Have you ever dreamed of having a fulfilling career abroad?
Did you ever think that dream is too far out of reach because you are just an ordinary black girl from Eastern Cape, South Africa?
Well, like 24-year-old Tadala Kadula says;
There’s no such thing as an outrageous or unachievable dream.
Q: From what I’ve seen from your Facebook posts and stories, you frequently travel across different countries overseas doing something cool. What is it exactly that you do?
A: I work as a freelancer. My work focuses on integrating a holistic approach to early childhood and adolescent development and learning.
I work with different clients as well as with special needs children who are struggling to meet their development milestones.
My work also focuses on curriculum design. I used to write elementary school support textbooks and workbooks, but at the moment I’m focusing on personalized and holistic curriculum design.
Q: How did you get into this kind of work and is it something you’ve always dreamed of doing?
I applied for this kind of job with no luck for 2 whole years, but was eventually headhunted after I had nearly given up all hopes.
This is something I’ve always been passionate about and have always wanted to do.
Q: I know that part of your work is about you editing and proofreading journal articles submitted by other academics. Can you tell us a little bit more about how that has been like?
I’ve been editing and proofreading journal articles for a little over a year. It’s been rewarding for my line of work because I get to read all the updated and new research.
However, it also has its own challenges because I need to do more work and more research on top of the work hours that I already have.
But it’s truly satisfying and rewarding and it really feels good when someone’s work get published because you know how hard they worked on that particular article.
Q: Outside of work, who is Tadala?
Outside of work, I’m an entrepreneur. I’ve always been passionate about anything interior design related, and I’ve always loved pretty, luxurious and yet affordable products.
So, I decided to open a business like that. I also love helping other people, that’s why the main reason besides passion, was to help other people pay their tuition and settle their historic debt so that they can graduate.
So outside of work, I normally focus on my business, socializing with friends and sleeping.
I also love traveling and discovering new places. So, combining all my passions has been really fulfilling.
Q: What are some of the pros and cons of living abroad?
The pros are that in most countries things run much more smoother than in South Africa – government wise, financially, infrastructure and there are no things that hinder your productivity such as load shedding, poor WiFi or no WiFi zones. It’s countless.
The cons are that I’m black and a woman, and people sometimes treat me lesser because of their internalized racism and misogyny.
So, everywhere I go, I have to be conscious of who I am because I know that I’ll experience all forms of systemic oppression.
Also with the pandemic, things changed and have been a bit more difficult, because you miss your loved ones’ important events like weddings and graduations, and you cannot grieve properly because you missed funerals.
Q: What message do you have for a young person reading this article?
There’s no such thing as an outrageous or unachievable dream.
Your dreams no matter how wild they are, they’re achievable.
And always trust the process and treat each experience as a stepping stone to your ultimate reality.
Joy Ngaphu 