Inspiring Women Magazine November 2023

• z Saying "NO" if you disagree vs. saying
"YES" or "MAYBE" to avoid conflict at the
moment and then ignoring the situation.
• z Deepening a relationship by
addressing the conflict vs. avoiding the
conflict all along.
• z No small talk vs. small talk being
the cornerstone of building human
relationships.
• z Being goal-oriented and ambitious vs.
going with the flow, enjoying the present,
and savoring life.
• z Planning ahead, thinking long-term,
and being strategic vs. going with the flow
and focusing on the short term.
• z An individualistic mindset vs. a familyoriented
culture.
Add to that the fact that I
didn't speak any
Spanish when I first
moved there. So not only
did I stand out anywhere
I went as an extremely
tall, peculiar-looking
"gringa" lady, but I also
couldn't communicate
without someone else's
help. Back then, Google
Translate wasn't even
an option. In the local
culture, anything
unfamiliar tends to
create discomfort
because you don't know
how to handle it.
Dealing with a certain
level of discomfort
requires maturity and
curiosity, which are
not always common traits among Nicaraguan
people. My cultural integration was filled with
drama and misunderstandings. I was expected
to behave like a Nicaraguan woman, and when I
failed to do so, I was simply ignored.
Over the years, after working there and
marrying my husband, and consequently
learning how to navigate not only social and
corporate but also family dynamics, I've curated
a new Latin version of myself. I've become
culturally agile, able to adapt in the moment
without feeling like I'm losing my identity.
Looking back, I believe going through all those
ups and downs on my own wasn't the best
decision. I wish there had been someone to
support me through this journey, guiding me
and saving me so much time and tears.
My transition to Colombia was significantly
easier, thanks to several factors. Firstly, I had
already spent five years in Latin America,
where I married a Nicaraguan, and my best
friend happened to be from El Salvador.
Moving to Bogotá felt like a natural progression;
being a large city, it was more culturally
diverse and open-minded, which made the
transition smoother.
Since it was still in a Latin American country, I
already had some familiarity with how things
worked. I did need to make some adjustments,
though, like adapting my Nicañol to Colombian
Spanish in terms of slang, understanding
different regional accents within the country,
and learning local equivalents for words I had
been using before.
Did anyone help you to feel included in your
new country? If so, how? How do you help
newcomers to adapt and feel included?
Before we left Nicaragua and I accepted my job
offer in Colombia, my husband reached out to
an acquaintance from his school days. She had
married a Colombian and moved there a few
years earlier. She became our guardian angel
and guide once we arrived in Colombia. She
generously offered us invaluable advice on
navigating daily life, including seemingly basic
things like where to find good bread and where
not to buy cleaning products.
About a month after our move, she invited us to
celebrate our first Christmas with her family and
introduced us to their circle of friends. She truly
became our guardian angel, smoothing our
transition into this new reality. She played a
crucial role in ensuring we didn't feel alone and
helped us integrate smoothly into Colombian
customs - a task we wouldn't have been able to
accomplish on our own.
My own experience and the stories I've heard
from fellow expats have led me to connect my
professional background in training, coaching,
and leadership development with my personal
story of living abroad. Now, I offer the support
to others that I wished I had had years ago. I
work in a one-on-one coaching setting,
empowering my clients to navigate uncertainty
and complexity in life
and business, while
minimizing the drama
and maximizing the joy
on their expat journey.
I complement this oneon-one
work with "The
Dis_Connected Events"
spaces I've designed
specifically for
internationals to
disconnect from the
daily hustle of Bogotá
and connect with what's
important: themselves
and the community.
The idea came to me
after the pandemic
and a six-month-long
lockdown in Bogotá,
right after I'd moved
here. Being stuck at home in a new
country with no friends wasn't the
most cheerful experience. Quickly,
I realized that I wasn't alone in
this, and the pain was shared. So,
I decided to come up with a
solution - "The Dis_Connected
Events." I organize gatherings in
Dis_Connected retreats (page 12)
Dis_Connected Self-defense class
Colombia 2023 (page 13, top)
Dis_Connected Christmas Dinner
2022 (page 13, bottom)
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