Filipina street food vendor turns Senior Project Coordinator in Dubai - Mariele Layug Caballes
Filipino doctor in Dubai touching lives, moving hearts - Jay Edwarde Hontanosas, M.D.
Passion with purpose: Helping women victims of domestic abuse in the US - Mariclem Shields
Filipina fulfills dream to be skydiver in France -January Sablan
Marlon Climaco and AJ Ungson - On Friendship, Partnership, and Leadership in Real Etstate Business
A story of a physical therapist turned spa owner in UAEHerbert B. Rico
Filipino fashion designer in Dubai rewrites rules of traditional bridal fashion - Garimon Roferos
Leading a well-balanced life while working overseasMary Jane B. Nolasco
Filipino fulfills dream as theatre actor in New YorkClark Mantilla
The key to greatness is to become friends with oneself. People worked primarily to provide a good life for their families. Some people from other countries worked for a foreign country for more than half of their lives, sacrificing time away from their loved ones. It is a double burden for overseas workers when they need someone to cry on because of difficulties at work or in their personal life.
According to 28-year-old Filipina Mariele Layug Caballes, Senior Project Coordinator at Gulf Agency Co., mistakes can be turned into blessings through trials.
Mariele began haggling in her working life when she was 15 years old. She recalled her first job as selling Halo-Halo (Filipino dessert) and Ham rolls while reselling products from Avon, Natasha, and MSE (Filipino beauty products) to provide for her family. She had to do these things because she became a mother at a young age.
At 17, she quit school to seek a better job. Unfortunately, the only job in the Philippines that pays well is that of a Call Center Agent. This is the only field that does not necessitate a university degree as long as the individual understands and speaks basic English.
In order to survive and provide a good life for her child, Mariele decided to pursue that field two months before her 18th birthday. As a result of being unable to complete her education, Mariele found it difficult to enhance her English skills. To catch up and learn English, she decided to teach herself.
“I remember watching American movies and imitating how they spoke with their twangs and slang, even talking to myself in the mirror. Read English books/magazines and look up their meanings in dictionaries or on the internet, and three months later, I got my first job at iQor in Clark, Pampanga, where I worked as a CSR - Customer Service Representative for Sprint Telecommunications based in the United States.” she shared.
After two years, she found a better opportunity at Convergys, a similar field-based in the United States. Working in the call center industry is not as easy as it appears. It takes a lot of guts and determination to succeed. That is why, after gaining experience in the Philippines, she decided to travel abroad in 2015.
Expatriate life
Mariele’s life abroad has never been easy, but she has remained strong and continues to be inspired by her family. When she first began working abroad, her first opportunity was in E-commerce and she served as Customer Service Representative. This was followed with the opportunity in logistics industry. After gaining extensive client-handling experience, she was promoted to Customer Support Specialist, then to Freight Coordinator,
and finally to Telesales Supervisor.
While living abroad, she faced difficulties and battles that few people, including her family, are aware of. Her first company went out of business in 2017, leaving her jobless for six months. She even had to deal with not having her bed, food on the table, and money.
“I used to cook for my flatmate and have my share of food, do laundry for my landlord to get a small amount of money for my job hunting, and necessities, and move from another vacant space to another to get a decent night’s sleep,” she explained.
She recovered from these difficulties when she was hired by Pplus Courier and relocated to Deira, where she met a few people who had similar difficulties and experiences. Those trials inspired her to become a wise person. She faced these battles alone, and the only thing she was fighting for was a better life and future for her family, particularly her children.
Aside from having a challenging yet blessed journey, Mariele is proud to say that because of her dedication, she was able to fully renovate her mother’s house and provide a good life for her children. Currently she is owning her online business by selling brand-new clothes.
Mariele is currently starting a new chapter in her career as a Senior Project Coordinator (Grade D) at one of reputable multinational corporation. Due to her determination, she can make a name for herself, her family, and those overseas Filipino workers who long to be successful.
Despite working full-time, she still finds time to do things she enjoys, such as working out, shopping, cooking, and doing her homework for her Logistics and Supply Chain Management course. If necessary, she may need to work from home.
“I developed an interest in logistics and supply chains. Moving from one department to another was a great way to gain new skills and knowledge that helped me build and strengthen my credentials to get more opportunities. I am grateful for my life and work experiences so far, because without them I would not be in the place I am now,” Mariel said.
Having the opportunity to meet people from different countries at her current job is rewarding for her, especially when she meets the client’s expectations.
