CHANGING MY LIFE

When I started to work in Barclays Bank, where I worked for 24 years, I thought that I was going to retire there. But you never know, life changes constantly.

I was a happy hard worker,  I grew personally and professionally. My life was my job and it had its rewards. I had the pleasure of directing different branch offices in Madrid. I worked with fabulous people, I met fantastic customers and I learned  many things, things that I will use now.

I have 3 children, when my 2 first children were born I continued working full time, I didn´t see them grow, but I accepted it although I knew I could  never recover that time.

After 5 years, I was pregnant again, it was a desired pregnancy, when the baby  was born I thought  I wanted to live his infancy very much and then I decided to take maternal leave. I dedicated myself to spend two years only  with my family.

At that time we traveled  to Canada. There I learned that people were interested in our country and in our language, it was a great surprise to me. After Canada we went to Ireland, where our children went to school and I took an English course while my husband taught Spanish.

Ireland was wonderful , a great experience in our life, we learned many, many important things and we have  great memories from there.  During that time I started to think about my life, about my job, about  my family, I was looking for another kind of life . I  was happy, with  less things, really happy actually.

I learned that my own country and my language were more valuable to me than I had thought. In Ireland, we met many people interested in our language and in our country. Not only the beaches, but also the cities, the mountains, the monuments….

In Ireland I went to an English course in a small school , a family school in their own home.  They were fantastic and  friendly people, they were like our  family. Their teachers were very professional and I was lucky to be their friend . I fell in love with  that  business.

When we came back to Spain, I started to work part time in my old company,  but I was not the same person any more, I wanted another life. I thought about that wonderful and small school all the time. I got the idea  to continue  showing our country and our language abroad.

I summed everything up about this experience and I got to the conclusion that I wanted to have my own language school, but How?. I started to research, and little by little I discovered  it.  However, I had a good job and was impossible to leave it. In that precise time  the company opened a dismissing peoples process, and it was my moment.

I left Barclays Bank with sadness after many years, but with many hopes, enthusiasm and motivation to create my own company.

Now, I am here.

Esther Campos Pizarro