Probably the longest email I received from Pa, in response to an email sent to him by my clueless, whiny, too idealistic, feeling entitled fresh grad self back in 2008. Reading this again made me realize that my perspective on work has significantly changed since then. Work is both humbling and, for lack of a better word, dignifying (uplifting?).
This is for fresh grads and not-so-fresh grads, and people who think that the grass is always greener on the other side (occasionally guilty of this) :)
Date: XX/XX/XXXX 9:26 PM
Subject: Re: :(
dear aiks,
do not worry. i also felt like that when i was working. kaya palipat lipat ako ng office sa san miguel corporation. give it a little time. meanwhile, actively look for other options. (you might want to help me muna. ha.ha.ha.)
it is too early to tell what you are meant to do. but quitting this early will not be good for you. while you may be unhappy and stressed, there is a better way of coping with it. the more unhappy and discontented you are, the more you will dread everyday you work. as i have said, you are not in the worst place at this stage in your career. sometimes, having too many choices is not that healthy. i think sticking on to your job for a significant amount of time is a good idea. it will test your ability to cope with something you are not too happy doing. the sad reality is that we have to bear it because it is part of the learning process. If i encourage you to quit early, the next time you feel the same discomfort, you will not learn to cope but quit again.
I know of quite a number of people who were as good as you – or who were even better than you, but did not achieve their full potential because they always wanted to be happy with what they were doing. we need not go very far. Person A and Person B had to struggle with Company X because they did not have much choice. It is only now that they can do as they please because they have established themselves already.
I do not think you should lose sight of what you want to do. If you do decide to quit, be responsible enough to find another job before quitting. It will not look good if you quit without any definite job waiting.
i do not suggest that you immediately take the NGO route unless it is the CSR of a prominent company. while it is true that you will study later on, remember that your studying will require you to return back to the real world that you are in right now. burn out ka na, bok. you might want to take a vacation muna. madali naman maghanap ng rason at this point in time. while i am not against you doing social development work, i must say that those who succeeded in this field went through the regular careers that we have gone through. Tony Meloto worked in the private sector for a long time. Manny Pangilinan, etc.
i will always support you in any way you want me to. while the job might not be for you, you might have to grin and bear it while you are looking for a new one (whether corporate or NGO). i have taken less fulfilling jobs in my career but i have looked at them as the dots that connected me to where i am now. the more you despair, the more you will be unhappy. many people would love to take your place, given the opportunity. just look at this stage as the difficult stepping stones in testing your character and patience. probably, later on, with the benefit of hindsight, you will conclude that it was all for the better that you were not too hasty in making the decisions on this matter.
having said what i think, do not be afraid to make the decisions you think that best suit you. lagi lang naman kaming nandito. but as they say, do not make decisions when you are unhappy (or emotional). they tend to be the less logical ones.
*This post is for Patty, whose undergrad days are numbered. And who has been busy with papers, exams and interviews. One big fight <3
To: LGR, AGR
Date: May 9, 2006, 4:15 PM
Subject; Australia, here I come
Dear labs,
By the time you read this, palaro medalist na si tricia. Sa puso natin, parati siyang may medal. No. 1, ika nga, and the only one. Sino pa naman ang mas mahusay sa kanyang mag swim sa mga robredo. Pinakasexy pa. HUwag kang magalit ma and aiks. Masakit talaga ang katotohanan, ay mali ang malaki ang beywang, ay mali ay katawan dahil masikip ang damit.
Tawag ako pagdating ko sa mga kangaroo. Makikipag-inglisan lang naman ako doon. Dito iyong consultant ng ADB, bida na naman ang Naga. Hindi na talaga mapigil. Pera na lang ang kulang. Sarap dito sa lounge. Ganda pa ng sounds. Lulubos-lubusin ko na.
its 1030pm here. 430am diyan. libre internet sa room kaya ito ang libangan ko. when are you leaving for cebu again? i intend to sleep over at your condo before i return to naga on saturday. anyway, kung wala ka, tulog na lang ako. madagdagan ko lang yung electric bill na babayaran mo. ha.ha.ha.
medyo nosebleed na rito bok. nabobore na rin. biro mo lahat ng pictures ko sa cellphone nalagyan ko na ng captions. nakasulat na ko ng ingles na blog. hope to do the tagalog para sa abante tomorrow. mahirap kung ang mga nagtuturo ayaw ng diskusyon. pahinga na lang.
went to cologne cathedral yesterday. hope that someday, i can take all of you to europe. malalayo lang ang lakad pero pang culture naman. bad trip lang kasi mukhang mahal sa kalokohan. pati paggamit ng CR 1 euro, mga P67.
was reading your email. ganyan talaga ang buhay. magmayor ka na lang! ha.ha.ha. now you realize that the long and short of it is, parati may pulitika. everywhere you go. mag goberyno mag private. been there, seen it, done it! ha.ha.ha.
seriously, i hope you find satisfaction in what you do. that is the best motivator to working well. of course, ambition is another. malay mo dumating ang panahon, sinasakay mo na ko sa eroplano ng kumpanya mo.
am packing up. going back day after tomorrow. oks naman ang pahinga rito. kahit naglalakad ako, parang tumaba pa. tindi kasi ng tsibog. buffet at libre pa.
la akong magawa. pasensiya na paantok lang. sagutin mo naman!
