A door is open

Volunteering at SXSW for the second time

Previously on The Next Stop

• O Brasil que mora nos nossos filhos

• Proudly Brazilian

🎧 Listen while reading: Catch & Release - Matt Simons, Deepend

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You know… I have many different “skins”, as Gen Z might call them. Part of me is Ana, the brand strategist. Another part is Antonio’s mom. Another is that Brazilian newsletter writer who talks a lot about her home country. There’s also the wife, the friend, the daughter, the sister.

And because of these many versions of me, I have many ideas. Constantly.

Some of them evolve into projects, or, as I like to call them, doors. Doors that lead to different outcomes, but that always intersect somewhere along the way: branding, Brazil, motherhood, purpose, creativity, or simply life itself.

Today, the one writing to you is Ana, the forever passionate branding strategist, who is about to enter her second year volunteering at SXSW, which I wrote about quite a bit last year. But this year is slightly different.

More than volunteering, this will be the year I am finally able to organize life in a way that allows me to also experience the festival as a participant. With the help of what I call “the orbits” of life, and especially my dear husband Samih (haha), we managed to orchestrate our routine with Antonio so I can be there in a way I normally can’t.

Which means keynotes. Workshops. Feature sessions. Long days walking around Austin, absorbing ideas. All of it with the intention of internalizing what I see, hear, and feel, and who knows, maybe bringing some of that energy back to the many open doors in my life.

I know some of you might be thinking, “nah… not a big deal.” But it is.

To be able to immerse yourself in something like this, fully, curiously, almost academically, when you live abroad, without family support, while raising a three-year-old… this is a big deal. Believe me.

And maybe that’s the reason why moments like this feel so meaningful to me and make me want to write an edition about it….Because they remind me that even in the middle of motherhood, work, routines, projects, and responsibilities, there is still space for curiosity. For ideas. For creative expansion. For opening new doors. Especially when you have someone to count on 🤍

And for SXSW, well, this event, in many ways, is a place where thousands of those doors appear at once. Let’s see which ones I’ll walk through this year.

- Ana

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Snacks

☕ I am about to start the operations of this beautiful brand studio here in the US

☎️ Alo? (in Portuguese)

⛷️ Still in love with Eileen Gu’s mindset

🧥 Also coming to SXSW? Follow these tips

🛴 Getting around Downtown Austin during SXSW

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