Lean In, Level Up

by Gezelin Cantuba, Creative Engineer at VPG

I’ve been with VPG for a little over 2 years now, and I’m thankful for the opportunities and shared experiences to grow with VPG. At first, I started out mainly doing video editing, but through my years at VPG, I’ve had opportunities to be involved and exposed to lots of new experiences. I’ve done things such as attending events, photography, making social media graphics, and even learned to create websites. Even though at first I was not familiar with some of these tasks, I liked the idea that in pursuing these challenges, I could push my own comfort zone and expand upon my skills.

A recent example of a challenge like this was when Ashley suggested I make her personal website. I was initially hesitant, having never done something like that before, but I figured that it would be an interesting experience and decided to tackle the task. It wasn’t an easy project, as I had to learn as much as I could to put something together, but I believe my willingness to try new things has led me to reach new heights. I left this project with a higher sense of professional confidence in myself.

Besides learning and challenging myself with technical skills, my overall takeaway while being at VPG is also how to navigate working within a remote work environment. Things like communication, flexibility, and organization have been very important for my success. Communication, for example, is something that I have always struggled with. I still am working through this for myself, but little by little, my confidence in being comfortable speaking up has definitely grown. By being flexible, I have come to appreciate that different people will have different opinions, and also that individuals can change their minds. So, learning to adapt and compromise in those moments to find solutions has proven to be challenging but rewarding in the end. Of course, being organized, whether it’s keeping track of time or managing files, is a positive factor that has greatly contributed to how I approach things and my workflow.

Working at VPG has been a wonderful experience so far, and I am very thankful for the opportunities that Ashley has provided me. I know I am still learning, and I may make mistakes or have feelings of insecurity, but I will continue to strive to improve my work.