Maria Claudia Jimeno (Bolivia)
Maria Claudia Jimeno was born in the far away country of Bolivia. She arrived in Bucharest in 1993.
Roxana Vasile, 07.05.2015, 14:20
Maria Claudia Jimeno was born in the far away country of Bolivia. She arrived in Bucharest in 1993.
“I came to Bucharest on a psychology scholarship. I graduated in 1997 and afterwards I took up courses in relational communication, a field in which I am active now and which is my main activity.
Why did Maria Claudia Jimeno choose to stay in Romania and not to return to her native Bolivia, after graduation?
“I did that for rather pragmatic reasons! In Bolivia, all students work during their university years, whereas in Romania, they dont. So, if I returned to Bolivia, I hadnt stood any chance to get a job, with my lack of experience. So, I decided to write a PhD paper, in order to stay longer in Romania, to start working and practice things a little bit, and I planned on returning to Bolivia later. But, in the end, I chose to stay.
Two years ago Maria Claudia Jimeno got the Romanian citizenship, which she considers to be a natural continuation of her path in Romania. In 2001, she laid the foundations for a Personal Development Centre called AMANESER, which brings to Romania modern communication and emotional freedom techniques. In other words, Maria Claudia, a personal development consultant, trainer and specialist, helps people heal their souls.
“I help people to listen to themselves so that they may learn how they are built on the inside, how they get angry and argue with the others, how they can get over some situations so that they may improve communication with others. Most of the patients come with issues related to their relationship with their partners or their children, or with self-esteem issues, and we are trying to make these people happier, help them get in touch with their inner selves.
And how can we communicate with others, so as to be happy?
“Using ‘I. Sadly our communication is the YOU-type: You must do this and that. Why didnt YOU do that? YOU make me angry…This is a dysfunctional type of communication, which brings about a lot of suffering. The first rule of communication hygiene is to adopt the I-type communication: I am getting angry, I wish…I am afraid, I agree etc.
A method largely employed by Maria Claudia is ESPERE (Energy Specifically Providing an Essential Relational Ecology), which she has introduced to Romania. The method was created 30 years ago by the French psycho-sociologist Jacques Salome, who has been to Bucharest a couple of times in response to Maria Claudias invitations. Although she has been living in Romania for the past 20 years and has a busy professional life, Maria Claudia Jimeno is nostalgic about her native country. Shes been trying to visit her family once a year though, and between these trips, she helps Romanians see the bright side of life and find the right solutions to any problem. What are the Romanians like, from a communicational point of view? Maria Claudia would not give a straight answer:
“Each country, each people lived certain events over centuries, and culturally speaking, there are certain landmarks showing at the level of mentalities, of attitudes, of relationships. Romanians lived many years in Communism. This made them more introvert, because Romanians lived in fear during Communism. And fear makes you introvert. But this is valid for any country. Some people are open to talk, to communicate with each other, just as in others there is an exacerbation of negative emotions – people lose their temper quickly, they yell, envy, bear grudges. There are antagonistic aspects that coexist in Romania, just like anywhere in the world. Its about context and intensity. Fortunately I have found a lot of nice, openhearted people who have become my friends. Together with them I have experienced many things, which other foreigners did not have the chance to experience. I have had a nice experience here in Romania. Of course some things got on my nerves, such as the queuing, the bureaucracy …but this was the context then. However its our attitude that makes the difference. This is what makes life happier or more miserable!
