Happiness Strikes!

I'm ecstatic! First of all, last week, I got all my STEPHENIE MEYER TWILIGHT series books from Fully Booked; my daughter had her first communion on the 6th; the company I work with provided two cash bonuses to everyone -- I'm in a roll!

And that's not it, there's more! Just today, I received feedback from Melody of HerWord.com that my contributed article has been published on their site! I'm so overwhelmed because it's my first! And I'm going to make it a START -- my goal is to write one article per week and farm them out to broadsheets, magazines, or online venues.

Now 'nuf said about it, enjoy my article. You may opt to read it on HerWord through this link. Or you may read it below.

On being who we are meant to be
Published on http://www.HerWord.com (owned and operated by the BusinessWorld Corporation)
December 15, 2008

As I write this, I am in Cebu on a business trip for three days. My job entails me to travel to key cities in the Philippines like Cebu, Iloilo, Bacolod, Davao, Baguio, Pampanga, etcetera. But that’s not what my write-up is all about.

Let me start by introducing myself, I am Miami Alciso-Cabansay, a cool Mom, a ravishing wife, a small business entrepreneur, and a project manager by profession. I am a proud Baguio girl – born, raised, and schooled there.
My first real job (I worked as a crew with a famous fastfood restaurant) was with a telco company then I was given an opportunity to work for a competitor in Manila. And this started my so-called Manila life.

I always take pride in sharing my story about how I got myself living independently and achieving remarkable milestones in life. I reminisced all these again today and I got inspired to write about it when I received the email invite from Herword.

Shiela, a former colleague and a friend of mine picked me up at the Cebu airport and we had lunch together after.
She’s such a darling she does this all the time, in spite her very busy schedule. On our way to a restaurant, we started talking about a lot of things and we discovered that we had so much in common. After her stint at our office, she decided she wanted to have another career. She came to a realization that she had a lot of goals she’d like to achieve and she had to do something about it.

The last time our other friends heard about her after she left is she got employed with a pharmaceutical company. We all were flabbergasted about it as it was very unlikely of her, much more that she was going to be assigned in Cebu after her gruesome training. We were kidding that she may end up coming back after just a few months or weeks even. She was not the type who would be left alone and do things all by herself. She was pampered by her family, she had everything laid out before her.

She carried on with the challenges of her job as a medical representative, learned the dialect, established very good professional relationships with doctors, adjusted to a different culture and a different set of colleagues. In many instances, she proved to every one and most especially to herself that she is capable of doing more, doing great, and doing it all by herself.

I shared with her that I could relate to what she has gone and is going through now. I was also in such and many other situations when I first set foot in Manila. For someone who was all set and comfortably living in Baguio City, Manila was a totally new world for me. I got to learn a lot of things on my own – from commuting to different and many places, working with different types of people, learning the who’s who in the political and social arena (which I previously only got to learn about through the media), and a whole lot more. There were so many times when I thought I wanted to go back home but my innate fighting spirit which I most likely got from being partly an Igorota held me back as if saying “Hey woman, you gotta keep it together, you’ve still got a long way to go!” And so I did.

Three companies and 13 years later, I’m married to a very supportive and not to mention a hunk-of-a-guy husband and best friend; We have a very smart and very pretty daughter; I am an executive in a stable and booming industry; I have a small business; and I’m about to finish graduate school next year!

Suffice to say that I have “arrived”. My experiences in life range from missing work opportunities, getting fired, dealing with ultra-difficult people, knowing one’s real friends in unexpected situations, adjusting to married life, and making life decisions for another human being (my daughter).

One may say, but that’s what life is all about! Oh yeah, most definitely, but nowadays, when the world we live in is doubly fast-paced, everything is turning digital, there are Starbucks everywhere – recognizing and acknowledging life milestones which I call “lifestones” are not common anymore. People get frustrated easily, they lose the meaning of being who one is meant to be by going through the many facets of life.

I am saddened that very few people celebrate small personal achievements anymore. We sometimes tend to forget that after all, we’re human beings and we are here in this world to make the most out of our borrowed lives, to make ourselves better persons and that we need to continue to grow but then we also need to enjoy life and look at small things as part of the big picture. Without them, life is not exciting!

