Women in Tech: Beatriz Varela talks about the importance of a strong mindset

My IT journey began in college. I studied Design and my university offered Web Design as an optional class. I was never able to enroll in that class because it was always full capacity so I decided to study web development and programming outside of my university. I took a few small courses and then enrolled in a bigger Web Development with Python course, where I learned how to code.

I still believe I can always improve, and I look up to some beautiful people (friends and colleagues) who inspire me everyday to never lose focus.

Sometimes it’s difficult to solve problems by myself and I feel like I should know how to do everything alone, but then I think about my path and how I got here, and it’s very clear to me that it’s not wrong to ask for help. As a woman, this mindset is very important to me, and helps me fight the Impostor Syndrome that comes so easily when someone criticizes your hard work just because of your gender.

Being part of CI&T has also helped me feel like I am in a safe place: I get treated equally with my male colleagues, participate in awareness initiatives, listen to other women’s experiences, and understand that we are so much more than what we are wrongfully perceived as.

In the end, there will always be someone criticizing you for being who you are. Don’t listen to them. You don’t need to justify who you are to someone who will never understand. Save that amazing energy to improve yourself and focus on who you want to become.


Written By Beatriz Varela, Developer at CI&T Portugal

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