Almost 1 year at Storyblok and how I got the life I manifested myself

It still might be surreal for me, but I’m at the point of living the life that I couldn’t even imagine a year ago. I wanted to have a normal work-life balance, continue being passionate about what I’m doing, have flexibility, and work among like-minded, motivated people as I am. Did I get it? Yes, even more.

More than a year ago, I was at the point of struggling with “surviving” life, not “living” the full of it. “Do or die” mode was kind of what I lived through during my work experience, and there was the point when I asked myself, “what’s next?”. Shall I continue living like this or embrace my life to do something different? It takes guts and courage to change your life to the way you see it. I wanted to be a part of a “family” where I could be myself, not hiding my true self. And this is how my journey began.

When people asked me how did you find out about Storyblok? I answer: “It was a coincidence that led me to where I am now.” I was browsing the Hubspot LinkedIn page, and on the right corner, I saw a list of companies, and Storyblok caught my attention. I thought that the company name starting with the word “story” intrigued me. So I went to the company page and looked at the job section, and that’s when I saw the PR & Comms position. “Well, there’s no harm to apply, and what could even happen?” - I said to myself, “And what’s going to happen anyway?”. And that’s how it’s all started.

Right from the interview process, I knew that’s the company where I see my future self, and it was an instant connection. Storyblok was number 1 on my list. Why? Because they made me feel welcome right from the beginning, they asked me what I wanted in life and how I saw my future work. I was curious to find more about them, not just in a company way, but more about the people behind it. I saw a great amount of work and time they invested in building such a great team and maintaining it. Being a part of a European company - that’s what I have always dreamed of since I graduated. Having such an opportunity for someone not from the EU was a one-in-a-million chance. I think I was ready at that time to embrace a new challenge, turn my life 360 degrees and start “living.”

The first onboarding month flew like a day for me. Although, based on my previous experience, the first months are the most important ones and people usually expect to see the immediate results and judge your potential right from the beginning. Surprisingly, I realized that this time I actually relaxed and enjoyed it. I can give myself some time to learn, meet new people and build the foundation for the upcoming work. Going through the onboarding process was like a challenge, but I saw it as a major opportunity for me to grow and develop. It felt like you just had fresh air after the storm. And that’s when I knew that I had made the right decision.

Adapting to fully remote work and working with people from different cultures was easy for me, as I had some experience in the past. However, I realized that I no longer need to fix myself to “working hours” and sit at the desk from 9-5. I could actually do some work the way I wanted to, but with more flexibility, no micromanagement, and combine it with my personal life as well. Every day I have a chance not just to work with, but also meet with people coming from different countries, experiences, hobbies, and even each story they have is unique. All of them are so full of passion that indirectly motivates me to do more, grow, learn, take risks and overcome fears. In addition to all these, I can finally be free in terms of traveling, just to grab my laptop and go wherever I want to - and that’s a huge benefit of remote work. Being at Storyblok opened the door to the world I wanted to be a part of.

If I can summarise how Storyblok changed my life, it will be in three words: freedom, joy, and stability. I even stopped saying “I need to work” because what I do now is much more than our perception of “doing the job.” It is more about doing things you're passionate about, being excited for Mondays, enjoying life, embracing yourself, learning more, and stopping to worry about the future. And each day at Storyblok, I am happy about my decision almost a year ago because even small coincidences can lead you to something great. All you need to do is just take a risk and be open to what the world has to offer.