From Monastery to SMM Success: Alena’s Journey of Self-Discovery and Inspiration

Alena’s Career: A Journey of Self-Discovery

Alena’s career began in a monastery, followed by a series of diverse companies and ventures where she sought her true calling. She stumbled upon her right path quite unexpectedly while helping to raise funds for her niece’s treatment. “I want to share my story to inspire others,” says Alena Grebenchuk. “People often fear change and hesitate to take risks. But my experience has shown that we must keep searching for ourselves, never stopping, never giving up, and never being afraid.” Today, she is the founder of an SMM school, which has already trained over 1000 students. Alena shares her journey of self-discovery and the importance of not fearing the search for one’s true path.

Dreaming of Brands, Finding a Monastery: The Courage to Change

After graduating from a sewing college, I dreamed of a great place where I could learn to create branded items and earn a good living. However, my journey began with an internship in a women’s monastery. There, I didn’t quite grasp the concept of production, as we sewed custom orders. But I gained a fascinating experience and made acquaintances that lasted for decades.

I worked in the monastery for a couple of months while simultaneously searching for a new job. In the era of newspaper ads and landline phones, I bought all possible publications from kiosks and called every ad related to sewing. I wanted to be a pattern maker but was ready for any job. After a month, I was hired in a pattern-making workshop.

During this time, my husband and I started building our house. We moved in as soon as the construction materials and tools were removed. We slept on the concrete floor, but that’s another story that made us stronger and brought us closer together.

In my career, I continued to search for my true calling. Even then, I wasn’t afraid to ask employers for better working conditions. I easily parted ways with companies that didn’t suit me, leaving without fear or regret. I worked in pattern-making workshops, honing two crucial skills: high concentration and speed. These skills were vital for the job—literally, as a lack of focus could cost a finger. But these skills have also proven useful in life, albeit not as literally.

I set up production in workshops for several firms, but as soon as I felt I could do more, I moved on. At my last job, I worked for four years before taking maternity leave.

From Maternity Leave to Self-Discovery: The Power of Trying

One maternity leave smoothly transitioned into another (with a 3.5-year gap between my children). But life didn’t pause. It was during this period that my search for myself began. Now, I tell all my followers that maternity leave is the best time for self-discovery and a fantastic opportunity to change your life.

Ladies, don’t be afraid to try—it’s scary not to do. Life passes by, and we’re still afraid, changing nothing. Everyone is afraid, believe me, but some are afraid and still do, while others are just afraid!

From Designing Dolls to Charity: A Realistic Outlook and Goals

My search for myself during maternity leave started with sewing designer Tilda dolls, followed by bow ties. I wasn’t on social media yet, so I looked for sales among shops and relatives. This took a year of my life, after which I realized that I didn’t know how to make money from this. Of course, if I had started using social media back then, things might have been different. But I’m grateful for that experience too.

My next “business” was edible bouquets—I immersed myself in it for two years. I loved it and even thought I started making money. Until my husband and I sat down and calculated the cost of the sets (and I think the answer is obvious to you).

My husband has always supported me and patiently waited for me to find myself. Now I realize that if he were doing what I was doing, I’m not sure I would have waited and helped him as patiently as he did. I’m very grateful to him for everything.

During this period, my life was struck by the terrible news that my niece urgently needed surgery abroad. The family had to cover the costs, but we didn’t have enough money, so we had to start a fundraiser.

I was one of the organizers. I fully immersed myself in the process: meeting with volunteers, assigning tasks, organizing events, managing Instagram—all this was my responsibility. A huge team of volunteers came together, and fundraising was happening day and night. Viber—Instagram—mailings to bloggers—charitable foundations—posting flyers—city campaigns. I can’t remember everything now, but in two months, we raised a record amount for us—380,000 euros.

Now I set realistic goals, take a small step every day, try new things, and analyze what I’ve done. Only new actions lead to new results.

From Agent 007 to Total Burnout: Self-Care and Self-Love

Soon after we sent my niece for treatment, the foundation we worked with contacted me. During the fundraising, I actively shared ideas with them, and seeing me as a generator of ideas, they offered me the position of chief development officer.

I thought long and hard about whether I wanted it. But I was interested in the work, curious about what I could achieve, and how I could grow from this experience. In the end, without fully understanding and without much analysis, I decided to agree.

There was a lot of work in the foundation: I set up the process from scratch, took on a huge pile of tasks, which almost buried me in the future. I worked with television, radio, organized campaigns with bloggers, communicated with parents, managed all social networks, made reports on collections. I trained volunteers on how to conduct fundraising, organized charity concerts, looked for patrons and negotiated with them, arranged New Year’s campaigns, trips to orphanages, and consulted many parents… By this time, my maternity leave was already over.

At the same time, I ran my blog, where I posted culinary recipes and educational activities with my children. There was even a thought to open a children’s development center, but after studying all the nuances, I changed my mind.

As you understand, at such a pace, on pure enthusiasm, this could not continue for long. I thought that by working in the foundation, I was saving the world—I was agent 007. And it seemed to me that no one else could do it besides me. But after 10 months, I burned out, took my work book, and left the field of charity for free swimming.

I realized how important it is to allow yourself to be happy, not just to make others happier. Filling the world with warmth is our main goal in this life. But this is only possible if you love yourself, spend time with yourself, and take care of yourself. And, of course, seek help and support: with it, it’s much faster and easier to move forward.

People, Find Your “Easy”: The Importance of Self-Knowledge

I needed to rest, get some sleep, and gather strength. But along with rest, I decided to share my experience of working in charity with parents who faced trouble: many of them don’t know how to start and where to move.

I created a VK group where I outlined a clear plan of what needs to be done and shared my personal experience. I gave the links to this group to volunteers. I myself did not contact anyone. On the contrary, I deleted my contacts everywhere and returned to my family and myself: I learned to rest and relax my body and mind.