September marks the end of summer and reminds us that it’s time to return to our daily routines. But don’t worry, this time of year can also be a great opportunity to start fresh and set new goals. Let’s reflect on what lies ahead with a positive attitude!
Each year, I become more aware of how much our culture is shaped by these significant events that mark our times, actions, and plans, allowing us to replenish the mental energy that we inevitably deplete during the first seven months of the year. I hope you feel the same way too!
Therefore, this year, August has held a completely different significance for me than it did a year ago.
For those who will read these words in a few years’ time, it will be much easier to lucidly analyse what was the SARS-CoV-2 (commonly recognised as Covid-19) pandemic that practically paralysed the entire World in 2020.
Despite the circumstances, I wanted to share with you my wonderful experience participating in a special edition of the Giffoni Dream Team from 18 to 29 August 2020. The event was held under strict safety protocols that have become part of our new normal, including the use of masks, social distancing, and frequent sanitisation.
In the past 12 months, the fields of Science and Medicine have faced unprecedented challenges. Science has been working tirelessly to find solutions to stop the pandemic in record time, while Medicine has been providing care to millions of sick people around the world to alleviate their suffering.
As of 1st September 2021, 60% of people in Italy have been fully vaccinated, and 70% have received at least one dose of the vaccine cycle. These results are truly remarkable.
While numbers and percentages are important, I wanted to share my personal experience with you.
Over the past year, I spent a lot of time thinking about my future and eventually decided to leave Milan, where I lived alone from January to December 2020.
2. September 2020: I left Uber Eats after 1 year and 6 months
3. From January 2021, I moved back to my small home town, Eboli, where I started working remotely for an American company
4. In the first three months of 2021, there weren’t many opportunities to move around freely, which is why it wasn’t until May that I had the pleasure of unique experiences with special friends in Sorrento, Capri and Procida;
5. Having been vaccinated, I’m going to keep what I promised myself during the first Lockdown: to go back to Portugal!
Fourth consecutive year as Project Manager for the Dream Team!
Reaching the halfway mark of the year is a decisive period for me. During the months of July and August, I devote a significant amount of mental and physical energy to projects, consultancies, and work experiences that fully absorb me.
As a result, I was once again an active member of the team that contributed to the success of the seventh edition of the Giffoni Dream Team 2021, as part of the 51st Giffoni Film Festival.
For the fourth year in a row, I am dedicating my summer holidays to attending this event. I began my introductory speech by showing a video to the young men and women under 30 from all over Italy who were selected based on their transversal skills in various fields, including mathematics, software development, marketing, communication, and the presence among them of a selection from the Global Shapers.
Sir Richard Branson’s journey into space is captured in this video excerpt. He addresses the next generation of dreamers, urging them to never stop believing in their dreams because nothing is unattainable. His confident tone inspires and motivates the audience to pursue their aspirations with determination and perseverance.
I opened my speech by sharing with the audience my experience of how, year after year, I have evolved to the point where I am today. Standing on stage in front of the audience, I confidently expressed the emotions and feelings I have experienced in this innovative ecosystem with a human touch.
In 10 days, we got to know each other, got to the heart of the activities that characterised each working group and set ourselves the ultimate goal to achieve. The briefs this year came from such diverse and important organisations: ENI, Deloitte and Sammontana.
On the project management side, from an Agile perspective, I created Notion templates that could be used quickly by all the participants to receive service notices, documents shared by clients, to-do lists for each working day and the list of institutional meetings or mentorships they had to take part in.
Every day, I carefully selected the optimal moments to incorporate team-building exercises that would strengthen our group dynamics and provide a brief respite from the emotional strain of our workdays.
I would like to share with you this experience summarised in pictures by a talented member of our team: video experience Giffoni Dream Team 2021.
Final thoughts
In conclusion, as I face another period of decisive choices for my career, I want to leave you with a thought. I am confident in my abilities to make the right choices and create a bright future for myself.
Italy, Spain, Portugal, France, Germany, Holland…
Where will my destiny take me? Who will accompany me on my next journeys?
Firstly, I would like to express my gratitude to those who have read my work thus far and to all those who have contributed to my journey up to this point.
I am filled with strength and energy, and those who know me are aware that I always give 100% to everything I believe in. I face life’s challenges with my head held high and look forward to what lies ahead.
Let’s keep moving onwards and upwards!
