Hi,
You may or may not remember my plea last year on ‘Why I dislike Newyear’s resolutions’ - long story short: I argued that resolutions are easily abandoned, whereas tangible goals, divided in small specific actions, are a far more powerful way to reach your next milestone.
Moreover: I even shared my habit of saying my ‘most wanted goals’ out loud in the morning. Not to ‘manifest’ or anything (hell no). Just to be sure these goals stay on top of my thoughts, so that I take action every day towards reaching them.
Now, I feel myself glowing of happiness and pride when writing this. Cause this year I fulfilled a dream I’m already saying out loud from the day I started my business, which is now 4 years ago: I would love to support creatives worldwide. I would love to coach international clients.
Actions I took to reach that goal:
choosing English as my main language: website, newsletter, social media
being vocal (all the time) about my desire to work with international clients
regularily planning digital nomad trips and connecting in real life with creatives worldwide - not to pitch them my services, but to gain a deeper understanding of the field of creative professionalism elsewhere. Because not only me, but my clients as well are often longing to thrive internationally. This knowledge helps me coach them to succeed.
These consistent actions resulted this year in as much as three international clients, on top of my sweet Belgian creatives (who, to be clear, I cherish and admire deeply & truly).
I happily coach:
a cinematographer from Berlin (who found me on Google)
a textile designer from Switzerland, currently living in Genoa
a photographer from Hong Kong - okay, the last one is actually a Belgian, but lived and worked in HK for the last 2 decades.
Last March, my digital nomad trip took me to Hong Kong. I was super curious about the East Asian market of creative professionals. This time, I didn’t just DM creatives on Instagram (like I did before going to Helsinki in 2023 or Canada in 2022), I actually made use of my status of ‘entrepreneur’ and contacted Flanders Investment and Trade, explaining the goals of my trip and the aim of broadening my professional knowledge. They enthousiasticly connected me with their network of local creatives in Hong Kong. This supportive gesture made me confidently go into dialogue with local players, eventually resulting in a new international client.
3 things I learned about Hong Kong
The faster the better
Business communication goes via WhatsApp instead of email.
March is art month
It was an interesting time to be there in March. There were lots of events, conferences, and networking opportunities.
Expensive much
The cost of life is crazy high in HK. Fortunately, there are subsidised organisations to help entrepreneurs in the creative sector. Most artists, however, need extra jobs alongside their creative practice to maintain a living.
One interesting conversation from Hong Kong I want to share with you. I was talking with someone from the Hong Kong Fashion Designers Association. He told me that they admire a designer like Dries Van Noten who stayed true to his identity all these years. They recognise that they are so easily influenced by trends abroad, instead of delving into their own heritage. My conclusion here? By consistantly staying true to yourself, you get everywhere!
