Hybrid Identity: The superpower of living in-between
This text is a celebration of my colleague Najma and her wisdom.
Najma (https://www.linkedin.com/in/najma-mohamed-5708868b/) is an extraordinary bridge builder. She moves fluidly between worlds - across sectors, identities, and perspectives - and turns complexity into something human and future-facing.
Her hybrid identity is her superpower: rooted in multiple contexts, she embodies the richness of many perspectives and creates understanding where others see division.
Listening to Najma speak about Hybrid Identity today was grounding and inspiring. Here are a few insights I carried with me.
What is a hybrid identity
Hybrid identity means you’re not locked into one role, culture, or definition. You move between worlds. You speak more than one “language” - maybe literally, maybe socially, maybe professionally. You’re fluent in the codes of here and there, this and that.
Neuroscience has a word for this: cognitive flexibility. Your brain gets sharper when it’s forced to switch perspectives, juggle frames, and make sense of contradictions. Translation? The friction of being “in-between” actually strengthens your neural wiring for empathy, adaptability, and creativity.
A superpower for complexity
We live in a society defined by complexity - climate change, polarized politics, AI ethics, global migration. None of these challenges can be solved with single-lens thinking. Hybrid identities are perfectly wired for this moment because they know how to hold paradox, see patterns, and bridge divides. What feels like a personal ache (“I don’t fully belong”) is also the exact muscle humanity needs right now: the ability to dance with complexity.
But here’s the catch: hybridity doesn’t develop by default. You have to lean into it. As Najma shared, it gets stronger when you practice shifting perspectives intentionally, when you expose yourself to different cultures and contexts, when you reflect on your own mix instead of hiding it. Ask yourself: What’s the recipe of me? Which ingredients (cultures, values, experiences) do I draw on? Which ones do I suppress? That kind of reflection turns hybridity from background noise into conscious strength.
And don’t forget the bias part
Societies still love neat boxes: old/young, local/global, rational/emotional. Hybrids disrupt that. Which means you might face misunderstanding or judgment. But the irony is, research shows hybrids are actually less biased - because they’ve trained their brains to see from multiple vantage points. Hybrids don’t just cross borders. They redraw them.
According to Najma Hybrid identity is the frontier
So the next time you feel caught in-between, remember: that space isn’t a weakness. It’s the frontier. And maybe - just maybe - the future belongs to those who can live there.
Reflection prompts:
What’s the “mix” of you - which cultures, experiences, or roles make up your hybrid identity?
When has being “in-between” given you an advantage?
Where do you still feel the pull of bias - in yourself or from others - and how might your hybridity be the antidote?
Thank you Najma for your inspirational talk today at Vinnova!