Cómo Nació TheGeoLife.Co
A lot of passion & a sprinkle of spite

Dang, que chismosos, lol. Here's the real story behind my company, and fair warning, it's not just sunshine and inspiration. It's complicated. It's messy. It's equal parts passion, inspiration, and a little sprinkle de spite (the good kind). Buckle up, chismosos, this is a 8-minute read, más o menos.

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I didn't know geology was my passion until I almost died on a vacation. Lucky for me (and my car), we both survived. But in that same moment of pure adrenaline, I met a snowmobile park ranger who casually mentioned he was having the time of his life "in the office," which, turns out, meant outside.

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That's when it hit me. The world had so much to offer, and I wanted all of it.

Fast forward to university: multiple geology projects, growing obsession, pure joy. So far, no spite. jejejeje.
 

When Everything Shut Down

Then the pandemic happened. I graduated with honors :) amazing, right? Except there were zero jobs. Everything was locked down. Desperate times called for desperate measures, so I did what any reasonable person would do: I remembered a BuzzFeed article about a guy who rented himself out as a cuddle buddy and thought, bet, what can I do? I know! I will create my own job role💪

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Pero, it wasn't simple. I didn't jump right in, though. First, I briefly worked for a startup. But I had to resign fast.......the red flags were.......everywhere. Toxic vibes wrapped in fake "women empowerment" language. It was wild.

The Contractor Era (aka the Beginning of Spite)

Being forced to learn office skills I never wanted, I reached out to a previous geology institute with a proposal: let me help. let me spread geo-awareness. They wouldn't hire me as an employee, but I could be a "contractor." I was loving it...until I realized the people I used to look up to were just as fake as everyone else. Remote work didn't help. Despite my unpaid hours, extra effort, and ideas, they also turned toxic and essentially I became an isolated remote worker.

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Then I went to a Lotería event with a nature theme. And BAM! Something in me woke up. I saw it immediately: this is how I bring geology to people. I brought the idea back to the organization I worked for, excited to create a recruitment tool and fundraiser. But they did not respond, it was just empty silence. Ambas organizaciones: la que organizó el evento y aquella para la que yo trabajaba.

 

Now I am fueled by revenge and rocks, jk. I didn't give up. I met with the Lotería event organization four separate times over a year. Every single time: "We don't know how we printed it. We don't know which local print shops we used. You need to send us an email."  I kept asking for guidance, y nada, they gaslit me. Straight up. Just gatekeeping information!

No one wanted to help. No one.

Órale Pues, I'll Do It Myself

All I wanted was to share geology with the world in a fun way, outside of textbooks and four walls. But nobody was listening. So I said, "Órale pues. I'll do it myself."

I didn't set out to start a business. I just had opinions, too much creativity, and the inability to let things go. Too stubborn to quit, too geocurious to stop.
 

The Turning Point (aka How I Actually Made This Real)

I started researching my game obsessively. I reached out to other Lotería game businesses-nada. I even contacted the manufacturer for Millennial Lotería. Still just... silence.

But I kept pushing. And those office skills I never wanted? They finally paid off. I taught myself software, design, templating, whatever it took. I built templates, refined ideas, created designs, logos, a brand, trademarks. Everything. From scratch.

I was losing hope, until...

The Backpacking Trip That Changed Everything

I randomly found a backpacking trip with Latino Outdoors SF. I just wanted to have fun, honestly. But something in me whispered: take your messy, unfinished product. See what happens. What's the worst that could happen, right?

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Spoiler: Staying up until 5 a.m. on three hours of sleep was the best decision ever.

I met incredible people out there. And then I met Elexis, who became a solid rock in the entire GeoLotería launch. I was shy about it, but I told her about the game anyway. And she gave me the opportunity to soft launch it. OMG. It was a mess. Typos everywhere, unfinished, totally raw.

Before we broke camp, we played it during breakfast. My new hiker friends gave me honest feedback, suggestions, ideas. They actually liked it.

And then, the rest is history.

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A few months later, I ordered my very first—very expensive—Lotería game sets and officially launched. Elexis was my MVP and my first customer. After that, I sold out at GSA Connects '25, and now I travel everywhere to host GeoLotería game days and lead chill geohikes.

No Pues… Ahora Tengo Un Negocio😏

 

Resulta que el despecho es un excelente plan de negocios. Lo que comenzó como pura frustración se convirtió, de alguna manera, en juegos de geología, eventos al aire libre, proyectos comunitarios y toda una marca.

Life's weird like that.