🇵🇹 Stefi’s Shorts #2 - On taking risks

January 26, 2024 • 2 min read

Dear friends,

This week, I had the opportunity to participate in a company offsite in Lisbon, Portugal. As an introvert, meeting everyone initially felt a bit overwhelming, especially since we operate as a remote company. However, I found myself genuinely enjoying the experience.

Reflecting on my time with the company, over a year and a few months, alongside my life in Barcelona and the journey that brought me here, I realized that taking risks was the key factor. Despite being comfortable in Romania, I wasn’t truly happy, so I started looking for jobs in Barcelona and once I got an offer I made the move. I didn’t speak any Spanish nor Catalan, but fortunately I had a few friends living here. I started looking for a place to leave and in 3-4 weeks after signing the offer I relocated. It hasn’t been easy but slowly I got to make new friends and adapt to a new culture.

When I was moving I was working as a digital marketeer. In the back of my mind, I wanted to move towards software engineering but it felt like a big scary move. I didn’t dislike marketing and I had a good job but I didn’t feel challenged anymore and the social media landscape changed to something I didn’t want to be part of. I tried to teach myself to code with free online resources but it felt like a slow process so I decided to take the leap, get a loan and sign up for a part-time bootcamp. The path to where I am was not easy.

I wasn’t sure I would like living in Barcelona or working as a Software Engineer but embracing these challenges has brought me immense joy and fulfillment.

3 Ideas That Made Me Think This Week

• ”The Tetris Effect – When our brains get stuck in a pattern that focuses on stress, negativity, and failure, we set ourselves up to fail. This principle teaches us how to retrain our brains to spot patterns of possibility, so we can see – and seize – opportunity wherever we look.” — Shawn Achor
• Choose Your Hard Idea/Quote: it’s hard to work out daily and stay active but it’s also hard to witness your body atrophy and decline. Make a choice.
• Job-Hopping Among Underrepresented Minorities: these folks face more challenges that include biases that make them leave their jobs more often as other folks as a way of maintaining their well-being or seeking a more supportive work environment. - idea from Engineering Management for the Rest of Us by Sarah Drasner

YouTube Video or Podcast of the week

It was such a great listen. Although I read so many of Brene’s books and watch her talks or Netflix special I learn every time something new or I get to question a belief I have.

Lifestyle

The past year I’ve started asking myself a lot what I want my rich life look like? What holds importance to me and what constitutes a good life?

This video is an interesting insight from an American buying a flat in Sicily, Italy, and discussing some of the cultural differences and price differences. It beautifully highlights how the smallest details can make a profound difference ❤️.

Quote of the Week

“I sit here, and I know where I am. This is very important. We tend to be alive in the future, not now. We say, ‘Wait until I finish school and get my PhD degree, and then I will be really alive.’ And then after that, a job, then a car. After the car, then a house. We tend to postpone being alive in the present moment… . Therefore, the technique is to be in the present moment, to be aware that we are here and now, and the only moment to be alive is the present moment. This is a wonderful moment.” Thich Nhat Hanh - In Being Peace

Stefi

Read More:

• ← 🌱 Stefi’s Shorts #1 - Just get started
• 🎾 Stefi’s Shorts #3 - Do it for yourself →