I’m an Architecture Student, and my hobbies are traveling, taking pictures, and making friends everywhere.
Since I got to know the Google Local Guides program, something inside of me started to feel a huge desire to be part of it.
I was amazed at how this program worked in big cities, and I wished to apply those tools in my town. In the beginning, it was hard, but I found a big motivation when I realized that in my city nobody knew about this program at all.
For a few years, I struggled with these feelings of frustration and impotence, but last year I decided to start my project of using the google maps tool to build progress in my city. It led me to find something I didn’t know I needed, like the joy of helping others.
Of all the exciting things I’ve done as a Local Guide I can tell you a few of them:
Inspiring others
Through all my contributions as a Google Local Guide (Aka. GLG). I have created the initiative in my city to encourage people to be part of this community. I feel great when people text me to ask: “How do I become a GLG?” “Does it have any cost to sign in?”," What are the steps to be in?" “How much time do you do this daily?” amongst other things. I always try to give a personal answer to each one of their questions.
My idea was to host several meet-ups in the main auditorium, but the current situation with the coronavirus, my request was denied. I tried to do it online, but our internet connection hasn’t been stable lately. So I kept trying to find the opportunity to do the meeting.
Showing the unknown
There are a lot of right places in Sincelejo, which are not known, and I never thought that by using google maps, I could make them public. As it was in the case of “Asadero El Recreo,” here in Sincelejo, in which I had more than 90,000 views. However, what surprised me most was not this number, but the number of people who started visiting it after posting my contributions.
Inform to the community
Through my contributions, I have learned the real value of being a citizen, something that strengthened my sense of belonging for my city. The state of the public transport terminals is something that worries everyone, especially visitors. When I checked Google Maps, I realized that there were no photos of the Torcoroma terminal, so I published several images that have been of help to thousands of persons. How special it is to help your community just using a phone.
Motivate to be happy without spending much money
Yulimar is a low-cost recreational park in my city, I visited it with my family a couple of weeks ago, and it is very cheap. I made an invitation to some friends to visit the park next week, and they replied that they could not go because of the high cost, and I told them that is not true. From there came the idea to publish this information, and I am sure that my comments motivated others to bring their families and spend fun family time with less than 10 dollars. Google Local Guide leads me to be creative, which is an essential skill in my training as an architect.
The influence that crosses borders
It is not necessary to be at an advanced level to know the powerful impact of being part of the Google Local Guides community; my desire is not to stop on this path that I have taken. Interacting with other Local Guides around the world would be an unforgettable experience. I will continue Forward with my commitment to inspire, inform, motivate, and serve others. I have seen how Google takes action as a part of the solution with the coronavirus situation and what honor and pride to be part of this global team.
Being a Google Local guide allows me to be a better husband, son, friend, and future architects. More exciting than this? It does not exist; for this and the rest, I love being a volunteer. I can’t wait to see the great things that are to come.