Last year autumn, Manavi and I took a collective decision of expanding the “swiss blog” section of Be for Beauty. The section had grown, and my content was no longer representative of what “Be for Beauty” stood for. I knew I had no business to talk about skincare, makeup, and fashion. My articles were centered around “My Swiss Story” and that’s how this website/blog came into being.
We moved a lot of my content here, and I designed my website from scratch. I had no visitors at that time (of course!) but I was so proud of it! It was a conscious call to have two websites – one global lifestyle website and a local swiss chapter.
This summer, we are again turning a new leaf – it is another expansion and I am here today to share the news with you all.
Journey Up until here
I was always fond of writing, but it didn’t mean much while I was growing up – academics was everything. The only thing that was expected from an 80s kid (kid born in the 80s) was to get good marks (we don’t have a concept of straight A’s in India), but I can tell you that every point /mark mattered. I have a very loving set of parents, but they were working hard to make ends meet, and they had a million dreams for us.
In between all this, I felt very inadequate. Neither was I a straight-A student nor was I good at anything else. In my head, I was a great dancer (I still am!) – but not at school. Thank God my looks improved by the time I was 16, else my confidence could have hit rock bottom.
Before I digress (I think I am close to it), I just want to say that these passion projects mean the world to me, cuz’ as women we don’t really get things easily. You’re always proving a point, I am a woman of color, a daughter, a sister, a mom, and a wife. A computer science engineer with a master’s in business and information systems. I work with a large consulting organization as a tech manager and I run this blog, and I am an avid Instagram’er. Oh ya, I will also be teaching a class at the same university I graduated from in 2018! My Insta feed is borderline self-obsessive and all this somehow does not add up. You know what, it is not supposed to add up!
And I am absolutely okay with that. As you can see, I work really hard, and I have trained (still trying to train) myself to not be a people pleaser or abide by stereotypes or do things that “actually do add up”. Who defined that math anyway?
Winds of Change
I have always embraced change. Change makes you uncomfortable, but it also enables growth. I had not realized the power of collective creativity up until last year when I had invited women to talk about their definitions of motherhood, this was a special feature for mothers’ day.
Since then, I never looked back. I did one collaboration project after the other, and the experience was gratifying. This is when I realized that this is the “steer” that I want to take, and in permanence. Very quickly this website became a platform for women. There were creative projects like 21 Hidden Gems of Switzerland, what does Christmas mean to you, along with independent features of women entrepreneurs and leaders.
Hence the thought, my swiss story is no longer just “My Swiss Story”; it is everyone’s who’s willing to tell their story.
Our Panel
If you follow me on Instagram, or like my FB page then you probably already know, but for the uninitiated, My Swiss Story has teamed up with 6 other fabulous ladies who are experts in their respective fields. The panel was completely handpicked, no announcements were made while forming – we came together cuz’ there was a resonance to a common belief.
I am not going to introduce them to you in this article, but of course, you can see the sneak peek in the picture below. Starting tomorrow, they will introduce themselves in detail and will be happy to take any Qs you might have for them or for the group!
The Future
Well, who knows… this step feels right! It gives me a good feeling, it doesn’t need to add up! 😉
Who knew 2020 would be the year it has turned out to be? I remain optimistic, bright minds usually create magic and that’s the intent – to create magic.
Stay tuned for the best of content and resources, we are turning a new leaf and will soon have an expert editorial panel talking about – ex-pat living, parenting, food, nutrition, mental health, motherhood, home improvement and more. Stay well and stay with us!
To read articles from our corona series, click here.
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