Yeah, hustling, you just read well, I know for many this could sound as a negative exageration of what is going on, but it is not for many Colombians. And it is called going "Independent", years ago it was "informal business". Among us it is called hustling. Good or bad here I am to introduce my situation and the different solutions or actions I would take in order to start from scratch.

33 years old, a professional business manager, graduated in New York City in 2001.

Several years ago, I came from the U.S. looking for a job as a manager in Colombia where all my family lives and where life seems to be easier and more enjoyable. I started presenting applications and going for interviews at different companies in the city, but it seemed like a professional is worthless here. no wonders people preffer to make a lot of more money a lot easier doing the crazy  things they do.

After several chances of been a manager at a restaurant in downtown making US$400 a month, a manager at a bar making even less, or becoming a sales rep at a unknow company -even for those who sell-, I discovered that in 2001 been an English teacher paid a lot better, and the responsibilities were less. It was an opportunity and I took it and I became an English teacher in Medellin, COL.

I didn`t tell you I happen to be an artist, more an artist spirit. I am a professional dancer although I can not do the moves I used to do when I was in my twenties but I still keep the flavor and the taste, and some moves. I also did rap, I was a famous rapper as a teenager, did a lot of choreographies, songs, shows, and so on; I even sang many times at Demeraras bar midtown Manhattan. I love painting, designing, creating, moving, exerciting, acting and every crazy little thing that takes me out of this crazy world.

As a hiperactive young artist being a teacher at this places where ideas were very few, and customer needs and competence were a lot. I started to call a lot of attention from the customers, my coworkers and bosses; which was not all the way good. let me tell you!  I started climbing the ladder as soon as I started changing employees; from institutions, to schools, then to private classes, then to universities and then to the companies.  I know it might sound very fast but it took about 7 years to me to become Academic Service National Director at a company in Bogota, COL. Where I learned all about this business, its sales machine, and all the tricky evil things they do under the service of teaching english. Not that English is a tricky business but what many companies have done with it pretending to sell a service.

My wife and I decided that bogota was not going to be the place where to start our business due to the fact that we are a simple couple with no help of realtives nor family, and neither we are comming from a rich lineage nor we are; so in order to follow our dreams we ought to start from scratch. So we moved back to Hometown Medellin, more exactly a very small town located to the south of the city called Sabaneta. a preatty small old town which happened to be focus of attention of a big contruction company which decided to transform it into a city. In that process, looking for support from the city, my wife and I introduced our business idea to the city and started the construction of our company.

Most of the business, big or small, start with a very wise process of trying it out, they start working and if the company runs well then they decide to become legal. Here I have to tell you something, we know so little about creating companies; my father raised me to become an employeed at a good company and wanted me to study and become professional, that is what normally happens in our country. Nobody, better yet so few people was told to create their own business. Now it is a fact and we all realized thanks to the situation.

We thought It was better to become legal before so we could do business with big companies in the country, and learn about the different processes of creating the company in Colombia. That was a big concern for us since we ourselves had to become the managers, accountants, lawyers and employees of the company which wasn not even running.

Our lives became a 24/7 run, every day we had to study, prepare, plan, meet, find suppliers, gain affiliates, make ourselves be known in the city and work, as well as design, create contents for protocol things and create our own website, all from zero, and we still have had time for kissing and hogging with no money at all. I mean no money, no stable jobs, just hustling.

That has created what I and my wife are right now. a happy couple with a lot of values, humble and still fighting for our dreams, which soon will bloom. My wife a Communicator journalist with only 22 years, with 2 ideas of business her own Fashion Agency "COOLHUNTERS" and our webdesign and communications Agency "MLC"; and myself with "THE BILINGUAL COMMUNITY" a company offering services of English Language practice and my "Personal English and Spanish Online Classes". That is how we are going to make it out of this hustling and straggling of everyday. just by every day search of chances and making money out of meetings, small services, knocking doors and showing our guts or LIKE THEY SAY, HUSTLING!!

Juan Fernando Blandon