Ultimately, Mariele’s goal is to become financially independent and take care of her children, parents, and those who are in need.
As a final point, she believes that everything happens for a reason and that her character, thoughts, words, and habits will determine future.
After passing the licensure examination for physicians in the Philippines, Jay Edwarde Hontanosas came to Dubai in 2015 to secure a medical license in the US. At that time, she had already finished the first step and was gearing for the second.
Jay was already burnt out mentally and financially, and the idea of coming to a new place like Dubai--to practice and earn enough to finance the long and arduous journey towards the US made sense.
Her plan was simple: work while preparing for the subsequent examination.
“But you know, in life, circumstances change,” she said. Jay secured the UK-General Medical Council registration/license instead.
She joined an orthopedic and rehab clinic in the emirate, where she had worked for two years. It was where she acclimatized with the healthcare system in place, adjusted to a highly diverse society, worked with different nationalities, and treated patients with other languages and cultures.
When she had the opportunity to work in a polyclinic, she had the opportunity to treat her fellow Filipinos. There, she started to learn and understand the common challenges, hardships, and struggles of many OFWs in the country.
Her heart for helping Filipinos started in the Philippines, where she moonlighted in various hospitals and clinics in Manila, from being a hotel physician to an ER physician. Jay also worked on Boracay island for several months, where some of her most memorable and ‘intense’ experiences in her practice happened.
“I love the island, its energy and the level of adrenaline the practice required,” she said.
Currently, Jay works with Klinika Kabayan, Aster-Clinic, Al Muteena Branch as its general practitioner or primate care physician. One thing she enjoys about her job is that she gets to address a wide array of health concerns as she provides care at the first point of contact. She continues to manage the patient’s health concerns over time, and with that, she develops strong relationships with patients and even their families.
“I get to witness humanity at its very best and very worst. I see it as a privilege. I learn a lot of very important life lessons from my patients. As a doctor, our simple joy is to see our patients respond well to their treatments and fully recover,” she added.
Jay finds the work-life balance better overseas. As a wife, mother, and working woman, balancing these three things is challenging. However, the environment where she works makes it easier for her.
Like many OFWs, she, too, had her fair share of struggles and challenges, including lots of judgment along the way.
“Sometimes, I learned it the hard way. There are workplaces with unpleasant cultures and unethical practices. I’d been to those places, and it was tough. You will face many challenges if you stand up for what is right. But you have to do it anyway. Good wins in the end. It always does,” she added.
Jay hopes to specialize in family medicine.
“I’m in a profession which requires lifelong learning to stay current, to deepen my knowledge and improve my patient care,” she said.
Should there be a circumstance that would require her family to return to the Philippines, Jay said she would continue her practice there, mostly likely in Mindanao or somewhere very rural where she can touch more lives.
US-based Mariclem Shields came from a very influential family. Her mother was the first female general manager for Accor Hotels in Asia, and her aunt owns the entire naval port in the Philippines.
Mariclem, born in the Philippines and moved to the US when she was 3, is also making a name in the US as a non-profit leader and marketing guru.
Her passion for building relationships came at a very young age. Since most of her family members either own or run hotel and restaurant businesses back home, she was very immersed in the hospitality industry.
Because of her family’s business nature, Mariclem worked in all areas, from operations to sales and marketing in the US.
The highlight of her career was when she was named as the only person of color and a female within the organization who was in a leadership role at the age of 22.
During the Covid-19 pandemic, the situation paved the way for her to venture into the non-profit world.
“I wanted to do something that would be of service to others, however in a different angle,” she said.
Today, she handles the marketing and events for an organization supporting women who are victims of domestic violence.
“This is a cause that I deeply care about and
want to add to my tenure in life,” she added.
Through her immersion in the non-profit organization, Mariclem gets to make a difference. She could have worked a different job with their wealth in the Philippines. She said she wanted to challenge herself, especially since it is essential to be progressive in this generation.
“I chose the non-profit world because I believe that every day is a new day to do something that can change other people’s lives and help those in need. I am passionate about it for personal reasons, so I know how much domestic violence can impact many women worldwide. The most satisfying moment is knowing I am contributing to society in my way,” she said.
Mariclem regularly gets invitations to visit the Philippines and be one of the panel of
judges for various beauty contests to assess the candidates and determine how they can make a difference in the world through pageantry. Recently, she was invited to judge Mister International 2022.
The woman with a compassionate heart was also featured on a billboard in Los Angeles, California, showing Filipino women’s representation in the US.
