A coffee with: Michal Lasman, Online Marketing Consultant and SEO Specialist
In our interview series “A coffee with…” we introduce you to our Community members. Today: Michal.
Tell us something about you. Where are you from? Why did you come to Berlin?
Hi, I´m Michal, 33 years old. Originally I´m from Tel Aviv, Israel. I moved here with my partner in June 2018 – basically because we love the German culture. I already did a scholarship for exchange research students in Freiburg and I really liked it, so we had the idea to move to Berlin, which is well known for being multicultural. I’ve been working at the juggleHUB for half a year, as a freelancer and I enjoy it very much. I really love living in Berlin, I love the parks and lakes around the city and the fact that Berlin is so open minded and welcoming to everyone, has a great value to me.
What do you do for a living?
I work as an Online Marketing Consultant and I opened my own business, Whale Marketing here in Berlin. When I moved to Berlin, I tried searching for a job, but couldn’t find any. I didn’t have the local experience and I had a rough time – so I opened my own business. Seven months later I’m proud to say I love being self-employed and have worked with many exciting and interesting businesses here. I work with clients from all over the world, some are based in Tel Aviv and some in Berlin. Another great passion of me is writing, I also maintain a Medium channel in which I write about self-development and the startup scene.
Can you see any differences between working in Israel and working in a Berlin based Coworking Space?
I really appreciate the atmosphere here. In Israel work is very stressful and there isn’t enough focus on work-life balance. Of course there are also hectical and less personal places here in Berlin, but I find juggleHUB to be very chilled, relaxed and personal. You can really create true, meaningful connections with the people who work here, for me, that’s a big difference.
My advice for expats in Berlin is to believe in themselves and in what they have to offer to the world.
What was the biggest challenge for you when you came to Berlin? Was it easy to start a new chapter here?
Well, there were a few challenges. The first one was of course to find a flat. The second one was actually realizing how to work in Berlin, because it’s very different from Israel. I felt that I needed to do some adjustments before I could actually understand which kind of businesses are operating in Berlin and what my role could be here. For example, in Israel most of the businesses are B2B and here it’s much more about retail, fashion, people and community. I needed to understand this difference, but I was, or still am, very interested in finding my way. I also wrote an article on Medium about my experiences here and how I started my own business.
Do you have a general advice for expats who are new in Berlin?
My advice for expats in Berlin is to believe in themselves and in what they have to offer to the world. Berlin is a very open, liberal city with lots of opportunities. But one general advice should be to stay open minded, to recognize and appreciate it.
Some people say it’s challenging to make new friends in a city like Berlin. Do you agree based on your experiences?
At first it was difficult, because you have a lot to handle with and you don’t know where you can find people which are like-minded with your opinions. I use social media a lot, so for me it was easier to find friends in FB groups and meetups. I also made some great friends here in JuggleHub. For me, JuggleHub is less about the venue and the place, it’s much more about the community and the people. You find a support system in times where you don’t know what to do next. For me sometimes it was like a safe haven in this new city.
You’ve also started hosting workshops for the community but also for people from outside JuggleHUB. What kind of workshops do you offer?
I have started a practical and technical workshop series which occurs every month. It’s called “How successful is your marketing strategy?” The last ones were about Google Analytics. I provide knowledge about how to make you marketing strategy better with different tools and techniques. My next workshop will take place at the 31st, it’s about content marketing and I will be hosting it with one other member of the Hub. The workshop dates can be found on the juggleHUB event board, on JuggleHub’s Facebook and on my LinkedIn Profile.
What are your goals for 2019?
My goal for 2019 is to create more workshops and a community for people who wish to learn more about tech, product development and marketing. I wish to reach more businesses in Berlin and assist them grow their brands.
Last question: How do you prefer to drink your coffee?
I love to drink cappuccino with soya milk!
You can find Michal´s workshop as well as other events and meet ups taking place at juggleHUB on our event calendar.