Every journey passes through my soul

Introduce yourself in few words..

My name is Daniela Ilieva and I am executive director of the Foundation “Law and Internet”, academic professor at VUZF, author of six books on communication, mentoring, and personal development, and founder of the platform daniela.bg, through which I specialize in providing personalized corporate training programs designed to improve communication, leadership, and professional growth.

What does traveling around the world mean to you?

Adventure, experience, discovery, worldview, sense of the world. My life. I travel for 150-160 days a year – for work, personally, or a mix of both, alone, with my children, with friends, or with my relatives.

How many different countries have you seen so far? Share an interesting story or highlights from your travels?

A few weeks ago, I returned from country number 69 – South Korea and country number 70 – Taiwan. I always prepare thoroughly, do research, and choose precisely what to spend time on during my stay in a given place. And yet, I am never insured against surprises or cultural shock to some extent. It is precisely the preparation and reading before traveling that help us avoid risks or absurd situations, such as my oversight of the ban on bringing any fruits and vegetables into Taiwan. I had brought a wonderful mango with me, which I couldn't eat in South Korea and put in my suitcase for Taiwan. My suitcase came out “marked” (as criminal), I was separated from all arrivals, my luggage was thoroughly searched, and when I thought I was not getting a fine, the inspectors made me go and publicly throw my fruits into a special container.

I do not get angry in such situations, because I am to blame for not having read the rules and therefore not having followed them.

I have many more situations, despite my intercultural experience. Spas centers have surprised me the most.

Do you like to repeat destinations? Give examples and motivation “for” or “against”?

For more distant destinations, I prefer to “invest” in new ones, but sometimes I end up repeating some. In Europe, I often find myself visiting certain places again and again, but I always approach with the curiosity of a child and with wide-open eyes for the new and different. For example, in April 2025, I had a business trip to Bilbao, where I have been several times, the last time in 2018 perhaps. But now I saw the city in a completely different way, even though in a similar season to my previous visits. I am different every time I go back to a place, and that makes the experience completely new.

What was your first trip that truly changed you as a professional and can be said to have changed your thinking?

This question makes me return to my first trips as a tennis player. From that 9-10-year-old Daniela until today, countless trips have happened, and all of them reflect what I learned “on the way” – discipline, curiosity, inspiration, an open mind, and respect for the different and unknown.

When I took over the Foundation “Law and Internet” ten years ago and started traveling much more for work, I had many situations where I felt pride and many other positive emotions. One memorable trip was in 2017, with my entire team at the time to Athens, where we combined business tasks with very pleasant tourism and entertainment. I remember how proud I felt of our successes and the opportunity to go together to a wonderful rooftop. My feeling from that moment is still very valuable!

What do you learn about yourself and your professional skills when you are in a new cultural environment?

Most of all, I learn how much more there is to learn and discover – something I adore. The development of technology in recent years forces all of us to continue learning and improving professionally. As long as, of course, one is ready for it.

Have you met people or ideas during your travels that have influenced your career path?

Of course. There are people with whom you instantly have an energetic click and you perceive them as a mentor or role model. There are ideas that resonate with me and I partially adopt them as I implement them in my initiatives or in my business daily life. I cannot name a specific person or personality, but my recent trips to Milan for the AI Week and to Taipei for the Computex, inspired me even more for knowledge and development in the field and the direction in which the world is not just moving, but flying. Just before them, I was on a completely different type of trip – to the Portuguese coast of Algarve for training for teachers under the Erasmus+ program on the topic Mindfulness Through Yoga and Meditation. The combination of the good company I traveled with in the face of my colleague, with the beauty of the region and the meaningful content and exercises of the course, inspired me immensely for what I would like from the next stages of my career path.

Do you think that traveling helps you expand your professional network? How?

Curiosity, NOT getting used to and NOT accepting travels as something annoying or ordinary, allows every trip to become an adventure, an opportunity, a potential. I exchange business cards (I am always ready with both traditional paper and digital), connect directly on LinkedIn (when it is acceptable), I create not only professional contacts with potential, but often also lasting friendships. It is also important for a person to have a “helpful” memory to make the connection between people, geographical points, and events and useful connectivity.

