VW Blog VW Abroad

Over half the firm and their families traveled to Lisbon, Portugal for Vela Wood’s first VW Abroad trip, and it was an astounding success. In this blog, we walk through the logistics of the trip as well as what went well and what we’ll do differently next time.

Having been fortunate enough to participate in pitch competitions in three countries – the U.S., Dominican Republic, and Brazil – we have learned that startups are a great equalizer.

A Q&A with our 2018 YLAI Fellow Fabio Cendão, an attorney and entrepreneur from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, regarding his fellowship, his work in Brazil, and his time at Vela Wood and in Dallas.

They say travel changes you. But you can travel the entire world and never actually change. To be impacted by travel, you have to travel intentionally – you have to engage people, explore places, and embrace ideas. Thanks to Vela […]

Notably, this adventure has made me a better person. With manufactured societal restraints stripped away, I’ve been able to become friends with people I often wouldn’t and understand sides of them I never could have imagined.

As an industrial town, Porto is proud of its blue-collar tradition—indeed, residents refer to it as the “City that Works,” as opposed to the flashy, apparently not-working city of Lisbon. But, with the lush facilities at the LX Factory left behind in Lisbon, my work for the first time grew unexpectedly difficult.

My great opportunity was not to just remotely work in Lisbon; the importance of Desk Independence is growth through travel, not travel to one city. Thus, I decided I needed to be more intentional about my trip. Exploring. Experiencing culture. Expanding and adventuring in every direction. I need to move beyond the Lisbon metropolitan area.

Lisbon is beautiful. From the picturesque graffiti street murals to the 17th century mosaic tiled streets, a touch of modern is entwined with the city’s aging architecture. Including, the LX Factory. The LX Factory is the co-working space in Lisbon. […]

At twenty-five, I had never been out of Texas for more than a week at a time. That changed when I traveled to South East Asia in August 2016 for twenty-six days. What was initially a begrudging, feet-dragging twenty-two days abroad, turned into a life-changing experience.

We feel strongly that employees can be productive remotely and that travel will actually motivate and develop them, and make them better employees. Rad and I are calling this Desk Independence™, and we believe it’s the next big thing.