Being who we are meant to be is a process. Most of the time life throws us bits and pieces of what-have-yous but we just need to embrace all of it and take it in stride. Just like my fave movie character, Forrest Gump says “Life is like a box of chocolates, you’ll never know what you’ll get!”

Miami's Goals Q4 2008 and Beyond

A lot of people, including myself, believe that it is anyone's right to DREAM, and since it is free, one might as well DREAM big. In addition to this belief, one must affirm them and work passionately to achieve whatever those dreams are.

I'm writing this blog not just to list all my "wishes" but to actually affirm that I will achieve all of them. I am a big advocate of setting goals because it makes life more defined with purpose and meaning.

Now, let's see, I have a lot of dreams in mind from my family, career, business, down to my personal ones.

MY FAMILY GOALS

• Finish paying off our EOG (East of Galleria) condominium unit which My Love Nald and I purchased January this year.
• Invest in a lot in our existing village and put-up our dream house.
• Invest in two more condominium units >> one in The Fort and another one elsewhere.
• Invest in a house and lot in my dear hometown in Baguio City where my Mom can just simply relax and enjoy her retirement days.
• Completely and consistently remit my payments for my Manulife and Prulink investments (all for My Princess Aleksis' future education needs).
• Travel with my family to different places outside Metro Manila/Philippines on a yearly basis. A goal My Love and I share especially help our Princess' grow as a well-rounded individual.

MY CAREER GOALS

• Be part of a company that has the same ideals, values, and vision as mine. This may be a feat, but it could be done.
• Focus on specific areas such as Business Intelligence, Research and Development, and Organizational Development.
• Achieve senior executive post or a general manager (why not!) in the next 3-5 years time.

MY BUSINESS GOALS

• Launch my business website by end of 2008 if not first quarter of 2009. I've already enhanced my social network site and I'd want it up a notch higher this time.
• Continue to find unique products to distribute in the Philippines or ways of marketing existing products.
• Don't want to be so mainstream. =)
• Set-up an association/organization for online entrepreneurs with the goal of legitimizing biz transactions, registering them, educating online entrepreneurs, etc. An idea I came up with and My Love Nald said that it's a bright one!
• Put up my own company that will showcase my skills and talents as a corporate diva. I have the core idea in a nutshell; I just need to start with the business plan to flesh out the details.

MY PERSONAL GOALS

• Finish by end of 2009 or early 2010 my graduate school studies in Ateneo.
• Organize our houses (yes, houses!) combining neatness and functionality. I'm such an OC-OC, I'd like to organize things a lot!
• And now, my so-called "Desserts" (yummmm!):

2nd Gen 13-Inch MACBook: Been drooling over this for the past two months, and it will soon be mine!!!





LV Damier Neverfull MM: I used to obsess with their Speedy line but I figured I need more room for a lot of my stuff.







Philip Stein Harmony watch in brown strap: A nice girl needs a nice watch, don't we!










My Passport Essential 250GB Portable Hard Drive: I'm currently using My Love Nald's EHD and he's been saying I need to get one of my own, LOL!




A 3-day Stay in The Farm, San Benito: I'd like to pamper myself with the following: Purification Treatment, Lymphatic Drainage Massage, and Colon Hydrotherapy. Why I chose these, for detoxification of accumulated stuff inside and outside my body!

Love it! Now, off to achieving all these and more!!!

Making A Difference

Some of the many things My Love Nald and I want instilled in our daughter are the ability to share blessings with other people and appreciate what we currently have. We reinforced this big time, during her birthday celebration this month.

Since she’s our only daughter, Aleksis has had the chance to celebrate her previous birthdays the way a typical kid would – fast food restaurants, in school, at home, etc. She also gets to have the toys and other stuff she would request for. At the same time, she is also aware that she may not have everything she wants just because. She has limitations as we’re not filthy rich to provide them for her. We’re just able and capable.

Our family celebrated her 8th birthday on Saturday at the ASILO de SAN VICENTE de PAUL at UN Avenue, Paco, Metro Manila. ASILO is a crisis center where people, mostly kids, and sometimes their other family members take refuge from certain situations they’ve encountered.