She said she likes the idea of being around different types of people from various backgrounds.
When asked about her plans, the 30-year-old said she wants to launch multiple streams of businesses and move back home when retirement comes. She also wants to write a book and start her non-profit organization that would help more people, especially those who are victims of domestic abuse.
Her advice to her fellow Filipinos overseas is to always look at the bigger picture.
“We all have our gifts in life and to be our authentic selves. Do something that does not feel like work day in and day out,” she said.
During the holidays, Mariclem will relaunch his ‘Toy Drive’ advocacy to make more children smile this year by giving them toys to play with.
Mariclem, who is also a UNICEF member, is also an LGBTQ2+ community advocate.
January Sablan believes that if you can dream it, you can do it. When she was just a child, plunging into an open space freely and being a skydiver was already her dream.
Little did she know that her childhood dream would be her profession in the future.
When she moved to France six years ago, she had the opportunity to make her dream come true. She loves her job so much that she became the first Filipina solo skydiver in the country. Her skydiving skills were nurtured by the French world champion wingsuit flyer Zun.
No matter how much she enjoyed her job, she, too, experiences hardships at times. As a mom of three with a very demanding job, training, sometimes, is difficult. January tries her best and have jumps every weekend in the southern part of France.
“Being able to fly and see the world from a high altitude is just wonderful and piloting my own parachute is very satisfying,” she said.
The company where she works now, Parachutisme.fr, specializes in the organization of parachute jumps and skydiving courses for companies and individuals in France and abroad. It allows residents and tourists to learn free falling.
“What I like the most about my work is the freedom of doing whatever I want to do and become myself and just enjoy what life has to offer,” January said.
She aims to represent the Philippines in skydiving sports in the future.
Here is a closer look at two seasoned Filipino realtors from SM Development Corporation (SMDC), who have been featured in the segment ‘Kwento ng Tagumpay’ sometime in June of this year. SMDC International Sales Directors AJ Ungson and Marlon Climaco, now gracing the magazine cover.
Not burning bridges after all in an industry where people usually come and go. This is one of the important lessons learned by two of the good guys. It is not easy to practice loyalty in a quota-based system normally implemented in a sales job. Hitting quota for several years is no joke. Salute to about 11 to 13 fruitful years devoted to SMDC by these gentlemen.
Two decades and counting in property selling, these top executives are both Licensed Real Estate Brokers, but they chose to work full-time with major developers since their early 20s.
Presently holding a high corporate post as sales directors of the country’s number one
property developer, they continue leading their respective sales divisions to aim for billions worth of sales as part of the company’s annual target. Indeed the higher the position, the greater the responsibility.
When in Dubai, the best buddies frequenting a Filipino restaurant in Al Rigga, would drink sweet Karak or a cup of coffee while talking to their fellow kababayans. It has always been business as usual when they travel. They are building good friendships and a good network with OFWs.
“Every great business is built on friendship.” American businessman James Cash Penney once said.
Once trust is established, investment talk follows. They are helping Filipinos overseas to consider the idea of putting their hard-earned money into the best investment instrument, real estate properties. Their sales force will be the bridge to purchase any of SMDC’s condominium, house, and lot projects.
Aside from the Middle East, they also started
invading Asia. This year alone, they already got the chance to visit Singapore a couple of times, and they have been featured in a Filipino magazine in Japan.
Partnership with SMDC is open to all Filipinos and other nationalities worldwide to enjoy a significant income opportunity on a freelance basis. It is such a big-time side hustle. AJ and Marlon’s team members can guide one through it even from scratch to become a productive referror-partner.
“Great things in business are never done by one person; they’re done by a team of people.” Steve Jobs, the co-founder, chairman, and CEO of Apple, once said.
A manager leading a salesperson to earn his first million or a seller leading a prospective buyer to millions of investment decisions is quite a tough job—a leadership that takes experience, expertise, and so much enthusiasm to be able to influence others.
As sales directors who should always be on top of everything, they manage and develop more leaders in the process. What a noble job with a task to help others become successful in life.
“Leaders are not born; they are made.”
American football coach Vince Lombardi said.
We will be hearing more of AJ and Marlon’s exploration globally by next year, as 2022 is about to end soon. Expect many exciting things these two property mentors have to offer in 2023.
For project details, online presentation, showroom viewing, quotation, sponsorship and partnership, contact their WhatsApp Nos. +639173219339 / +639171330073.
