“Kicking the Cubicle” is a interview series on The Blonde Abroad featuring women around the world sharing their inspiring pursuits of dream-worthy jobs, how they got where they are and what a day in their shoes looks like. Here, entrepreneur and founder of the Institute of Code, Tina Swinkels, shares her story.
Learning to code is an invaluable skill in the 21st century– one that I just recently learned while attending the Institute of Code’s 10-day Bali program. I wanted to know more than the basics, and I wanted to feel empowered and self-sufficient with coding and the website skills I’d long-wanted to learn. In comes Tina!
Tina Swinkels founded the Institute of Code, a Pop-Up Code School, along with her boyfriend Emile, and they’ve built up a successful program of teaching students the “how-tos” of web development (HTML, CSS, Javascript and more)in luxury, poolside villas in beautiful locations around the world.
As a woman that has translated her passion (and love for travel) into a successful business, Tina is exactly the sort of female entrepreneur I am excited to share with you.
-
Tina, you taught yourself how to code, and from there were able to travel the world and start your own company teaching other. Where did the desire to learn to code come from, and was that your goal?
I actually barely knew what coding was when I decided to learn it. I had just been running my marketing agency for a few months, and working with small businesses and entrepreneurs everyone wanted or needed a new website.
We tried lots of different options from drag-and-drop website builders, to outsourcing development overseas but we just weren’t satisfied with the results of any of these options. So I figured I would give it a go, looking to how to build websites ‘properly’ and see if I could teach myself the skills.
I had a client at the time who wanted a website, so I offered to build it for them and then with a deadline fast aprroaching I had the pressure I needed to figure out how to build it! Lots of online-tutotorials, bashing my head against the keyboard, and finally paying a developer to help me figure out why everything was broken but eventually I pulled it off.
-
What is a typical day of work for you?
Some days, I’m sitting in Melbourne writing course materials and creating activities for the students, strategically planning for the growth of the business with Emile, creating marketing campaigns and social media ideas with my team, or chatting one-on-one with potential students to make sure the Institute of Code program is the right fit for them.
In Bali a typical day for me is a little more full on. I’m up at 6am getting prepped for the day, and no matter how busy things get I’ll join the group for a sunrise yoga session that keeps me sane.
After a quick breakfast that chef has whipped up I rally my team for a meeting by the pool, where I try to get them pumped for the day, reflect on any areas we need to improve, celebrate our little wins and chat about how all the students are doing and what we can do to make sure they are having an incredible time.
From 8am – 3pm is class time, so when I’m not teaching a lesson or working with students on their portfolios, I’m checking in with my staff to make sure they have everything they need and helping them overcome the little speed bumps that are inevitable operating in a country like Bali.
We’re teaching, but it’s more than that — when you spend 10 days so closely with your students you become their coach, their mentor, their friend. We’re trying to help people really maximise their own unique talents in only 10 days, so that often means creating new lessons on the fly.
In the afternoon I try to spend at least every second day with the students, and since during retreat season I often work for 1-2 months with only a few days off in between, this is my downtime. Depending on the current location we might go surfing, paddle-boarding, parasailing, swimming at a waterfall or hiking through the rice paddies.
I LOVE this time I get to spend really bonding with each group of students. I love sharing actionable strategies on how to be a digital nomad and travel for work, or my experiences freelancing or launching a startup and it’s great having time to sit down and hear from my mentors on the topics they are really passionate about.
After dinner I tend to escape up my studio to get through some more typical work — sending emails, responding to new inquiries, allocating tasks to my staff, etc. Then it’s a quick meditation and time for sleep!
-
How did you come up with the idea to create The Institute of Code and offer coding lessons poolside in Bali?
When Emile and I decided to create the Institute of Code we knew that we needed to make the most of our lives by doing something that we loved, and we wanted to empower others to have the freedom to live a life that they are passionate about.
To do that, we set aside everything we know about what a school was and reimagine what a school could be. We asked questions like, how can we make sure people really learn skills that will change their lives? How can we help them to build the connections and faith in themselves that are crucial to success? How can we cater to the diverse needs of our market, and make sure our program is accessible to everyone no matter their background…
And overall, how can we be true to our philosophy to make every experience valuable?