The center offers four services for various sectors of the society namely: Child Welfare and Development Program, Youth Welfare and Development, Family Welfare and Community Development, and Lakbay-Kapatid Program. All of these programs aim to help support and guide Filipino children and youth (usually orphans, neglected, and abandoned children) become better individuals. Social workers, Sisters of the Daughters of Charity, Lay Mission Partners, and volunteers sustain the organization.

For a fraction of the cost we normally spend during her birthday celebrations in the past, we were able to share to more than 60 kids in the center. We had lunch, played games (with My Love Nald as the host), and watched them showcase their talents. Mind you, they’re very good singers and dancers!

With this experience, all of us in our family – My Love Nald, Princess Aleksis, our Nanay Niknik, and I, were humbled. We all felt at peace after. With the several hours we spent with the kids, we were able to make them happy.

Let me share with you what one of the kids said towards the end of our stay: “Maraming salamat sa oras at sa lahat ng bagay na ibinigay ninyo sa amin. Alam namin na maraming tao ay busy at nagpapasalamat kami at nandito kayo. Di man namin masusuklian ang lahat ng ito pero ipagdadasal namin na sana mas maging mabuti pa ang buhay ng pamilya ninyo.” I still feel a lump on my throat whenever I remember her words. It hits me right in the heart every time. How beautiful their hearts are, how simple they could be, how uncomplicated, how wonderful. I’m wishful thinking that all of us would have pure hearts like theirs.

Our family have sworn to doing this again. In our own little ways, we are able to do a lot for other people.

Serendipity perhaps, again, our old man upstairs led the way for me to realize a lot of things I’m supposed to be thankful for… For more information about ASILO, click on the photo below.

Earth Hour: Let's Do Our Share

On March 29, 2008 the Philippines will join countries around the world as we literally "turn the lights out" for EARTH HOUR - an event that will fuel awareness on climate change and prove that when the people of the world work together, they can make a difference in the fight against global warming.

EARTH HOUR will take place throughout the Philippines from 8 to 9 in the evening on Saturday night, 29 March
2008. WWF invites you to participate by shutting off lights for 60 minutes, organizing your own "lights-out" event or by forwarding this message to your friends, co-workers, and family.

Launched in Australia on the 31st of March 2007, EARTH HOUR moved 2.2 million people and 2100 businesses in Sydney to turn off their lights for one hour. This massive collective effort reduced the city's energy consumption by
10.2% for one hour. With Sydney icons like the Harbour Bridge and Opera House turning their lights off and unique events such as weddings by candlelight, the world took notice. Inspired by the collective effort of millions of Sydneysiders, many major global cities are joining EARTH HOUR in 2008, turning a symbolic event into a global movement.

YOUR participation will go a long way in spreading the message that we, as individual droplets working collectively – can create an impetus far more powerful than the mightiest of rivers. For more information, log on to the WWF EARTH HOUR page at www.earthhour.org.

If you want to learn more about how else you can help make EARTH HOUR in the Philippines a success, contact Teena G. Santiago, Marketing Manager of WWF-Philippines / Kabang Kalikasan ng Pilipinas at tsantiago@wwf.org.ph or (632) 920-7931, (632) 920-7923, or (632)920-7926.

Help A Child Live Better

My friend Claire sent me this through email.

To quote her message: "Last night, I attended a talk sponsored by World Vision. It was truly inspiring; its premise was simple...that all it takes is for good people to do nothing for evil to prevail in the world. Not exactly a new concept, but it really struck a cord just the same.

The speaker said that if each person does a small act of heroism, the world would be a much better place. So there, I'm appealing to you guys to sponsor a child because right now there are 11.6 million out-of-school youths in our country. Of those, only 120,000 are receiving some sort of help from World Vision.

Let's do our fair share. It's just PhP 450 a month. Please, please, please. All you have to do is log on to this site.

In addition to Claire's appeal for everyone's kindness, this is one of the best ways for us to give back to the society for all the blessings we are receiving. Pay it forward.

