Have you ever felt trapped, burnt out, and disconnected from your roots? Have you ever looked at your life thinking that you were meant for more than this? Like deep down you believe in the possibility of living a life on your own terms and goals, as opposed to the ones your boss, or a system has set out for you, while making a positive impact that ripples out into the world?
Welcome to the club.
Just like many immigrants, I came here with nothing. My first job was cleaning offices, but I was determined to live the life I dreamed. Just like my mother, I devoted myself to what I love: creating. My self-taught skills eventually landed me a job, and my career as a “highly-skilled” migrant began, leading me to head global creative studios in London and Amsterdam, while providing for my family. But I was not free.
Every day, across dozens of interactions, I traded my soul, values, and beliefs to secure monthly rent. Until one day, I said fuck that. I didn’t have a plan B or a family to support me; in fact, I was still committed to supporting them. But I refused to be a modern-day slave. So, I left.
During the months that followed, I realized that being a creative in a foreign land is a powerful thing. Yet, many of us give our creative power away in exchange for comfort, eventually forgetting that there is a bigger mission. We all left our countries for a reason. We know they are riddled with problems, but we feel helpless as individuals to do anything about it. So, we try to fit into a culture where we are valued because we are different, because we care for the people around us. But without the right perspective, we quickly become victims of a performance-based system devoid of meaningful impact but exploited to the max.
Quitting your job like I did is not advice I will give to most, but it bought me a priceless gift: time. Nothing gives you more perspective than having free time. It has an almost miraculous effect of awakening the subconscious and all the things that remained buried so we could perform at fast speed. Among these were my deepest fears: losing everything I had worked so hard to build, losing the respect of my people, my family, my friends. But from all the turmoil, an idea started to slowly emerge.
First as a name, then as a brand, and later as a community that I could shape based on the change I wanted to experience. Despite this being a deeply personal experience, I knew I was not alone. Every friend I saw, every meme I shared, seemed like confirmation of how pointless life was and how alone we felt to make any change. It took me months to figure out and give shape to this idea into something I could communicate and share with others. Even though it is in constant transformation as the creative project it is, I am ready to make it yours too.
Welcome to BuenKarma. A culture and lifestyle community for migrant creatives and businesses promoting cultural exchange, mutual support, and positive impact through the principles of freedom, balance and coexistence.
Over the next few months, I will take you on a soul-searching journey where I hope to inspire you to break free, awaken your soul power, and become an agent of positive systemic change.
Stay tuned ;)
Keywords
Burn-out, modern day slavery, good karma, roots movement, migrant communities in Europe, creative migrants, immigrant creatives, migrant culture