Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in personal development but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Carmen De Moura, Founder of Hello Portuguese, located in Nova Friburgo, RJ, Brasil.

What's your business, and who are your customers?

Hello, Portuguese was created for those who want to learn how to speak Brazilian Portuguese. Those who live, work, study, travel, or for any other motive.

We offer Intercultural Mediation, Live Lessons, Video Lessons, and/or a combination of both where the student has the chance to interact one on one with the teacher to put into practice everything they’re learning. We work with the post-method era as we are up to date with the worldwide linguistic advances approved by the best expert linguists.

Therefore, my customers have come from many different fields, levels, and countries. Within my client's list, there are also famous international companies such as United Nations, Rockefeller Institution, ESPN, Harvard professors, doctors, researchers, Pharmaceutic Industry, Television, Repsol, Hyundai hospitality, and others.

Here are the main reasons people look for us (our main list form):
My main reasons for learning Portuguese are:

  • Family, relationships, and friends
  • Traveling to Brazil
  • In love with Brazilian culture
  • Hobby, memory health, leisure
  • Starting a business in Portuguese
  • Studying for tests in Portuguese
  • I’m an immigrant in Brazil. I need to learn so I can live here.

About me:

  • I’m currently living in Brazil
  • I’ve been to Brazil but live in another country
  • I live half-time in Brazil and in another country
  • I haven’t been to Brazil yet
  • We can help you with…
  • Portuguese language training
  • General business vocabulary
  • Staff training
  • Conference dealers
  • Speech training
  • Pronunciation and accent reduction (speech)
  • Negotiating skills
  • Presentation skills
  • Writing skills
  • Cultural training
  • Traveling in Brasil

Tell us about yourself

I am a trilíngue professional teacher of Portuguese for Foreigners, a Brazilian born in Nova Friburgo, a city surrounded by mountains located in the state of Rio de Janeiro.

I am a qualified communicator who holds many certificates, degrees, and a Post-graduation in Teaching Portuguese as a Foreign Language in Distance Learning. I have over 18 years of experience teaching and 10 of them in Portuguese for foreigners. I hold a great international experience in enterprise environments, as well as in the communication and linguistic fields.

I've taught in courses that require high-performance teacher training and expertise. I created my own Portuguese project, ‘Hello Portuguese’ school, in 2014.

I've been traveling abroad since a very young age and lived in the U.S., where I attended an American University, which gave me great cultural flexibility. Over the years, my passion for helping people speak and connect to the culture, plus the knowledge and experience of learning languages, led me to specialize in the area of Portuguese for Foreigners.

I've helped more than 600 students to learn Portuguese online through one-on-one Skype lessons, small groups, and video courses. My work consists of teaching, producing, guiding, and coaching students from around the globe with Brazilian Portuguese. I help them in all aspects of breaking the language barriers and approaching the Brazilian culture. I work with all language skills and methods. I’m very up-to-date with the Post method Pedagogy and strategy framework.

My main specialty is helping students speak and communicate well in Portuguese. I work directly on their speech and its construction through the Communicative Approach, Audio-lingual along with modern technologies. I also believe my Intercultural Approach to learning and teaching has been a highlight in the progress of my students. They have the opportunity to connect with something greater beyond the language accessing the Brazilian culture, under a very respectful perspective, regarding the multi-linguistic and multicultural diversity.

I’ve been teaching one-on-one classes (PLE) for over ten years, customizing my students’ experience according to their main goals, and I have had many successful cases. I created this course because I want to reach more students in a less complex, easy-to-follow, and more affordable way. Besides, I can outline the steps by organizing them and sharing key elements that helped my students speak Portuguese over the years.

I love what I do <3:
This Brazilian also loves dancing, tennis, pets, yoga, Vedanta, and traveling! You can check the rest of my page for more information.
See you in class! Até logo!
Your teacher,
Carmen

What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?

Helping my clients achieve their goals through the Brazilian Portuguese language. I have many successful cases in approaching cultures at all levels:
You can check some of my testimonials :)
My clients speak for themselves:

What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?

I believe one very hard thing is finding the right partners for the long run that care as you do, or you can trust, for the transformation you provide together. You can't forget the main real purpose of your work. Why are you in this for? If it's just for the money, forget it. If you wish to overcome obstacles, frustrations, and hardship and still love what you do, you have to be committed to the main goal and purpose of what you do.

It's about delivering what you have aimed for, so you better have that passion inside you. Otherwise, the magic doesn't happen. In the end, it's so gratifying seeing the results as a team. There is nothing better than a mission accomplished.

What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?

  1. Always go beyond your comfort zone.
  2. Do not procrastinate, but at the same time - in hard times - take a deep breath cause you might need to wait and work on your own internal growth. Sometimes it's not the right timing. Then, go evolve yourself spiritually, take new courses in the area, and expand to come back refreshed.
  3. Work with what you have first. Don't get loans unless you're an expert in the area and know what you're doing. Grown with awareness, and no one will take advantage of you.

Is there anything else you'd like to share?

I like to describe what I do and the transformation my work does as... (in my own words...)

"Building a bridge so you can make your way into the Brazilian culture, find out a new world & live unforgettable experiences.”

I also like quoting Nelson Mandela when he says that...
"If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his language, that goes to his heart.
Nelson Mandela"

Where can people find you and your business?

Website: https://helloportuguese.com/speak-brazilian-portuguese-basic-course/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/helloportuguese/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/carmen_helloportuguese/

If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solo or small business entrepreneur that you'd like to share, then please answer these interview questions. We'd love to feature your journey on these pages.

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