Kcat Visits Miami

Last week, (December 14, 2007), Kcat went to our office to personally deliver the shirts my friends and co-workers ordered from her. Of course, she was with her Mom and some other family members. Meeting her was a joyful experience for me. It was like seeing my celebrity idol in the flesh. She is not a celebrity. She’s a real person, but BETTER THAN a celebrity! No exaggeration, but that was how I felt.

I was a bit teary-eyed when I interacted with her, not out of pity, but of complete admiration. She’s such an inspiration. In my life, there have been a lot of times when I felt I wasn’t having enough, of anything and everything. I am aware that this is not right, and no matter what positive things I tell myself, I revert to my old ways.

Then Kcat came into my life. In that short period of time that I watched her PROBE episode, it triggered something positive in me. It was just serendipity. Perhaps it’s our old man upstairs who brought her to me so I’d be able to realize that I could be a better person. Kcat was a flash of radiance and has started to bring me back to what I’m supposed to be.

Thanks, Kcat! Again, you only not show great courage, most of all you help change lives. The ripple effect of what you are doing is creating a lot of goodness in other people. I will forever be thankful that you have been part of my journey towards the light.

My AGSB Entrep Class

At the beginning of the class, the Professor posed a question to everyone: “Why did we enroll in his class?” My ready answer was: “Apart from the fact that it was the only vacant class I could take as the others had prerequisites. It was also the only subject available every Saturday afternoons, when I am most vacant.” But as I continued to attend the class, I realized it was different from the two other classes I have previously taken. Cliché aside, it was one of the best classes I have had so far. I have not taken that many, in fact it was just my third one, yet I would say that the learning I acquired after every session had more impact and the lessons I learned I am able to apply not only in my career but in other aspects of my life, too.

I was expecting to use more of the book that we were required to purchase prior to our first session. Yet I was not disappointed that this did not happen during class sessions but rather as supplemental readings I did in my convenient time. I am confident to say that I learned more than what the book contained. I now have a better appreciation not only of the word ‘entrepreneurship’ but most especially of the individuals I got to interact with in class. The first session where we shared bits and pieces of ourselves was a revelation time for the others. Now, I just do not look at them as classmates but individuals with aspirations, talents, skills, and rich experiences. For each of the 31 personalities in class, including our Professor, I am able to remember a thing or two about them that even after the semester is over, I would still cherish. I feel privileged to have shared a class of learning with people who are also on the same level of wanting to learn, wanting to be a better person.

Let me enumerate some of the most excellent things I learned from the six people I consider as the best in class.

‘Beat It!’

Dancing to Michael Jackson’s ‘Beat It’, Lawrence Ian Gonzalez or Ian as he likes to be called mesmerized the class with his dance moves when he was asked to share a secret about himself. He awed us and inspired the others to be creative as well. In Ian’s less than five-minute ‘boasting time’, he showed everyone what he considered as his ‘darkest secret’ which was dancing to a Michael Jackson tune. He took courage to show everyone that!

As he further shared himself to us, we learned that apart from dancing, he fancies mountain climbing, piano playing, and writing. He is indeed a small yet terribly talented man!

What did I learn from Ian? That life is what you make out of it. Without the COURAGE to strive for more, to improve oneself, to share yourself with other people, you become a lonely person. Ian exemplified a very satisfied and fulfilled individual – ready to take on anything and prepared for things to happen. And he is very happy with all the things he is doing now and is thirsting to do more!

As I relate this to being an entrepreneur, one must definitely look and review risks but should not be hampered to make great and big things just because of what we think the risks may bring. Without trying one thing, we will never know what it will bring us!

‘Harry Potter’

Our class’ GGTW (God’s Gift To Women) as Edwin Hernandez claims it, is someone who is boastful in a good way.
Initially, I personally thought that Edwin was superficial but as we interacted and have witnessed each other more in class, I was able to discover that he was an accomplished man – an executive in the company he works with, an experienced businessman, and lastly a very good potter.

Edwin showed us samples of his pottery through pictures on PowerPoint presentation. Everyone thought that they were wonderful! He shared with us that he started with it as a hobby and what a nice one it is! He went all the way to joining an exhibit in Megamall where a lot of pottery enthusiasts admired and bought his works!