Hi Aiks.
I was trying to call. Baka nasa class ka na. There is a paid lounge here. Matagal pa hintay so i took time out kahit P560 bayad.
You have not written for quite awhile kaya ako na lang. While we are worried that you might lose your momentum if you go on JVP (or if you do not immediately work after you graduate), do not worry should you choose not to. Palagay ko, you have earned the right to decide for yourself. Okay ka naman.
Alalahanin mo na lang yung ad ng Smart. Ganyan kami! Will write Audrey muna. Jack Bauer is leaving again.
we did not have the chance to talk. pareho tayo occupied mag-alaga ng dalawang kids during vacation. i am glad we were able to go to UPENN. that is the kind of exposure that might help you work on what you want to do. do not worry, ipapangutang ko naman ang pang-aral mo kung mag masters ka. mag-umpisa tayo doon sa nakuha sa RM award ko. you are fortunate because you have the option to choose what you want to do. so plan it well. galingan mo. work hard. kahit hindi mo gusto yung ginagawa mo, you are still expected to work hard and excel. i just hope that when you work you will be more enabling.
there is little future in production, aiks, unless you discover and produce the product yourself or you are the brains of the idea like apple and microsoft. the safer way is marketing and finance. as they say, the best business is money. you might not like it so much when you were still in school but anyway that is a must learn in MBA.
huwag kang mag-madali. while i believe you owe it to where you came from to make a contribution, you will get there more comfortably if you succeed in your own career first. you cannot give what you do not have. (unless you want to run for mayor. he.he.he.)
Hi, Ma. Before you laugh, let me get serious first! Ha.ha.ha. I am at the lounge. I will eat in 10 minutes. I would like to get hungry first so this letter.
I was listening to the radio this morning. The anchor was saying that women should be careful in wearing wide white belts. It is the in thing nowadays. But he said that they better be careful. Otherwise it might look like the parting of the Red Sea --- breaking and showing the bulges instead of the curves. Of course, this hardly applies to you! My idol!
Anyway, I decided to leave early. They cancelled the senate session this afternoon. I called up rene to pick me up. I think the weather in cebu is better.
Hi aiks! The parting of the red sea does not apply to you too! I am just too happy that you are living inside the campus. What a life here (in Manila)! Rains do make and break your day. I was late with my appointment with Arch. Palafox.
Before I forget the wooden tiles inside the room, ma, are slowly peeling off (cant find a better word).
nakahanap ako libre internet. i will be arriving cologne at around 2pm, philippine time tomorrow. mukhang mas alanganin ang oras na ito, buti pa half day ang difference.
my return flight eta in manila is at 8pm on june 12. we will have the kaya natin anniversary on the 13th. i go home after the celebration.
this will be a long flight. sana hindi mabaho ang katabi ko. former senator * was in the same plane as i was. business class siya all the way to cologne. ikaw na ang sikat. kala niya business class din ako. sabi sa counter seatmate daw kami. ha.ha.ha.ha.
mabuti naman mere mortal tayo dito para parati nakaapak sa lupa. pag kinuwenta mo ang dagdag at ang hirap sa economy, oks na rin ang hirap. maiipon naman yan para sa mga anak. makonsensiya sana si aika. ha.ha.ha.
hope everything will be okay sa pasukan. suggest you text me na lang para tipid. i will buy a phone card when i get there. as they say, dont call me, i will call you. got to go.
labs na labs.
pops
*will not post former senator's name, sorry guys :D
i hope you are through with your basketball hangover. i do not know if you read that rabeh applied in la salle after he graduated from philippine christian high school but was not considered because his high school grades did not meet the requirement needed to be eligible to take the admission test. oh well, that probably is destiny. maybe God really wants ateneo to win this time. matagal na rin hindi nagchampion. ha.ha.ha. at para sumaya ka. smile ka naman diyan, bok!
i have around 21 months left before i end my term as mayor. i need to find something to do. parang ikaw but in a different and limited way. if i can find work in manila, palagay ko mas mabuti siguro. magkakasama uli tayo. tricia will be in college by then. i need to be able to move on from naga and sort of put it behind me, lahat ng bagay problema, sama ng loob, kasiyahan saka intriga na rin. i’ve always loved naga pero parang mahirap na andito right after I finish my term. baka lumabas na ang natural (ha.ha.ha.) seriously, i do not think i will be happy with that setup (kahit temporary). sana lahat ganoon din para we can move on.
i am even considering leaving the country. of course together with all of you. pag mag-aaral ka na, it would be the best time to do so. medyo mahirap lang maghanap ng gagawin. but at least tahimik na buhay at tahimik na isip na rin.
looking back mahirap din pala na naitulak ka lang ng unos sa ginagawa mo. in a way, you are fortunate that you are seeking what you want to be this early. mahirap yong walang benefit ang talent mo. not so many choices. you take what is given you. yan ang buhay ko. masuwerte na rin. overachieving (depending on who is giving the assessment) pero parang may kulang.
i intend to write something on what would have been para huwag mong gayahin. pero actually kumpleto na rin naman lahat. it is 1159pm. lahat na tulog. magpapaggising daw si jillian ng 6am. bye na ako. baka mapagalitan ako pag di ko siya nagising.
do not read between the lines. i just whiled away the time para antukin ako. saka para naman ma-feel mo na normal yong mga problema mo.
