Episode 11: How I Decided to Be An Educational Consultant and Move to Portugal
My guest today is Kelly Davis, an experienced global educator and edtech co-founder with 14 years of experience blending Eastern and Western educational approaches. Kelly worked as an elementary school and international school teacher in Korea and Taiwan before co-founding Kubrio, one of the world’s most progressive online self-directed schools spanning over 30 countries. Kelly currently works as a skilled learning coach for students ages 14 to 21, an education consultant for education professionals, and a fractional COO for startups.
Kelly and I met several years ago when I was doing research in the edtech space. Since then, I’ve been really interested in two things: her move to Portugal a few years ago and the various projects she’s been working on since moving on from her startup. In our conversation, Kelly and I discuss:
0:00 Intro
2:37 Becoming an educator in Asia
6:25 How to deal with the challenges of moving to a foreign country
10:43 How Kelly became an edtech startup founder
14:51 Why Kelly moved to Portgual and the realities of being abroad
18:41 Kelly’s current roles and projects
21:22 How Kelly uses a values workbook to help her find alignment in her work
24:30 How a career with multiple roles compare to a career with just one job
28:36 Finding communities of people who are also on non-traditional paths
31:59 Closing and takeaways
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Takeaways
1. Moving to a new place, especially a foreign country, isn’t easy at first. You have to be willing to put yourself out there and build community. This experience teaches adaptability, which is an incredibly valuable skill.
2. A values workbook can be a powerful tool for understanding what’s important to you and how you want to spend your time. This is especially crucial when pursuing multiple projects and roles, as it helps you choose activities that align with your values.
3. Working on multiple projects gives you more agency in choosing what you want to do, but it also means learning to say no. Listen to your gut feeling about opportunities and be honest with yourself about what truly excites you.
Referenced
- The Pathless Path by Paul Millerd
- Write of Passage writing community (the writing cohort that Kelly was a writing coach for)
Where to find Kelly
Thank you so much for reading and listening. If you’re interested in decision-making like I am, I’d love to connect and share notes! Think there’s anything I should’ve followed up on in my conversation with Kelly? Who should I have next on the show? Reach out and let me know!
