New Delhi, India, 2017
Hi, I'm Filipa! I'm a blogger, online course creator, and coach.
Over 40,000 people consume my material and learn how to live a Productive Life. This comes in the form of mastering your focus, hacking the learning process, starting successful habits or achieving your goals.
Contributing to a world where successful people are no occasional miracle.
That's my purpose.
[2012-2013, 12-13 years old] Me and my best friend, Margarida, decided to create a Youtube channel about makeup and fashion. We reached 1,300 subscribers and got a couple of partnerships. Then closed the channel.
[2013, 13 years old] I decided to apply my extensive knowledge about makeup and created a Udemy course on "How to DIY your makeup". I faked my voice to sound older... and I can't tell you how cringe it sounded. (Fortunately) I don't have any records of it. That's when my passion for creating courses began.
[2013-2014, 13-14 years old] Portugal was going through an economic crisis, and my knowledgeable 13-year-old self decided to take advantage of it. I created a Facebook Page called "Vendas da Crise" (Crisis Sales'), in which I re-sold eBay items for a higher price... a.k.a. drop shipping. I probably made a couple of hundred bucks and spent of it most buying books.
[2014, 14 years old] During Christmas time, I came across a catalogue of products mentioning some business books. I found one called "Crie a sua Economia" ("The Economy of You"), in which the author, Kimberly Palmer, gives different ideas to start small businesses. I ordered the book, read it, and put it into practice. Three years later (2017), I interviewed Kimberly Palmer in one of the first posts on my blog.
[2015, 15 years old] I started learning SEO (Search-Engine Optimization) - keywords, meta-tags, google positioning, etc. Then, I created a gig on Fiverr, a freelance platform, and managed to get a few orders. So I was, officially, a 15-year-old freelancer.
[2015, 15 years old] I hopped into the computer, created a (crappy) shirt design that said: "Nurse born in April", launched a Facebook ad campaign targeting "nurses" born in "April", and sold one t-shirt through print-on-demand. Call it diversification. I really don't know why nurses...
[July 2016, 16 years old] I launched a short ebook on amazon and sold a dozen of copies - "Study Hacks: The Art of Becoming a Badass Straight-A Student while Working Less and Getting More Time to Have Fun". Please... don't judge the title 😬 I remember writing until 3 a.m. for a couple of days during Summer vacation. Then, I simply launched. Don't ask me if it's good.
[December 2016, 17 years old] filipacanelas.com, my favourite project, was launched. Posts about productivity, notes about the books I read and a couple of interviews.
Portugal. North. Trás-os-Montes. Douro Region. (additional details would be too much)
For years that I've heard the advice of "sticking to a niche". I get it. But I've accepted it doesn't fit me. I have a wide variety of interests which makes it difficult to “stick to a niche”. I don’t have a niche. So, I get to do it all. Not all at the same time, though.
So that you have an idea:
— I wanted to be a magician. I found an old book with magic tricks, and I locked myself down practising. Then, I presented the tricks to my family;
— I wanted to be a writer. I started writing stories, but I never finished them;
— I wanted to be a skater. Ok, not exactly a skater, but I wanted to do tricks. I spent dozens of hours trying to replicate skater tricks on Youtube. Damn me for never pulling out an ollie;
— I wanted to be a photographer. I was 14 when I first bought a $300 Nikon;
— I wanted to learn the drums. And I'm in the process of doing so.
The first move I made once I turned, officially, into an adult was investing in the stock market. The driving license had to wait a couple of years. And buying alcohol (legally) was not a priority. I was only excited to begin my journey as an investor... I still thank my younger version for that decision.
I am fortunate. I have very supportive parents. They always encouraged the weird stuff I dug into during my childhood:
— When I created a Facebook store at 13 years old, my father gave me his bank details so I could receive the (scarce) payments.
— My mum borrowed me a couple of hundred euros to buy 10 SSD cards on amazon and re-sell them for a profit. (sorry I didn't pay you interest, mum!)
— Both have always encouraged me to save for the future and buy the stuff I wanted... (such as dozens of books or my first computer).
Sometimes I get ideas. I share them with my family, boyfriend or a couple of friends. And it is not unusual that I already made significant progress at the end of the day. It is not really my fault. It is just the way I'm wired. I can't just sit still (unless I'm meditating).
The first impression my boyfriend had of me was this: "you were hurried... rushing to the coffee shop". I was not hurried. It was my normal state.
I'm not anti-social. But I cannot stay around too many people for long. It seriously drains my energy... and I can only recharge by myself or around what is familiar to me.
Once, someone told me: "You must be very unhappy. Always at home, reading, instead of coming to parties." I was thrilled for such a compliment. I just answered: "I wish you can be as happy as I am when I'm at home, reading."
I have a deep connection with books. First of all, when I was about 4 years old, I started sleeping with books. My mum read me the book "A Fada Oriana" (The Fairy Oriana), by Sophia de Mello Breyner (an awarded Portuguese writer), at least 5 times. Then, when I learned how to read, I read it a couple more. It was my favourite book to sleep with (alongside "A Quinta do Senhor Francisco" (Francisco's Farm) and "Guia do Jovem Consumidor Ecológico"("The Young Green Consumer Guide").
During mid-school, I remember saving money for the book fair!
The relationship I have with books continues to exist... In the last 6 years, I read more than 300 books. In 2020, I even published a list with the 50 books read and a blog post about each one.
Said everyone in every group presentation when asked "what do you do in your free time?" Seriously, I really love to travel. And I'm really fortunate for having visited so many incredible cities and countries. Here's the list:
Portugal (my beautiful country);
Spain (too many cities to count)
England (London) - 2011 & 2019
Morocco (Marrakesh & Agadir; Tétouan & Tangier; Casablanca & Ouarzazate) - 2012, 2018 & 2019.
France (Toulon & Bordeaux) - 2015 & 2019
Italy (Pisa, Florence, Rome, Venice & Naples) - 2015
Greece (Athens & Mykonos) - 2015
Turkey (Instanbul & Kusadasi) - 2015
United Arab Emirates (Dubai & Abu Dhabi) - 2016
India (Mumbai, New Delhi, Goa, Jaipur & Agra) - 2017
Japan (Tokyo, Kyoto & Osaka) - 2020
Malta (La Valletta, Gozo & Comino) - 2020
You can see some photos here.
I'm Portuguese.
I prefer to listen than to talk.
I hate wasting time.
I am a vegetarian.
I hate talking on the phone.
I love to write.
I love lattes.
and coffee shops.
oh, and chocolate croissants.
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