Our Story

  • Meaningful connection requires us to be mentally and emotionally present, which is increasingly difficult in a world where overstimulation and burnout are rampant. In fact, in 2017, U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy declared loneliness a public health “epidemic” in the United States.


    COVID-19 didn’t create this problem—it amplified an existing one. For decades, our fast-paced lifestyle, focused on career obligations and numerous  responsibilities, has left limited time for personal connections, family and self-care. This lifestyle, driven by consumerism and a relentless focus on productivity and profit margins, has been compounding for at least the past 50 years. The last three generations have largely been raised by working parents, often away from home for long stretches, and by technology. Social media has replaced physical social environments where genuine connections were easier to nurture.  


    We’ve become overscheduled, overcommitted, and overstretched, leading to a dramatic decline in the quality of life for many of us. This has trapped people in an endless cycle of responsibilities, leaving little room for anything else.


    We need a paradigm shift toward a greater balance between work and personal life. We need to start working to live, not living to work. And we need more authentic human connection in all the social and professional spaces we engage in.


    Humanessence advocates for human-centered approaches to achieving any goal. As a philosophy, we are guided on two tenets:


    • Holistic Living: Humanessence promotes a balanced approach to life—where the heart, mind, and body work in harmony, fostering deeper awareness and connection within ourselves and with our communities, including the workplace. This means showing up as our whole selves in every social setting we participate in.


    • Human-Centric Systems: Humanessence asserts that people, relationships, and the behaviors that shape them are at the heart of what makes any system, including organizations, thrive in synergy.


    Workspaces, whether virtual or physical, must be designed to meet the needs of both employees and employers in equitable ways. Technology can be a powerful tool to enhance productivity, create efficiencies, and ensure quality. However, human capital—our ability to make decisions, think critically, discern nuances, offer diverse perspectives, and exercise empathy— is just as important. These elements are not mutually exclusive; they are interconnected.


    Ultimately, Humanessence is grounded in the belief that organizations have a core social responsibility to prioritize the well-being of their employees. By focusing on employee well-being, organizations serve their mission better with happier, healthier, and more creative people.

Mission

We aspire to a society where individuals are empowered to lead happy, healthy, and fulfilling lives that inspire meaning and purpose—personally and professionally. People are, quite literally, the heart and mind of any organization. By recognizing this, we can create conditions where imagination, ideas, solutions, and innovation are nurtured and allowed to thrive.

Vision

Imagine a society that values human life and our individual and collective experiences in every aspect of our lives. Picture a workplace that authentically supports your ability to lead a rich, fulfilling, and purpose-driven life—where you have the autonomy to define what that looks like for yourself.

This is a society that embraces true balance, centering individual well-being and growth while harmonizing participation in the workplace, the family, and the community. With this vision, employers recognize that taking care of their employees is the ultimate act of corporate social responsibility.

Respect

We acknowledge and treat others with dignity and as they would like to be treated.

Integrity

We say what we do and we do as we say.

Trust

We understand that a safe and nurturing environment is fundamental for healthy human relationships.

Mutual Accountability

We honor our word and are accountable to ourselves and to each other.

Collaboration

We believe the IQ and EQ of a team is greater than the sum of its parts.

Empathy

We value empathy as a guide to help us better understand others and forge more meaningful connections.

Hello! I’m Nidia Trujillo.

About Me

I’m Nidia, the founder of  Humanessence and I’d love to share with you a bit about who I am. I was born in Guatemala and immigrated to California when I was a child. I grew up in Los Angeles and attended UC Berkeley for my undergraduate degree. I have a Master’s degree in Public Administration for International Management from the Middlebury Institute for International Studies. 

With over 25 years of experience in both public and private sectors, I specialize in organizational engineering. I strive to optimize and find synergies between and among systems, structures, people, and cultures. A natural deep thinker, I thrive on engaging in thoughtful conversations that involve analysis, critical thinking, complex problem-solving, and strategizing. I am also a deep feeler and experience a vast array of emotions with great depth and breadth. As an empath, I sometimes also experience others’ emotions, allowing me to understand people and their behaviors by sensing and sharing their emotions.

In May 2022, I embarked on a sabbatical lasting a year and a half to decompress from years of working insanely long hours and traveling internationally. Frankly, I was burnt out. And it wasn’t until I slowed down that I actually felt the extent of burnout I had experienced.

My healing process involved a holistic approach in caring for my physical, mental, and emotional well-being. It was important and necessary, but it also gave me the spaciousness to lean into the other parts of me that had been warming the bench, waiting to be seen. The mother in me. The chef, the artist, and the social justice warrior. I found a love for philosophy, pottery, and Jungian psychology. 

Returning to the professional realm, I am mindful of the need to redefine traditional work practices. I strongly believe that the future workplace should be flexible, emphasizing outcomes over mere productivity. It should empower employees to lead fulfilling and well-rounded lives.

Having a healthy balance that honors all that we are is really the only way to thrive and have meaningful experiences—in and outside of workplaces. As organizations, we must acknowledge that human beings are vital to our success. 

I look forward to working with you!

25

years of experience