Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in personal development but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Veronika Samokovliyski, Co-Founder of Can You Association, located in Sofia, Bulgaria.

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

‘Can You’ association be engaged in education, career orientation, and skills development from an early age? Its main goal is to support individuals psychologically (mentally, emotionally, socially) and physically to reach their full potential, discover their talents, and develop new skills and critical competencies. Its team believes in helping kids and youth grow by making them aware of their potential and encouraging them to unleash their talent and skills. The new challenge of the organization is the motor skills development of kids in the age window from 2 to 7 years.

‘Can You carry out training, workshops, seminars, and informational events worldwide in future development and self-discovery? It seeks to promote lifelong learning and its benefits for achieving positive sustainable effects. The organization has an extensive experience in the youth sector and has completed several mobility projects focused on entrepreneurship, environment, skills development, emotional intelligence, coaching, non-formal methods of education, positive discipline, equality, etc.

‘Can You’ team uses various techniques and methods of non-formal education, coaching tools, and different practices from psychology to achieve its goals. The unit integrates problem-solved and interactive learning, mind mapping, role plays, and other innovative methods. The organization encourages the mobility of individuals (youngsters, youth workers, educators, teachers, mentors, and coaches). It provides opportunities to disadvantaged groups in society. The organization believes in equality and equal opportunities for all.

‘Can You’ offers career guidance and life coaching to individuals to support them in finding their career path. The organization has created an entrepreneurship academy where young people and workers gain professional and business skills and improve their competencies. The academy is focused on communication, presentation skills, creativity, critical thinking, teamwork, emotional intelligence, and personal development.

The organization operates internationally and has created many different partnerships worldwide. ‘Can You’ heavily promotes equality and cultural diversity, and its team supports cultural dialog and exchange. The organization has participated in various projects in more than 20 countries worldwide. ‘Can You work with several innovative companies and IT startups to promote different innovative tools, techniques, and education methods? The organization has extensive entrepreneurial experience. ‘Can You' has supported many young people to develop their business ideas and to create sustainable businesses.

Tell us about yourself

As part of ‘Can You’ Association, we empower people to achieve their goals and to reach their full potential. We believe each person has many talents that can be unlocked only with a little boost from the outside. Through this, all of them can discover who they are, what they are capable of, what they are good at, and how they can make a positive change in the world.

We established the organization in 2016 after four years of experience in the youth sector. In 2012, we faced the problem of a need for more career guidance among young people. This provoked me to educate myself on the topic of career counseling and to support young people in their professional choices.

A year later, with the support of a young and ambitious team, we organized a fair on career guidance and promotion of initiatives in the non-governmental sector to promote volunteering. The fair has been held for three consecutive years. In 2014, we were awarded the Euro Guidance Award for good practice in career counseling and guidance. The next step in my career was to enter the coaching industry to provide career coaching to young people and support their development.

In 2015, I became a member of the International Coaching Federation (ICF). In the same year, together with my team, we participated in a social entrepreneurship accelerator where we launched our idea. Motivated by this participation and accumulated knowledge, we have registered the ‘Can You’ Association to support young people in building key competencies and skills of the 21st century to reach their full potential through non-formal education methods and coaching approaches, inspiring active and confident citizens.

We also support teachers from all over Bulgaria in the implementation of innovative methods of education for developing 21st-century skills among young students. In 2018, I was elected Director of Communications for the International Coaching Federation (ICF) in Bulgaria. In 2019, I participated in Erasmus for young entrepreneurs. I went for four months in London in a socially oriented organization, where I worked to implement coaching and create training with informal methods to support young people from different schools in the country.

Experience that I transferred to ‘Can You’ to support the youth sector in our country. The latest challenge for our team is aimed at the little ones and developing their motor culture through sports games. We have created a program for the skill development of children at an early age. It supports the development of balance, coordination, and orientation. It helps the kids build self-confidence in their abilities, improve their social and communication skills, and understand how to express, recognize, and control their emotions.

I believe in our goals in the ‘Can You’ Association and the need for skills development and career guidance among young people. I also think the skills children gain through motor exercises are essential for their future and personal development. Our long-term goal is to support different sectors and life stages.

I am always saying that my job has found me. Once I started working with people, I understood that this was my vocation. I love my job because, with our work in the ‘Can You’ Association, we not only motivate people but moreover inspire them to find and fulfill their dreams with the support of our efforts to turn them into accomplished goals. My motivation comes from the grateful people that we have helped during the years and the impact that we have achieved. All of this makes me satisfied and proud of what we have done.

What drives me in my work are its valuable results – the positive change in the people, the challenge to support them to develop their potential, and the sustainable results they achieve. I am also constantly learning and upgrading my skills and abilities – our work mutually benefits both sides. Knowing that I have helped and supported someone and contributed to someone’s well-being and success drives me to strive to reach our organizational goals. Investing in the people creates sustainability and builds a better future for ourselves and the next generation.

What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?

During the last few years, we have supported more than 5,000 young people and have participated in more than 100 international projects. The results we have achieved through the implemented activities and initiatives are upgraded skills and knowledge in young people, development of active citizens, finding innovative solutions to socially significant problems, and support in the education sector with various resources and tools.

These things make us proud of the work that we have done. In the past, we have been awarded for good practices in career guidance and consulting. Last month our work was rewarded with Quality Sign on a national level by the National Agency for Bulgaria for the administration of European Programs – one of the most significant achievements in our sphere of work.

Last year I was a semi-finalist in the humanitarian and volunteer leadership category at Ten Outstanding Young People (TOYP). This year I have also been the only woman from Bulgaria who was honored in the Top 100 women in social enterprises in Europe thanks to the great work that we have done in the last few years. We are happy and proud that our work is recognized and that our efforts matter.

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

The hardest thing is that there is always something unpredictable. One of the hardest things is the feeling that you are responsible for so many people, for the result they must achieve, for their well-being. There are always difficult moments, but we consider them as challenges and enjoy finding alternatives and new ideas and creating new projects.

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

  1. If you put effort into something you believe in, it will work—it could take time, but your efforts will be rewarded.
  2. If something doesn’t go well and it seems like everything seems to be falling, it is unnecessary to do everything at all costs - the world won’t end, and a better day will come.
  3. If you are looking to start, run, and grow your own business, be ready to work more than ever before, so choose the right time in your life and the right team—love what you do and make your team and your family love it too—it is essential to have their support.

Where can people find you and your business?

Website: https://canyou.info/

LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/veronika-samokovliyski-84a34774/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/can-you-assocation/

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.

Turn your craft into recurring revenue with Subkit. Start your subscription offering in minutes and supercharge it with growth levers. Get early access here.