Welcoming new team members

Building a team doesn’t happen overnight. 

Our team in Ralev.com is together from the very beginning and grows with us year after year. Over the past 16 years, we formed a crew of great professionals that are not only colleagues but also friends. Actually, some of our team players are working together for over 8 years now!

This month we open our hearts to two new members of the team.  Мaking something together was a great way to get to know each other and encourage communication. As well as creating a more cohesive and productive atmosphere for the whole team. 

Visiting our adopted hive

We often describe ourselves as a company of glass-half-full creatives. And the key to success is to keep our spirits up to be productive. Learning new things and boosting our mood are tied very closely together. On Sunday we went for something slightly outside our team’s comfort zone. We recently adopted a hive of bees as part of the campaign – Real Honey (check their website here) and we went to Arnautito, near Stara Zagora, to pay our beekeeper Georgi Georgiev and the hive a visit. 

Real Honey is a project created by Pollenity that supports the Bulgarian beekeeping sector by raising awareness and funds. The cause is also focusing on preserving the bees, something that concerns us all as. 

In the office, we are all foodies, and our well-being is something we are all focused on. The whole team has preferences for good food that fuels our bodies and our creativity. Therefore we all got excited to adopt a hive and get our hands on some real raw honey straight from it.

And regarding the fear some of our crew member experience from insects, there is no better place to drop this quote:

“One should not pursue goals that are easily achieved. One must develop an instinct for what one can just barely achieve through one’s greatest efforts.” 

Albert Einstein

Or put in other words at Ralev.com, we believe that to continue to grow, we need to tackle new challenges and conquer our fears. 

The trip

We gathered the crew in a van. We took off to the countryside to educate ourselves on the bees. Our hive was waiting for us in a small village located 250km away from the office. Far enough to let our spirits free. 

But let’s get back to the bee-lding part. For some of us, having over 10 000 bees flying around us was a thrilling situation. For others, this experience was a way to reconnect with nature. But let me be honest here – everyone had goosebumps when the outer part of the hive was opened, and bees started flying around.  They seemed grumpy because we opened the door to their home, and we were shaking – because nobody wants to make the need mad. At the same time, seeing the supers filled with golden honey was mouth-watering, so that was a win. 

Sponsoring a hive makes it possible to get our hands on great honey coming straight from it to our office located in the heart of Sofia every month! How great is this, seriously?

How do we know we’ve gotten the team building, right? There was laughter – a lot of laughter trust us. In the same vein, there was excitement and a sense of accomplishment. We ran out of beers and brownies. And our Instagram-addict even made a post about it. Check it out here.

At the end of the day, it’s about being more unified, to develop and strengthen interpersonal relationships, and enhance communication between the crew.