We recently connected with Sonia Bhalla and have shared our conversation below.

Sonia , appreciate you joining us today. So, naming is such a challenge. How did you come up with the name of your brand?

I named my brand Life is Lemonade, because at heart I am an optimist and believe that you can make the best of any given situation if you are adaptable and resourceful.

Because when life gives you lemons… make lemonade!

I have always been able to relate to this saying because of my global upbringing and having worked across 3 continents. You never know what life is going to have in store for you and no plan is ever full proof. So sometimes you just have to take things as they come, adapt to the change and make the best of what you have.

Sonia , before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I, myself always worked in a creative field to some capacity. I studied fashion merchandising and although I was not a designer, I just loved being in fashion and having the exposure to such a creative world.

After my studies, I moved to New York to pursue my fashion career and ended up working in advertising. It was a lot of fun, but a lot of work. After being in New York for three and a half years, and with the recession at the time, it was time to look for something else.

I went to New Delhi, India and I got the most amazing opportunity to work in product development with a luxury lifestyle company. It was such an eye opener and that is where I was able to hone in my creative skills working with artisans, designers, and crafts people from different parts of the country.

After 7 years of being immersed in product development, I moved to Portugal due to my husband’s career. We live in a small city and the opportunities for product development did not exist in this area. But the optimist that I am, I adapted and I started working in digital marketing for an industrial company. I pretty much learned on the job and became their digital marketing manager taking care of their social media and website blog.

During covid I decided that I needed to reprioritize and started to build my brand Life is Lemonade. I began providing social media management services and quickly realized that my clients needed broader support and guidance. With my years of experience being a manager and product development lead, I adapted and took on the role of online business manager being able to understand different aspects of the business and helping my clients to streamline their projects and help build team culture.

What sets me apart and what I am most proud of is my diverse experience which has always been helpful to the work I do with each client and being able to bring different perspectives to the table. With my global upbringing as well as global career, I pride myself on being adaptable and making the best of any situation.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

When I moved to Portugal, I had to pretty much start over and pivot my career. I was working in product development, and the city to which I moved to had more opportunities in the industrial sector. One skill that I was probably better at than most at the time, was my english language skill as I am a native speaker.

That experience led be to become an independent social media manager and eventually start Life is Lemonade.

How do you keep your team’s morale high?

When managing a team and maintaining high morale, I think it is important that each person feels that they are heard and seen. In my experience, this has fostered better communication, and a culture of support and collaboration.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: lifeislemonade.co
• Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/sonia-bhalla-7a81026