I was born and raised in Recife, a beautifully creative and also chaotic city on the coast of Brazil. Arts, design, photography and crafts were always my thing.
In 2006 I graduated in graphic design and a week later I was in Germany starting a new chapter in my life. I had no previous knowledge of the German language when I arrived in Cologne on that 04th of July (my very own independence day :D) with my two suitcases full of summer clothes.
Most people couldn't understand why I decided to move to Germany (especially without knowing anyone and not speaking the language), but I was simply chasing a better quality of life, without the limitations and insecurities of my home country. I knew that I should come and that I could trust my gut feelings!
14 years later and I did it again!
Holding hands with my 5-year-old son I decided to move abroad again. I grabbed my Brazilian passport (and also my new German pass) and here I am in The Hague, Netherlands. The new Heimat is just beautiful. My only sister is also living here so it feels a lot like home to me and it was one more reason for me to come.
I am still getting used to the lack of a “cuisine” but enjoying other aspects like the practicality of everything.
It was always clear to me that I wanted to pursue something creative. What I discovered after my design studies was that the logistics and organisation behind projects were also a lot of fun. After my studies, I worked for big corporations and took on organisational tasks, mostly in international environments, which I really enjoyed.
And then something amazing has happened:
And as it is often the case, my managers were not exactly thrilled when I told them the news. As a result, I lost my job (yes, in Germany; yes, that's possible; and yes, it happens A LOT!). That is how I felt the discrimination on my skin. I had witnessed similar situations a few times before with female colleagues. It is sad and very annoying to experience something like this. But as I like to deal with those things, I made the best of it!
When I took the step into self-employment after parental leave, I had no idea what to expect. How was this even going to work? How do I write an invoice? What services should I offer? I had so many unanswered questions.
The decision was not easy for me. I was reading things like: "Are you the entrepreneur type?" And I asked myself: Who is the right person for this? I observe very often that women, especially after having children, want/must/need to make something possible for themselves. They need flexible working hours and we know that the market is not always ready for that.
I am very grateful that I got to jump into freelancing. My passion is growing every day and my skills are becoming more diverse. I look forward to each day anew, have many reasons to start my day full of motivation and build something that will accompany me no matter what happens and no matter where I go!
I invite you to join me and I would be happy to hear from you as well: What moves you? What is valuable for you? What would you like to achieve?
