Today we’d like to introduce you to Laura Hernandez.
Hi Laura, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I was born in Havana, Cuba, in a cold -surprisingly- January morning. I was born into an artistic family. My dad was a writer, and my mum a musician. She was the national children’s songwriter for the Cuban educational music channel.
As a child, I remember there would always be artists in my house, from painters to actors, to musicians. My mum’s dream (at the time) was for me to be a musician just like her. To her surprise, one day she saw me playing with a little guitar I had, as if it were a violin, that’s when she immediately enrolled me in the national music school.
By the age of seven, I got enrolled in a music academy (just like a normal school but for music) with the hopes of becoming a violinist. However, the dream was short-lived as one unexpected day I had to leave the country I knew, my home, family, friends, life as I knew, and go to a far away land (very far, blimey!), to cold London, UK.
I was around ten years old when I moved to London with my mum (my mum and dad were divorced by then), and I did not know any English. Had to learn from scratch. I continued taking violin classes but soon enough lost motivation as it was not as challenging nor as rigorous as the academy.
It was very hard at first: the language, getting to know the culture, people, and just the fact that it was a different world. My life had taken a 180 degree turn. There were hardly any foreigners at my school. A Chinese girl who had just arrived from China (she later became one of my best friends), and a boy from Romania.
Nevertheless not knowing the language coming out of my comfort zone helped me become independent, it helped me create a stronger identity, and it made me somewhat of a minority/ outcast (something I think is amazing to create a stronger identity). In other words, I learnt how to dance to the beat of my own drum. I learnt so much from my foreigner friends that by the time college came, I really wanted to go to a university that had diversity, and the course I wanted, of course.
I majored in International Relations. Ironically I do not work in the field (like most of us), but I did meet the beautiful souls that are now a part of my life and learnt a ton about other countries and their policies. And the buggiest perk got to meet a bunch of international students from Korea, Nigeria, Azerbaijan, Kosovo, just to name a few.
During my last year of college, my mum decided she wanted to move to the USA, and I followed her along. She moved to Houston, TX (howdy!), and I moved to Miami.
While living here, I discovered I really liked marketing when I created a drop-shipping business for women’s handbags. Did it succeed? No. But I did learn a lot from how to design websites to conducting influencer marketing, finding the profit margin, etc., and that’s when I discovered I liked marketing. So I went back to college and studied my master’s at FIU.
While working with some “influencers”, I thought, why can I not do the same? I LOVE outfits, but I wanted to truly engage and talk to my audience. I try to talk as if I were talking to a close friend, it’s a bit intimidating, but the point is to be myself and encourages others to do the same. Just say what you truly think, don’t add some fake caption, talk without filter because you never know who you might be helping, if only we show our human and vulnerable side.
Recently I have been working with brands and some designers who have reached out to collaborate. I also write reflective poems that I want to get published in the near future.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
The road hasn’t been smooth. There has been a few complicated. Sometimes we have a plan, we think everything is figured out, but there are roadblocks that although not understood at the moment, are there for a reason.
Like I said, there have been many, but it’s too general. Dunno whether you would like to know about personal, professional, etc. I am more than happy to answer, just need to specify.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I am a brand ambassador for an architectural LED lighting company. I represent the brand and help build the brand. I connect and build relationships with clients to expand the brand.
I would say that what sets me apart is my open nature and human interaction with others. I don’t see you like a client to jump on for deals. My approach is genuine and directly to the person, instead of the position, name, status. Who are you, what makes you you, what’s your story. This not only makes people sense genuinity but would create a bond that will effortlessly help your sales in the end.
We’re always looking for the lessons that can be learned in any situation, including tragic ones like the Covid-19 crisis. Are there any lessons you’ve learned that you can share?
Yes! I learnt that life is too short. I learnt that death is present at all times and you get to live only one life (at least on this one).
I learnt that sometimes we don’t really take conscious notice of the amazing people that are a part of our lives, and we should remind them how amazing and special they are to us.
I learnt to be more present, to value myself and my life more, and most importantly, I remembered I had the power to change/ create life how I want it. Sometimes we get caught in our own little movie, stress over fixable things, think life is over, accept “reality”, and it is not until crisis like Covid happen that you really start to value life and time (yes, actual time).
Contact Info:
- Email: iamlauraherndez@gmail.com
- Instagram: @iamlaurahernandez
