Work on what you love for the world!

The story of my best life decision... (this delivery is long)

Written by: Karol Andrea Valencia Jaén (Kanela_whotriestobehappy)

INTRODUCTION

I studied law at the Catholic University San Pablo de Arequipa, then came the master's degree at the PUCP, I was a member of the Lima College, I always liked to read (everything), among other hobbies very inclined to art, DESIGN but above all I always loved technology because I think it is magic and with it we can achieve wonderful things - if we use it correctly - always.

MY EXPERIENCE:

Since I was a child my parents taught me that "languages open doors for you" and today I can't agree with them anymore, thank God -for the believers-, the universe and life for those wonderful parents I have. Thanks to that impulse and guidance I was learning about everything because I really have always been like that as many people call me "energetic". I am still a sponge -already more mature- that when she is interested in something, I study it and analyze it until I understand it and see its possible utilities. The paths of life led me to work as a corporate lawyer in different companies, where I did not last long because some were informal or were a substitute or a pilot, and at that time I just graduated did not know the power of Networking that I have learned very well -and this that I am the friendliest person in the world- but one does not necessarily go hand in hand with the other and I will talk about that in another article. In that sense, because I was constantly changing jobs, I liked it but it lacked that fresh touch and at the same time stability that I could not find due to different factors, I met great colleagues and a couple of mentors from whom I learned a lot and to whom I am very grateful. But somehow or other technology always found me either through electronic files, simple emails or notifications, contracts with electronic signatures, digital certificates, apps that I use since time immemorial when few people used them, ISOS, data protection law, and I wondered why I'll be interested again so much in this topic of technology, and that was the year 2016, after leaving a period of healing and knowledge for having been diagnosed with TLP (you can read my previous article where I tell that story); one day I woke up and decided to write to two people that for me mean a lot in my formation as a Legal Technologist and Legal Designer of services, I wrote to my professor of Law and Technology, as well as of Electronic Commerce, who today is my friend the crack Renato Vaccaro and to Erick Iriarte Ahon who for me is a world reference in Regulation, Technology and Cybersecurity, both were ready to listen to me and gave me advice at the time. But the most important thing I discovered the power of networking and I worked hard and evenly in my personal brand and I started to visit communities, attend MeetUps of how many technology events I could, follow world referents in the subject, talk to them, converse with them, study free and paid online courses, I bought many books in AMAZON in its Kindle version, as well as many other books or articles that I found in the internet and that I literally ate or other friends of the world started to share kindly with me, they are many so I don't mention them but I thank them infinitely.

GOOD-BYE PERU, THE STORY OF LEAVING HOME:

During the last two years 2017-2019, I decided to work on short projects and see the advantage of rotating companies that gave me experience but above all I decided to independently advise friends, start-ups and accept the cases that I felt capable of solving, but above all I dedicated myself to teaching at the Private University of the North and mentoring young colleagues and entrepreneurs; I looked for design work in legal areas but I could not find the right place -now there is in Peru, in spaces like PsycoLAWgy with whom I collaborate- so I decided to raise money during 2018 and half of 2019, I bought my ticket to New York to visit the part of my family that lives there, spend some time analyzing possibilities because I have a second round there, I met friends that I had only seen on camera and although I was a short time I can say that #IloveNyC.

In September 2019, Maria Laura Cuya, friend and CEO of Innovafunding and President of the Fintech Peru Association, invited me to co-write an article - the article that gave me work hahaha - because it was for a digital onboarding white paper that was being done by the Ibero-American Alliance of Fintech and would end up in the hands of my current boss.

COFFEES ARE MAGIC, FOR REAL!

Things happened in this order, my friend Chris Sykes introduced me to Maria Jesus Gonzales-Espejo, founder of the Institute for Legal Innovation and vice president of ELTA, a legal technologist and jurist in the full sense of the word with whom we had already exchanged emails and I coincided with her in my second MeetUp in Madrid and we did #Match not only had a coffee - here I discovered that coffees are magic - but we made a list of all the projects in which we wanted to collaborate together and that we have been developing according to our agendas, soon you will have news.

I also met other people that I admire for their work and that Chris also introduced me to and others that I met in more events that I attended and among more cups of coffee like Sara , Alberto Cabello from Aja-Madrid , Saúl from Design Thinking Spain, Andrés Botero , UXER School , IMMUNE , R-ladies and Chema , above all I will never forget that the first person that offered me a job opportunity in Madrid was Antonella Puntriano , Peruvian, friend and crack.

Finally I began to look for an opportunity in Madrid with seriousness to the 3 days of arriving and already I had signed up in all the events of communities that followed from Peru, I rested of the flight the weekend but the Monday I translated my CV to all the languages that I speak and I sent a mail to Iván Nabalón, I went to have coffee with him on my fourth day in Madrid -the shortest coffee in life- we talked for 5 minutes and he told me that two months ago he was looking for my hybrid profile that he didn't really know how to define and I told him the term #LegalServiceDesigner and told him what I was doing and he pronounced the following magic words: "Karol, the truth is that I've seen your profile since you collaborated for the white paper - which I commented on above - and I'm wondering if you'd like to start working with us tomorrow? - . I was speechless, I smiled and I only managed to say YES.

And that is the story... that I continue writing day by day in Electronic Identification along with my studies to validate the degree in Europe and courses that complement my training to be an expert Futurologist in the legal services sector.

Notes:

Here I leave you some links, websites and URL'S of profiles of things, companies and people you should know & talk with. =)

Electronic Identification: https://www.dhirubhai.net/company/software-eid/

Instituto de innovación legal: https://www.dhirubhai.net/company/instituto-de-innovaci%C3%B3n-legal/

ELTA European Legaltech Association: https://www.dhirubhai.net/company/european-legal-technology-association-elta-/

[1] https://www.dhirubhai.net/school/universidad-cat-lica-san-pablo/

[2] https://www.dhirubhai.net/school/pucp/

[3] https://www.dhirubhai.net/in/derechoempresapucp/

[4] https://www.dhirubhai.net/in/renato-vaccaro-505267b/

[5] https://www.dhirubhai.net/in/erick-iriarte-ahon-7a06b51/

[6] https://www.dhirubhai.net/showcase/kindle-enterprise/

[7] https://www.dhirubhai.net/school/universidad-privada-del-norte/

[8] https://www.dhirubhai.net/company/psycholawgy/

[9] https://www.dhirubhai.net/in/marialauracuya/

[10] https://www.dhirubhai.net/company/innova-funding-sac/

[11] https://www.dhirubhai.net/company/asociacion-fintech-del-peru/

[12] https://www.dhirubhai.net/in/chris-sykes-4b143862/

[13] https://www.dhirubhai.net/in/maria-jesus-gonzalez-espejo/

[14] https://www.dhirubhai.net/in/saramolinapereztome/

[15] https://www.dhirubhai.net/in/alberto-cabello-massegosa-37ba5152/

[16] https://www.dhirubhai.net/in/aja-madrid-10ba6a11/

[17] https://www.dhirubhai.net/in/sa%C3%BAl-loriente-rodr%C3%ADguez-813ba15b/

[18] https://www.dhirubhai.net/in/abotero84/

[19] https://www.dhirubhai.net/school/uxer-school/

[20] https://www.dhirubhai.net/school/immune-technology-institute/

[21] https://www.dhirubhai.net/company/rladies/

[22] https://www.dhirubhai.net/in/jmfcomaslegaltech/

[23] https://www.dhirubhai.net/in/antonellapuntrianobarrera/

[24] https://www.dhirubhai.net/in/ivannabalon/

[25] https://www.electronicid.eu/en