What we came up with is a transformative program where a group of 12 students, entrepreneurs and creatives step away from the constraints of every day life and spend 10 days in a luxury pool villa in Bali. We studied looked at the educational research around how people learn best, and crafted an environment that we were confident would give our students the best chance for success.
When you are relaxed, inspired and all of your needs are taken care of you would be amazed how quickly you can learn.
Every single element, from the way we customize the course materials after personally interviewing every student, to the decision to the support and guidance provided long after the retreat has ended has all been carefully crafted to around that one goal — to empower people to make the most of their lives.
-
What has been the most challenging thing about starting your own company?
I heard someone once describe being an entrepreneur as falling down a cliff and trying to assemble your parachute on the way down.
You have to make so many decisions on a daily basis, and there usually isn’t one clear answer — there are hundreds of ‘good ideas’ to choose from and competing priorities that deciding what to focus your time and energy on, and which of lots of possible strategies you could take is often hard because you may go months before you can tell if you are ‘doing a good job’.
Then when things go wrong you still need to figure out if it was a bad strategy, or a great strategy with a poor execution, or a great strategy that needs a little more time before you’ll see results…
All of these unknowns can really make being an entrepreneur an emotional rollercoaster!
-
On the flip side, what do you love most about what you do?
I love the freedom to live a life that I’m passionate about and be able to have the balance to really make it work for me. I work pretty crazy hours, but they are crazy hours doing something I love and I also have the freedom to take breaks pretty much when I want.
I might start work at 5am somedays, or have a saturday night wine and work session but I also sometimes just walk straight out of the office to do yoga on the beach or organise a spontaneous brunch with a friend in the middle of the workday.
Because we don’t have any external investors, WE get to decide the life we want to lead and the direction we want to take the business in, whether that’s running 5 courses in one location and letting it grow more passively, or launching around the globe and starting new courses.
That’s a freedom that most people in the world never experience, and I’m so grateful for that.
-
What advice would you give to someone trying to figure out their next step- whether it is career, travel, or learning a new skill?
Stop feeling like this one move will define the rest of your life. That’s far too much pressure and expectation for one job, one decision. I would say the best way to figure out what you want is to try new things and seize new opportunities.
Take a trip somewhere, volunteer, do an internship, start something on the side. And most importantly of all start networking with people who are living their dream, you will be amazed what impact it has having a supportive network.
Lastly, a few fun questions!
What did you want to be when you grew up? I always had a 5 year plan, but I think that plan changed just about every month. At one point I wanted to be a chef, then a preschool teacher, after a holiday in the Gold Coast I wanted to run a resort, then work on a cruise ship and travel the world… I certainly changed my mind a lot!
Where in the world is #1 on your travel bucket list? I think for every place I tick off my bucket list, two more are added in it’s place. At the moment I would really like to explore Cambodia, go snowboarding in Japan and see the real Mexico- I’ve only been to Tulum and Playa Del Carmen.
Weirdest Travel Experience: I was standing on the border crossing between Peru and Boliva and walking up to the gate there were all of these trucks parked together in a circle with people sitting on top and vendors selling snacks and drinks.
It seemed like there was some kind of festival going on right on the border crossing so we followed the other travellers and ducked under one of the trucks into the ring. There were a few kids playing and a couple of tourists standing around, but otherwise nothing of interest.
Suddenly someone yelled ‘Torro torro!’ and all of the kids squealed and scrambled up the sides of the trucks.
We paused for a second, then suddenly a matador appears and we barely make it to the top of the truck before a huge bull enters the ring and they start a matador show!
Quote that keeps you smiling: There is a quote by Tracee Ellis Ross that really resonated with me and it said “I am learning every day to allow the space between where I am and where I want to be to inspire me and not terrify me”.
Because the downside of being ambitious and aiming high, is that you are always setting the bar higher for yourself and I think we all need a reminder sometimes that we are already good enough.
Be sure to check out the Institute of Code as they expand destinations of their coding retreats around the world!
Kicking the Cubicle: Tina Swinkels, Institute of Code is a post from: The Blonde Abroad
from The Blonde Abroad http://ift.tt/22nWYIF