Edwin shows that a person can be anything he desires to be as long as one wills it. For my part, I am a great believer in attitude being everything. Incidentally, this was Edwin’s special report in class. Edwin clearly depicted that to achieve success – one must have a POSITIVE ATTITUDE and apply motivational principles on a daily basis.

An entrepreneur must always be optimistic about situations he may encounter in his business. This is very true, most especially during times when challenges and obstacles would be present. The least person who should be turning away from his goal and being pessimistic is the owner of the business.

‘The Archangel’

The thing that struck me most about Bernard Arcangel was when he disclosed that he used to be more than 200 pounds. Looking at him now, you would not think that he used to be obese!

He mentioned to the class that through strict diet and exercise, he was able to slim down to his ideal weight. What force brought him to do that, he did not say. But one thing’s for sure, I would say that Bernard is a man of DISCIPLINE.

For most of us, losing two pounds, no matter how skinny we already are or how heavy we are, is already considered an achievement, but losing 60 pounds – that would be a feat! I have read a number of articles and books where entrepreneurs are featured and I have yet to encounter an entrepreneur who is not fit. Of course, some of them may be a little overweight, but I have not seen anyone who is extremely overweight or worst case, is obese.

This leads me to a conclusion that entrepreneurs generally lead a healthy lifestyle! Well, apart from the fact that they are hands-on with their business and this is considered as their daily exercise routine, they would always want to keep themselves in good physical shape. Otherwise, they wouldn’t last that long to see the fruits of their labor!

Like Bernard’s discipline on his weight, it takes time to achieve a point in business where everything is considered okay, running smooth – that the business is earning. To instill discipline across everyone working in a company is essential, and who else would a company emulate but the person on top. A good leader takes care of himself, his business, and his team!

‘The Millionaire Next Door’

Josefina Rizalina Guiritan or Datdat as she is fondly called was one of my team mates in the first subject I took up under the Regis program. I must admit, our subject was not the easiest in the same manner that working with our team was not all ‘highs’.

This may have been brought about by the fact that we had different personalities and styles in working together in a team. In the end, all of us got good grades, and then we moved on. The reason I mentioned this scenario was to establish the fact that in one way or the other, when we worked as a team during our first encounter, we did not see eye to eye on things. And as I got to know her better during this Entrepreneurship class, I felt a bit guilty that I thought of her differently then.

Datdat shared to the class that she is an independent consultant practicing her field of expertise in SAP systems.
She has been doing this for the past six years already. And as a result of her hard work, she has also successfully acquired assets such as her two condominiums that have been fully paid, a lot in Alabang and another one in Pampanga. Having come in Manila with only a luggage in tow, Datdat has finally arrived.

I would say that disclosing this information to everyone in class was not because Datdat wanted the class to be envious of her achievements, but rather to show that HUMILITY is essential for someone to be successful – whether one is an entrepreneur or an employee. Datdat is a good example of a humble person, yet knows the right time to boast of her achievements in life. Datdat went through a lot of things in the past, yet these did not hinder her from doing her best at work. Her experiences in the past humbled her and made her a better person.

Humility is one of the keys in opening doors to business victory. If one is cocky especially if he is an entrepreneur, he would end up in the losing end. One should never think that once he achieves success that it would all be aces after that.

‘Little Miss Philippines’

If you would observe her the first time, Renee Faeldonea looks like a high school student who made a wrong turn to a university, much less a graduate school at that.

Renee is a petite, young, and good-looking lady. But more importantly than this, she has a lot of KNOWLEDGE on a lot of things that help her achieve her corporate work success she has now. She looks shy and may sometimes come across as timid, yet when one interacts with her, they will discover that she has a sharp wit.

What I could remember about what she shared in class is when she wanted to transfer to another department in her company but her immediate supervisor as well as her department head convinced her not to do so. They saw Renee’s full potential in their group and her obvious significance as she is not just a smart lady – she absolutely is able to put in to the success of their team. As proof of this, she was able to obtain one of the red ID laces that are only given to those who are able to contribute something good and beneficial to the company.

