Growing up, I was always the one who organized get-togethers for family and friends. Planning, creating, and hosting spaces for people to connect filled me with a sense of discovery and purpose. At 17, I did a cultural exchange in Denmark, which further fueled my ongoing curiosity into how people behave and what drives us as humans. Getting immersed in a new culture opened my mind.
Aged 21, I felt I needed to explore new opportunities, so I moved to Sao Paulo, a vibrant cosmopolitan city in Brazil. I felt like I was in a completely different world, which makes sense as Sao Paulo is home to 12 million people!
During my work in an event agency, I befriended and was mentored by the CEO of the company. 1 year seemed like 3 years worth of evolution and professional growth.
But after this upward trajectory of career development, Brazil went into a financial crisis, and I lost my job. The next few months were only getting worse and that was when I had a personal crisis.
I decided to look for communities who I identified with, to focus on myself and my well-being. My relationship with food and lifestyle was changing, my energy was returning, and I felt the transformative power that self-care has in our personal and professional life.
Building on these solid foundations I had laid for myself. I started my own business working with big technology and entrepreneurship companies around Brazil. I noticed a huge gap in the lack of women working in the middle of technology, and I started to bring more inclusion to the experiences created.
In the midst of all this madness, I always looked for new ways to improve my knowledge. Using design and innovation methodologies to enhance the experiences I worked on in addition to encouraging people around me to try healthy foods, natural products and to believe that they are able to get to where they want to be. My network even calls me a fitness influencer, but my mission is really to influence people to try new things and feel that AHA moment!
It was late 2018 that I decided to go beyond my comfort zone by moving to the United States. Moving to another country made me go through yet another personal crisis. However, I learned from the past crisis to look inside myself and respect my limits. It was then that I started looking for communities in the Bay Area that I could connect with.
After a few months, I had an insight and understood that I can positively impact many more people working with CPG brands that promote well-being and in female empowerment projects. It was then that I started as a volunteer and community director at Startup CPG, to learn even more about the CPG market.
Today, I continue to seek a healthy work-life balance. I am still curious about exploring the world, facing my fears, but this time with absolute clarity in my mission to create meaningful experiences for people.