Fresh start

Sometimes life goes against you until you take the right exit. Sometimes we need to stop to get out of the place. Sometimes we take steps backwards to be able to move forward again.

Simone is a physical educator, she chose her profession early, she chose it with her heart. She, unlike most of her college classmates, didn't love playing sports, she considered herself a little lazy, but she followed absolutely all the sports on TV, she knew too much, she was super interested in debates and dreamed of an academic career in the field.

Well… I think you can imagine that the field of academic sports research in Brazil is not very big, right? In fact, at the end of her degree, it took a while for Simone to get a place in her dream of a master's degree. But she didn't just stand there and wait. He took the laziness out of his body and went to work at a gym giving swimming lessons while continuing to prepare for his master's exam.

And so it went for a year until the vacancy appeared and it was hers. Simone studied how sporting events impact public policy. What an interesting project! She was finally working with what she wanted and with a really cool team, but a change in the government cut a lot of the country's science funding and she found herself at the end of her master's degree with no place to continue her studies and pursue her doctorate. And it's time to go back to the market again.

At age 30, Simone once again put on her swimsuit, squeezed her curly hair into her tight swimming cap and fell into the pool. Not just in one, but in three. At that age, she felt social pressure to be independent, leave her parents' house, be able to buy a car, have her own little things. With the very low salaries in the market, he worked three jobs.

The first classes were super early in the morning, the last ones were late at night. His body felt the blow. Simone was always ill and her mental health began to show signs that she wasn't doing very well. After 10 years in this triathlon of life, she knew she needed to rethink her choices and follow a healthier and more sustainable path. What she didn't know was that this change in direction would be imposed so abruptly.

With the arrival of the pandemic, gyms were closed and Simone was forced to stop. It was a very difficult phase. Despite the necessary break to take care of his body, his mental health was still suffering from the rhythm of recent years and added to the fears and uncertainties that this moment brought to all of us, he was not going well at all. Anxiety attacks that were previously more discreet and silent now had more severe and intense episodes. It was time to change, but where? Which way to take?

She was willing to start everything from scratch and had a few career options in mind. The one with the brightest eyes was the journalist. But his biggest desire was to have a regulated life, work during business hours, have a decent salary, stability. She had a list of dreams to fulfill and if she was going to start all over again, let it be with a career that would allow her to live those dreams.

Amid the pandemic, Simone started taking an information technology course. She had never in a million years thought about a career in IT, she didn't know anything about computing beyond the basics of everyday life, but she faced the challenge with an open mind. Like someone who discovers a new muscle after a new set at the gym, she discovered capabilities that were hidden beneath a lifetime in the sport.

Simone soon got her first job in the field. She was an intern in the technology sector at Renault and remembers with grace the embarrassment of being the oldest among the 20-year-old kids on her first day of work. An embarrassment that only lasted the first few days, because she made it an advantage and used her life experience and maturity to carve out her space and grow her career super quickly.

Today marks 3 years since her transition, she already has a team that she leads, she is professionally satisfied, healthy and realizing many of those dreams written down on paper. She proudly says that she evolved more in 3 years of IT than in 10 years of physical education. And it's something to be proud of.

Simone needed a lot of courage to accept her desires. In a world full of shallow speeches like “work what you love and you’ll never have to work again” or “doing what you love is essential for success”, Simone went against the grain. With both feet on the ground and a clear head, she chose a profession that paid her a fair salary, respected her rest hours, gave her stability, vacations, health insurance, and recognition. For her, this is happiness.

She still loves sport, follows championships on TV, remains up to date with research and keeps alive the desire to one day do a doctorate in the field, but for now she pursues her passion as a hobby. Luxury that for years he could not have and that he now enjoys with a healthy body and soul.

If there is greater success than this, I don't know!