I’ve always wanted to write something about Next Continent, something more personal rather than stuff about culture or wildlife (which I do every day!).

Next Continent is something I unexpectedly hold dear to my heart. Which is wild, considering it was just a company I randomly stumbled upon one fine day on Instagram half a year ago. I didn’t even know what it was exactly. I simply saw an ad saying they were hiring for various positions, and one of them, Culture Guide, piqued my interest. That was it. I even thought it might be a scam (who knows?!).

Still, I checked out the website, found some shared interests, and ended up writing what I called a “love letter” to Next Continent, saying how much I wanted to be a Culture tour guide. Was I being 100% honest? Not really. I mean, I do have travel experience of solo backpacking across a handful of countries for almost 2 years. But honestly, my dream had always leaned more towards the development sector: working with marginalized communities, building schools, and creating educational programs for vulnerable mountain children. That’s exactly what I was doing before I quit my job at a local NGO and “ran away” from Ha Noi, where the meager salary barely helped me sustain.

I returned to Da Nang and started rethinking my path. That’s when Next Continent popped up in sight.

I applied to be a Culture Tour Guide, but since I haven’t attended college yet, I wasn’t eligible to lead tours (Next Continent has a super strict rule about this, trust me). So, I pitched another idea: with my writing skills, I could contribute by writing cultural blogs instead. After a bit of back and forth discussion, I ended up becoming the Marketing and Outreach Coordinator, which turned out to involve a much broader range of writing—and basically anything tied to the company’s aesthetics.

Okay, let’s be real: I had zero wildlife knowledge. Before joining Next Continent, I had never even seen a douc, despite being a Da Nang local for 20 years. Birds, to me, were just metaphors used in literature. And the other wildlife stuff? What do you even mean?

Not to mention, this was my first formal job. I had just turned 20 when I started, and I made a lot of basic working mistakes.

But you know what? What I appreciate most is how my bosses and colleagues took the time to walk me through those initial challenges. They genuinely invested effort into reviewing my work and guiding me, in a way that was so thoughtful it almost brought me to tears. Okay, maybe I’m overly emotional sometimes, but I’m not exaggerating when I say: it wasn’t until I worked here that I learned what real constructive feedback looks like, those that uplift instead of belittling. That’s not common in Vietnam’s work environment, at least not in my past experience.

As for the work itself, it felt like my speedrun of learning, from cramming bird names and IDs to studying trip reports and trying to mimic wildlife writing styles. Honestly, I wouldn’t have made it this far without my boss. He’s so passionate about his work and supportive of mine that his energy literally rubbed off on me. I still remember him saying, “I googled last night about how to help new staff adapt to the field. Most websites said the same thing 🙁 But here are a couple of things I think might work for you.” I was lowkey screaming inside, “Wait! He actually spent his time researching how to support me? Among trillions of other things he has to manage?”

Now, after half a year with Next Continent, one of my proudest achievements is how much I’ve grown in professionalism. We work remotely, so self-discipline is a big deal. Thanks to the support and guidance I received, I’ve become a much more competent employee (I think 😂).

My second proudest achievement? My wildlife knowledge has seriously leveled up—in a weirdly fun and practical way. I remember birds, reptiles, butterflies, and mammals by their colors and the design themes I work with. When I see a bird now, I instantly think: what post style suits it? What color palette? How should I set the scene? And yes, I’ve now seen doucs more than anything else in my life! Thanks, Next Continent!

Oh, and remember how I mentioned my background in the development sector? Turns out, I’m not the only one. Surprisingly, 3 out of 4 office members, including my boss, have backgrounds in advocacy, education, and community development. Therefore, it’s not surprising when our company puts such high value on ethical wildlife watching, sustainability, awareness, and conservation for future generations. We are also working towards inclusive wildlife watching practices too. I didn’t have to change myself; by working with like-minded people, I expanded my scope. Now I not only work for humans but animals as well!

To really tell you about Next Continent, I’d need a whole series. It’ll be a bit fragmented, written from memory. But I promise to walk you through the “behind-the-scene” of our company, slowly and quietly 🤫