In an entrepreneur’s world, being knowledgeable gives one an edge over his competitors. Being well-informed about one’s business’ market, prices, and customers will definitely make a businessman better at his craft because he is able to forecast trends, improve his products, and think of more ways to service his customers.

Learning should not stop after college or after graduate school, or even when we have reached the age of 80. In every opportunity we are faced with, we could learn a lesson or two. Just by reading books, magazines, and newspapers would help us widen our horizon. To improve one’s self by learning more and being consistent at it should be a habit when a business person wants to be more successful!

‘Fly High’

The stunning Aerlin Ahmad, our Singaporean classmate is another individual who’s sharing and previous experiences have struck me. Her story dates back when she was still working as a stewardess for an airline in her country. She was a manager at that time and was in charge of supervising the flight stewardess and stewards and their operations. In one of the flights she had, there were two instances when she showed her SELFLESSNESS by following her instinct that there was something wrong with the plane they were in and that the pilot should not pursue the flight.

Because of her credibility as well as convincing power, she was able to save hundreds of lives and made her a better manager moving forward. Unlike some people, when we feel that there is something wrong with something we are doing, chances are we would wait and see what would happen. But this does not hold true for Aerlin, who follows her gut feel and persists to have her way. Most if not all the time, she would be correct.

This is also brought about by the fact that she was raised in a very good and disciplined way, thus she is able to carry such culture outside her home. It is a fact that when one is brought up and is shown values as a child, people are able to inculcate this and becomes second nature to them. Aerlin has definitely been hoisted in good ground of selfless behavior. She thinks of how she could be of help and how she could develop things.

Certainly, Aerlin is a portrait of a person who is altruistic and believes in the basic goodness of every person. I put her in this category as I have always observed in class that she has this natural instinct to be sincere and self- sacrificing yet one should not be fooled by it as Aerlin is also fierce – she knows what needs to be done and should be done in a great way!

The Bottom Line So after all these things, what have I actually learned in class? Simple: COURAGE, POSITIVE ATTITUDE, DISCIPLINE, HUMILITY, and SELFLESSNESS are values that each one of us has been gifted except that we are not able to use them at times or better yet, we are aware of them and we do not know how to use them appropriately.

The way these, as well as other learnings, I have acquired presented themselves in this entrepreneurship class not in the book by Bygrave and Zacharakis or not the stories in the syllabus, but rather in and through the people I was with. With whom I have exchanged opinions and collaborated.

It is ironic at the same time amazing how God lets us learn how to live and have a life by bringing people to us that at first we do not seem to give much importance to but only to realize after sometime that they have contributed to what we have or would become – most of the time a better person.

With this class, I sincerely am very thankful not only because I am able to mingle and network with smart people but most especially because I have gained knowledge of the best things in life at the confines of a square room, amongst 31 great persons I will always remember in this lifetime.

Let's Help Kcat Hear Again!

My Love Nald and I were watching Probe on TV last weekend when we saw one of their feature stories.

Kcat, is a young lady who has NEUROFIBROMATOSIS Type 2 (NF2). It all started with ordinary headaches and before she knew it, she couldn’t hear, couldn’t walk, couldn’t even cry. Because of this, she has stopped going to college and has been going through therapy for several years now.

Her being sick didn’t stop her from living a life, though. In fact what is so inspiring about her is that she’s so positive! She said “nothing will happen to me if I’d be negative about it, everything that happens, no matter how negative it is, has something positive that will come out of it.” She’s going to go through an operation that will cost her over PHP 1 million. She doesn’t want to just ask for money from people so she decided to do her own fund raising by designing shirts she’s selling for only PHP 300. This is also part of her advocacy to let people be aware of the disease.

Prior to being sick, she was an artist, and using a computer now, she designs her shirts!

I was humbled to see and hear her on TV and so I got in touch with her and pledged to help her raise some of the money she needs for her operation by encouraging friends to buy her shirt. By doing so, she’d be able to hear again. With all our help, we can make a difference in one person’s life.

Click this link to her Multiply account which has her shirt designs.