After 9 years, he returned to Lithuania in Switzerland: the pandemic did not scare him to radically change his life

– Tell us about yourself: you studied in Sweden, you lived in Switzerland, now you have returned to Lithuania. Why?

– In the eleventh grade, I went to Sweden on an exchange program. There I learned the language. I went back to Lithuania, finished 12th grade. Since I knew Swedish, I liked Sweden, I decided to study there. I went there and graduated there with a bachelor’s and a master’s degree. I thought I would stay in Sweden and look for work, but I received an offer to go to Switzerland to work in a bank. I left I thought it would just be practical, but 6 months turned into 9 years. This is already the case when you live abroad.

– Why did you finally return to Lithuania?

– After working for a Swiss bank, I finally went to a consulting company. I wanted more freedom, not to be so tied to a place, sometimes to go back to Lithuania, to plan my life with more freedom. Then I got pregnant. At that time, my husband and I were in Vilnius wondering why we did not return. In Switzerland, no one held us back. He wanted the boy to grow up in his own country, with his grandparents. That is what we decide. I was born in Switzerland in March. Then the coronavirus pandemic began, but that didn’t stop us. When the child was four months old, we returned to Lithuania.

– Were you born in Switzerland?

– Yes. Everything went well. Because it was time for the coronavirus, it was fortunate that the man was allowed to participate in the delivery, but as soon as the child was born, exactly three hours later, he was asked. They took me to the living room, I stayed another three days and was able to drive home. No one at the hospital was able to visit us, but I am very happy that I allowed the man to attend the delivery. Maternal care in Switzerland is really high. They took good care of me, I was satisfied with everything. Nothing was missing, even the child does not need to bring anything, from clothes to creams, everything is provided by the hospital.

– He returned to Lithuania at such a difficult time when many companies closed and founded them. What challenges did you face?

– The idea of ​​starting a community was born long before when I was still waiting. Even then, I was thinking of a platform that would bring together women, moms who want to build their own businesses. I started communicating with the moms, noticing that it was missing. I saw similar communities abroad and realized that Lithuanian mothers also deserved to have something similar. He had a plan for how he would do everything. In fact, the coronavirus did not change my plans, although I wanted to have an opening event, more live meetings, everything “disappeared”, but I hope we can communicate live soon. Be that as it may, the platform works, the training continues, so I think everything went well.

– Tell us more about this platform.

– GoMama is a platform for active moms, those who already have some type of business and want to take it to a higher level, and those who are still thinking but do not know how to implement their ideas. Here, mothers can learn how to formalize a business, what form to choose, how to manage, how to put together their visual identity, etc. Everything is happening virtually so far, but there will be many live meetings in the future.

– What ideas do mothers usually have?

– There are several groups: one is for mothers who want to use their knowledge and start advising others. The other are mothers who want to sell their crafts, their products, open online stores.

– Who usually puts their foot on the ground?

– I have noticed that most people do not know what to do, how to do it, where to start. A lot of information can be found on the Internet, but you can often get lost in it. We try to make the courses more concise but as specific as possible. On the other hand, here mothers not only learn but also communicate. One of the most important things in building a business is for someone to believe you. There is no shortage of that faith here. Moms support each other, which is why I say that we are, above all, a community.

– Have an eye on what business, product or idea will definitely not work?

– I need to look. You always need to listen to your audience to know what they want and what you can offer them. I have to get started, and it may not sell my ideas right away, but if I tweak it a bit, it will turn out great.

– When do moms usually think of these ideas?

– In Lithuania, the maternity leave is long enough that I notice that most mothers come up with the idea of ​​starting their own business in the last years of childcare, when it is necessary to return to work. Some don’t want to go back, others can’t because they want more flexibility to combine motherhood and career.

– And how do you reconcile your activities and motherhood?

– Reconciliation is not possible. Try, do and get help. My grandparents, my husband’s sister and the babysitter help me a lot. Help is really needed.

– What are the next plans?

– Grow, involve as many members as possible so that we can offer even more courses. Also, I look forward to live events where we can meet and communicate live, sharing the success stories of others.

– What did the establishment of this community bring you?

– It’s a test for me. If I see that I can help others, great. I want to hear the stories of those moms who started their own successful businesses thanks to this community.

– Aren’t you planning to adopt dads?

– Not for now. Still, women understand each other better. But if there are women who are not even mothers who want to be in our community, they are also very welcome.