Monoculture vs. Permaculture: Learning to Grow Differently
2025. October 16.
You Can’t Do It Alone
2025. December 10.
A story about entrepreneurship, redirection, abundance, and trusting the journey.
I’ve had many beginnings in my life; new projects, new jobs, new paths, new ideas.
Now I’m here again, at the start of something new.
This time, though, the feeling is different.
There is excitement.
There is hope.
There is trust.
It wasn’t always like this.
In the past, even when I started new projects full of passion and excitement, there was always a strong mix of fear, uncertainty, and overthinking in the background. I was hopeful, but I didn’t yet have the inner stability to fully trust myself, my path, or the timing of things.
Over the years I slowly started to shift. Not by magically becoming fearless, but by learning how to understand myself better, how to calm my mind, how to separate real danger from imagined fear, and how to trust the process a little more each time.
The Entrepreneurial Path: What It Requires and What It Reveals
It might sound funny, but I only recently realized that not everyone wants this life. Being independent, making your passion your work, and constantly building something from scratch. It’s like being an artist: you either are one, or you’re not. You can’t resist it. Creation is part of you.
Entrepreneurship is the same.
It aslo requires desire, drive, courage, and the ability to hold yourself through uncertainty. It reveals who you are, what you fear, and what you believe is possible. It forces you to confront your weaknesses and trust your strengths. You either want it with your whole being or you don’t choose it at all.
Ups & Downs: You Either Win or Learn
I’ve had many ups and downs, but you usually only recognize them and see them clearly afterwards - and always from a different angle.
Each time I started a new path, I was full of energy and hope. There was always something - if not everything - I was passionate about. I always followed my heart, even when it didn’t make sense to the people around me. That, I think, is my biggest win: I always knew what I desired, what I believed in, and what I refused to compromise.
And yes, I failed.
Projects failed.
Teams fell apart.
Partners became incompatible.
Unexpected problems grew bigger than us.
Financial issues.
Of course, years later, it’s clear what I should’ve done differently. But how else could I have learned? That saying is so true:
You either win or learn.
There really is no losing when you look at things this way.
What “Success” Means to Me Now
My journey has been the opposite of the usual.
Most people start working for money - and that makes sense. But abundance is a complex concept.
For me, my morals and values were always the priority. I wanted to work on things I loved, things I believed in, and honestly, I desired recognition more than money.
Freedom was just as important - professionally and personally - so I often turned down very good opportunities if they didn’t align with the way I wanted to work or live.
But recently something changed.
As I became more confident, practiced self-awareness, and learned true self-love, I found recognition within myself. I also realized that my rejection of money came from two places:
- I was taught that wanting money was morally shallow.
- I unconsciously associated “wanting money” with “not having money.”
When I understood this, everything shifted.
Now I am more driven by money than before—not out of greed, but out of clarity. Wanting money isn’t wrong. What you want it for is what defines it.
So for me, success now is abundance in its full complexity.
Real success requires alignment in all components of life:
- beliefs
- passion
- dreams
- love
- friendships
- intellectual and emotional connections
- physical and mental health
- safety
- freedom
- peace
- and yes - wealth
We all have more or less of each component.
The goal is to work on the areas where we are lacking.
My New Business
So what is this new beginning?
I’m starting a new company in Portugal for events and event/wedding decorations.
It somehow feels like the most natural next step.
It is the perfect merge of my strongest professional worlds:
events & visual creativity.
Why Now?
This is what I love about life - it’s all connected.
Once you truly believe that everything works for you and learn to trust the process (or the universe, life, god, whatever word you prefer), while still actively working for your desires, opportunities appear that you couldn’t have imagined yourself.
It’s why I have a very specific “manifestation” approach.
I don’t manifest objects or outcomes. I manifest by self-awareness.
I go deep into my heart and ask:
- What do I truly want?
- What energizes me?
- What do I love so much I can’t stop talking about it?
- What are my natural abilities?
- Where do my skills meet my passion?
- What do I believe in? Is there a higher purpose that drives me?
And from this matrix, I light the path ahead of me. Not with rigid plans, but with openness.
That’s exactly how this project came to me.
Not randomly - because I don’t believe in randomness - but through years of threads coming together:
- I grew up surrounded by handmade crafts, visual work, and artistic family traditions.
- I studied fashion and art history as a teenager preparing for a fashion career.
- I spent over a decade in music, culture, hospitality, and event management.
- During COVID, I attempted my first decoration-related business (luxury picnics) - a short-lived but meaningful “failure.”
- Then, years later, I found myself working in wedding decorations; and it all clicked.
Suddenly I saw how all these parts of my life created one clear direction.
This new business combines everything I’ve ever loved and everything I’ve ever learned.
The Mindset I Needed to Get Here
Self-awareness.
General awareness.
Trust.
Hope.
Adaptability.
Acceptance.
Compared to my mindset 10, 5, or even 2 years ago, I am a different person. Practicing and truly embodying these qualities helps you recognize that difficult events often aren’t failures; they are redirections.
When you understand this, you don’t break when things change.
You don’t freeze when plans fall apart.
You don’t collapse when you’re forced out of a situation.
You adapt.
You trust.
You work.
You keep going.
Nothing lasts forever; not our challenges, not our successes, and not our identities. The world changes, and so do we. You can only feel like a failure if you cling to things staying the same.
Entrepreneurship is about movement.
Life is about movement.
And this new beginning is just another turn in the path - a beautiful one.
Is this the finish? The goal of my life?
And is this the final thing?
The “goal” of my life?
No.
I truly don’t believe there is such a thing. A final goal, a final satisfaction. And to have this imagination is actually dangerous, because it becomes an unrealistic expectation.
“I’ll be happy when I get there.”
“I’ll have enough money when I get that new job.”
“I’ll live my dream once I finish this.”
Etc., etc., etc.
It also implies that you are not happy and do not have enough until that imaginary point in life arrives. And because of this mindset, we also fail to notice the milestones we reach. We are constantly achieving goals and dreams we once had, but as our life changes and we develop new needs or desires, we miss acknowledging all the steps and goals we’ve already reached. We forget to celebrate the little wins and forget to be proud of ourselves.
I already have further plans, bigger dreams, and new directions I want to explore.
Loving where you are and dreaming of something more are not mutually exclusive.
In fact, that’s the whole point.
To appreciate and live the present fully, while still feeling the pull of what’s ahead.
To be grateful and driven.
Grounded and expanding.
They say this is the secret for longevity.