What skills do you develop the most when you travel, and how do they reflect on your work?

Every trip goes through my soul. I am a brilliant organizer and many people love to travel with me because they know there is no need to think, to do research either for the destination or for the experiences. Traveling 150-160 days a year requires me to be even more organized and multitasking, because emails and messages do not stop, business goes on, and we all know how important it is to respond on time and with respect for time.

Traveling is my inspiration and I often return charged with new energy.

Is there a city or country that has inspired you to start a new business or project?

Beauty in all its dimensions always inspires me. Sometimes certain experiences help me make decisions.

When you are in an unfamiliar country, do you feel more motivated or more distracted? Why?

None of the words in the question describes how I feel in an unfamiliar country. Rather, I would associate my feelings with excitement, inspiration, even enlightenment. Regarding the work that is happening in Bulgaria during my absence, I wouldn’t say that I am more or less motivated or more distracted. Time differences sometimes work to my advantage, other times not, but I always try to keep an eye on the big picture and if one day I was more inattentive to the flow of emails, the next day I catch up. I have an incredibly reliable team at the Foundation “Law and Internet” and that provides me with peace of mind while traveling. The team in the educational department and the management at the university have always shown understanding for my busy schedule. My children are also wonderful and respectful of my absences when I do not travel with them. So far, so good – everything balances wonderfully.

Are there destinations that act as a “restart” for your creativity and ambition?

Absolutely yes. Vietnam was one such place that influenced me there, on the spot, with a strong creative impulse. I started things, devised an approach, created a desired future. And I wouldn’t say it’s because I liked Vietnam so much, but somehow the experience itself influenced me in this way to unlock the necessary creativity, energy, and drive for my own things.

How do you manage the balance between work and pleasure when you travel?

In one word – wonderfully.

Do you travel with the aim of finding new ways to make money?

Not intentionally or as an end in itself. But as I mentioned above, sometimes ideas are born.

What lessons about financial independence have you learned from different economies and cultures?

I don’t think these lessons are learned on the road if you haven’t learned them at home. I have invaluable financial lessons from my parents, and modern life itself teaches us constantly. There is much in common between the budget planning of a project and a big trip.

Do you think it’s better to spend on experiences rather than material possessions?

I often joke that many women shop for bags, I shop for plane tickets. Experiences on the road have always been my aspiration. I remember when

How do you see the future of digital nomad life?

I think this form of work and life will become increasingly desirable and popular. It’s not for everyone, but everyone could try it.

Are there specific countries that are more favorable for work and investments?

We often allow ourselves to “fawn” over some country and its economy without having lived there, only based on a trip. And we often forget the paradise tax in Bulgaria, the ease of things in the Balkans, typical local networking, and the positive side of “nepotism”.

I have lived in Austria, Spain, and America. Everywhere has positives and negatives. No matter how many positives there are, if a person is strongly connected to their roots and their energy is in their homeland, it’s hard to thrive in foreign lands.

And yet, to answer the question, in recent years many of my acquaintances have made adjustments to their business affairs and included Dubai as a strategic and advantageous destination for investments.

If you could choose one place in the world to develop your next big idea, what would it be and why?

From a creative point of view – I would write my next book in New Zealand. I liked it so much there that I would return again and again.

What are the destinations you would definitely recommend to be visited and why?

Depending on what a traveler is looking for, the destinations are many and varied, but:

For natural beauty and views: New Zealand, Iceland, Portugal, Spain

For exoticism: Mauritius, Maldives, Seychelles

For wild experience: Africa, Jordan

For impressive cities: Oslo, Seoul

For culture and history: Italy, Greece, Malta, Taiwan, Peru, Mexico

What is the career advice you would give based on what you have seen around the world?

Learn, develop, stay on your path, follow your talents and your heart.

And I would finish with something I just read:

“There are only two people who should matter to you – your 8-year-old self, full of dreams, and your 80-year-old self, filled with memories.”