Our incredible Big Sister, Tamy, once said:
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“Try new things. Don’t get so caught up in your routine that you forget to try things that you have never experienced. New experiences can enhance your life in ways that you may not have considered.”

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In this article, we hear from three ladies who after developing their confidence in English, decided to step out of their comfort zone and embark on new business adventures. 

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Perhaps these stories will inspire you to follow suit – to take a bold step out of your comfort zone, embrace opportunities and try something new!

Alla’s Story
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Alla is a trained Chemist from Saudi Arabia. Having been a stay at home mum for several years, Alla decided to turn her passion for gardening and painting into a small business. Alla shares about this exciting new season of life, and how this new business makes her even more determined to level up her English skills.

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“I have loved nature and gardening for over 10 years, but in 2018 I finally decided to go out of my comfort zone – I decided to turn my hobby into a small business. I sell indoor plants in unique, hand-painted pots.

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You see, although I am a trained Chemist, I was traveling a lot with my husband so I didn’t work. I preferred to stay at home taking care of my kids. After years and years of this, I felt bored and wanted to do new things. I thought to myself, ‘I have a lot of energy and a lot of hobbies: I like planting, gardening, and reading. 

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Of course, the first thing that came to my mind was indoor plants. I wanted to encourage people to have more indoor plants. In my country, we spend a lot of time inside buildings, so we need something green to give us positive energy and to improve our mental wellbeing, especially in office buildings, hospitals and homes. After two years of thinking about it, I decided to give it a try!

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I started my business from my house. I set up my profile on Instagram to upload my pictures and set up a stall in the local markets to show people my work. An owner of a large shop saw my plants in one of the local markets, and she offered to sell my plants in her shop. 

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When I made a business out of my hobby, my life changed in a positive way. I could feel the difference in my mood, stress level, happiness and fulfilment of my work. I’m really happy with my business, and one day I hope to have my own big shop. 
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"One of the reasons I want to improve my English language is to help my business. I know that English will help me a lot to read about plants and to expand my knowledge and vision for the future of my business.”

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Daniela’s Story
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Inspired by our beautiful online community, Daniela built the courage to embark on a new adventure and create her very own online community for people wanting to learn ceramics. You see, Daniela is a ceramicist and pottery teacher who owns a shop in Venice called Atelier Daniela Levera (@atelier_danielalevera). 
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Daniela also organised online pottery classes for women in our community. More than 15 women from around the world attended her online tutorial and learnt the basics of pottery, from the comfort of their own homes!
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"Online pottery classes are a great opportunity for me to practise teaching in English, and for you ladies to learn some pottery techniques while making new friends,” Daniela wrote. 

“I love teaching and giving people the opportunity to try at least once in their life to create something with a ball of clay… Pottery will bring you into a dialogue with your inner self, your creativity and is a great alternative to learn how to manage anxiety and stress in an active way.”

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We are so pleased that through our community, Daniela has been empowered to take on new adventures, and in turn, has empowered others to learn new skills. And in doing so, she’s made new friends and connected with women all over the world, in English. How amazing is that!

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We love seeing the creative ways our members connect with each other and practise their English in our online community! Check out some of the awesome pieces our ladies created below!
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Pinar’s Story
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Trained midwife, cat-lover and much-loved Hey Lady! team member, Pinar, shares the challenges she experienced after taking the bold step to move seven hours away from home, in pursuit of new opportunities, independence and personal growth.

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“I moved to a new city in April 2020 because I got offered another new job (It’s my second job, in addition to Hey Lady!). When I applied for the job, I really didn’t think I would get it. It was in a city I didn’t even know the name of, but I applied because I thought it would be a good opportunity.

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I have lived with my family my entire life, so the thought of moving seven hours away was very scary for me. I had no idea what was going to happen. For the first seven or eight months after moving, I had many insecurities about myself and I questioned why I ever made the decision to move away. Quite often, I just thought, “What am I doing here? There is no reason for me to be here.”

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I took the job because I knew I would learn so much, and I wanted to learn to be independent and confident on my own. But at that point, I felt like I was losing confidence, not gaining it. I was feeling more insecure and more vulnerable. I thought, “I’m losing my power. I’m not learning at all, I’m just losing.”

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I wanted to give up. I wanted to resign. But, when these feelings came, I reminded myself that God always knows the best and he’s going to give me the experiences I need at that point in time, even if in that moment I can’t see the reason for it. 

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As the months passed, people at work started to tell me that I looked more confident and more sure of myself. It’s definitely taken a while, but I’ve learnt to be comfortable with my own company, and have come to love my independence. I’ve started seeing the benefits of coming here, bit by bit.  And when I think about it, it’s the same when you are learning English as well. In the beginning, it’s so easy to think, “I’m stuck. I’m not getting any better, so why am I doing this? I should just give up.”

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But that’s what I’ve learnt through this process; it’s always in these exact moments – the hardest ones – that you need to keep fighting and pushing on, because chances are, you’re only a few steps away from seeing positive results. It’s happening little by little all along, but you may not see that for a while. It’s not until all those little pieces start coming together one by one that you begin to see the bigger picture. And that is a good day!

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So if there is one piece of advice I could give to other ladies scared of embarking on new adventures, it would be:
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“Keep going and give yourself time to adjust. There’s positive things just around the corner!”