I am Karen Matala 🙂 from the Philippines based in Pasig City 🇵🇭 and will be migrating to the US 🇺🇸 in a few months to be with my husband, who is also a Filipino and a software engineer based in Miami.🧑‍💻👩‍💻

I like plants 🌵. Maybe many of us found our green thumbs as well during the quarantines as plants make us feel grounded when we feel shaken. Nobody was prepared to face the pandemic we experience today so no pressure if you'd like to plant, read, write, start that side hustle or simply just rest. Take your time and I hope you talk or share your thoughts to your friends because you matter.

I am a PHP lead at Women Who Code Manila, where I hold study groups exploring Laravel or other PHP packages. I am currently a remote developer at a US based startup where I have awesome gentlemen teammates and with another super woman coder. In my years' experience of working in software engineering teams, I find it true that most of the time, I am the only woman coder out of, say, 10 engineers. But, the numbers got better because there are so many women in tech communities now compared to before that empower women to be in technology. These women communities forged their way to reach you. To tell you that you can make it. 😃 I have seen women tech community leaders who spent sleepless nights just to place another woman on stage and speak 🎙️, to move the needle for women empowerment and diversity in technology (or even not just technology).

So, what are you waiting for? Start that project, podcast, YT, book, apply for that job. Good luck to your project 😉 Enjoy your day!

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