika chat about individuals being made up of a multitude of identities, battling the underestimations of others, and how western feminism hasn’t given us that promised liberation. 

They also discuss how Ruchika started her career in the “overwhelmingly white and overwhelmingly male” journalism industry and Ruchika shares her many experiences of having her name deliberately mispronounced or being ignored by coworkers due to the way she looks. 

Key Takeaways:

• The shame of a name: Ruchika explains how it took her “decades to reclaim agency and connection over my own name, which tells this beautiful story of a heritage and all this meaning and is so powerful.”
• Unravelling systems of oppression: Ruchika shares a sneak peek at her new book coming out fall 2025. She speaks to how humans are conditioned to believe in survival of the fittest and put self above community when we should be spreading the wealth and helping others grow alongside us.
• The Whole Damn Pie means: aspiring to a garden. For Ruchika, it’s looking after herself so she can replant seeds and give to others. 

Learn more about Ruchika and her book here: https://www.ruchika.co/