Built from zero.Still building.

Since I was 15, I had a dream: working remotely, for the US, from Paraguay. I wasn’t happy with the local opportunities. The dream was always there, but I never executed on it out of fear. Programming felt intimidating to me.

I stayed in my comfort zone, doing graphic design and marketing for local businesses, until I was 18.

Then I started university. I had the idea that an engineering degree would fulfill the dream. The entrance exam was demanding. It’s one of the best universities in the country. I didn’t have a strong base in math or physics; I had never given them importance. But I couldn’t allow myself not to get in. That was going to make my dream possible.

I studied for it relentlessly. Twelve hours a day. It was my whole world. There really was nothing else. For a year. I came in ranked 4th out of 300.

After a year in the program, I realized university wasn’t going to take me where I wanted to go. It was depressing, being in a degree that didn’t even match my expectations. I stayed there for another year.

In the second year, lack of expectation collided with necessity: I was afraid that, if my parents stopped having money for the household, everything would fall apart. There was never much economic stability at home.

So I decided I couldn’t just wait to finish a 5-year degree and then look for work. I needed financial stability. I wanted my parents to stop having to work, for nothing to be missing.

I set the goal: land my first programming job, remote, for the US, in less than a year.

(Yes, a bit delusional on my part.)

So I started learning programming, with the base I already had from the prep year and more hunger than ever. Again, twelve-plus hours a day. I built an impressive portfolio: HTML to Next.js + MongoDB in 6 months.

Then it was time to apply for jobs. I found a post on X. It said:

Got a reply. We set up a call for the next day.

My English was basic. So I prepared. I predicted every possible question I could be asked and memorized the answers, so I could control the conversation.

After the call, he told me: “Your English isn’t great, and you don’t have much experience. But we have nothing to lose by trying.”

He proposed a technical challenge. Asked how much time I needed. I thought two days. I said one day. He replied: “I need it in 2 hours. Don’t invest more time than that. There are others competing for the role.”

I started. This was what I had been working toward for years. This was my moment. I wasn’t going to let anything take this opportunity from me. I did the best work I was capable of. In the previous two years, I had never been this focused.

I delivered the deployed challenge in 2 hours and 4 minutes.

The response:

A remote job offer in the US was right in front of me. Less than a year after I’d set the goal. For some people, impossible. For others, irrelevant. For me, the fruit of my effort. Effort that’s hard to understand unless you’ve lived it.

This is my day-to-day. What got me to my dream job, and what’s getting me to the next goals, share the same formula: an objective, a path, and daily effort. But the real engine isn’t any of those. It’s the people around you. They’re why I race every day to be a better professional, a better friend, a better son. And one day, a better father.

That’s why I never forget the ones who were on the path and still are, the ones who gave me opportunities and their support. Thank you.

And to the stranger reading this:
Nice to meet you. I’m Joaquín.