Earn Extra Income While Advocating Hands-On Parenting

I have good news for you at the start of this brand new week! 

But before that, let me share a short story when I was still a first-time mom almost 7 years ago.

When I had my first child, one of my small finance goals is to earn extra income while being a full time mom to our eldest. I started with small goals so that I would feel motivated each month. Since I love to write and I was given the opportunity to contribute to publications, one of my goals then was to write at least 1 art​icle each month and have it published. Then, as I got more used to writing freelance, I made bigger goals for myself and made it two to four articles each month. Earning additional income for our family through one of my favorite hobbies while being a hands-on mom to our eldest child made me happy and fulfilled.

But writing articles can also takes up a lot of time. Our eldest son grew older and he slept less often. Eventually, he outgrew nap time. He's awake most of the time after lunch. Thus, it has become a challenge for me to write articles because I usually did this task while he's asleep.

I also gave birth to two more children so my hands are usually full (figuratively and literally).

Another way by which I earn not from home but outside the home is by giving talks, trainings and workshops. This kind of work pays higher compared to writing but it requires me to be out of the house and to look for someone else to watch over my kids while I am working. Thus, I decided to conduct workshops and trainings less frequently because I want to invest more time building the foundations of my marriage and my relationship with my children.

As my circumstances changed over the years, I searched for new ways to earn from home that did not require a lot of my time or that required me to be away from my kids. Even though I wanted to stay home most of the time with my kids, I also wanted to contribute to the family income because our family has grown bigger. This led me to come up with a digital program or an online coaching program called iHOPE. I decided to use my expertise as HR practitioner and my experiences as a parent to develop a program that will enable me to help other parents to have a richer and stronger relationship with their children. I was happy to come up with a product that enables me to be hands-on with my kids, earn from home and be of help to other parents and families. 

I launched this product on my 40th birthday a few months ago. :) You can read about what moved me to have the courage and confidence to launch it then here in my previous post. 

Today, I want to share with you the opportunity to earn extra income each month through our Hands-On Parent while Earning Affiliate Program. Do you want to earn extra income each month without you doing a lot of work? Is this something that will benefit your family?

If your answer is YES, you need to keep on reading.

 

If you know of parents who may benefit from this program and who are willing to invest in their relationship with their children, I invite you to register to become one of our Affiliates. You can earn a commission every time a person to whom you shared our program to decided to sign up for it or to purchase our product. 

For example, if one of the people you shared our program to through email purchases the iHOPE Coaching Program, you earn a commission. If for example, you promoted the iHOPE Coaching Program in your Facebook Account and one of your friends signed up for it, you earn a commission.

Your commissions accrue and once it reaches the minimum amount for payout each month, you will receive payment from us for helping us spread the word about our life-changing program. 

By doing this, you not only partner with me in encouraging more parents to become hands-on with their kids, you also help me help more families to be stronger. You're helping me help more children to become happier and more parents, fulfilled! Now, while you are advocating hands-on parenting, you earn at the same time. Isn't that great?

You can register to become one of our Affiliates by clicking this link. The details of the Affiliate Program are in the Terms of Use. Just hover your mouse over these words and click that link and you will be taken to the page where you can read all the information about our Hands-On Parent while Earning Affiliate Program.

Should you have any questions about our Affiliate Program, feel free to email me at teresa@handsonparentwhileearning.com with subject Affilliate Program.

You may also read more about the iHOPE Coaching Program here.

I look forward to having you as our fellow Hands-On Parenting advocate and Affiliate!

From Vision to Reality: The Hands-On Parents while Earning (HOPE) Summit

It started as an idea... an idea that did not leave my mind until all the relevant details were so clear to me, I could almost touch them.

I believe that this idea was God-inspired for it was well-aligned with my vision and mission in life. The idea was planted in my heart and was rooted in my life purpose.

What started as an idea blossomed into a beautiful vision. The details seemed to jump out of my head and heart in the days that followed. 

Excitement filled my days as I started to pursue this idea and worked towards making my vision a reality. But my days were not always sunny. I was not always hopeful and sure. There were days when clouds of doubt slowed me down or hindered me from moving forward. There were also days that were so dark, I felt like I was running blind. 

What helped me carry on was my certainty of WHAT I want to see turned into reality (MY VISION) and WHYs I want it to happen. Because my reasons for working hard to make it happen is very clear to me, I was fueled with passion even in the most trying circumstances. My WHYs for choosing to pursue this vision and dream enabled me to remain committed all throughout. 

I did not stop believing that it's possible to turn my vision into reality even in the midst of adversity. 

And so it happened. Maybe not exactly as I originally imagined it to be... But the event I imagined unfolded before my eyes almost as I envisioned it to be. 

As Arnold Schwarzenegger once said, "If you want to turn a vision into reality, you have to give 100% and never stop believing in your dream."

Photo source here.

My reasons for wanting this event to happen far outweighed the challenges that came my way. Thus, instead of letting them to become obstacles in my path towards my dream, I used these challenges to push me to work harder to turn my vision into reality. My WHYs were burning fiercely inside my heart and my VISION was so clear, attractive and exciting that I couldn't help but be pulled towards it even on days when my eyes seemed covered with dark clouds.

I love this quote from Steve Jobs.

Photo source here.

Today, I'd like to take time to thank every one who helped me turn this idea, this vision into reality. I'd like to thank the companies and brands who chose to believe in me and my advocacy and chose to support parents who want to be hands-on with their children while earning for their family.

First, I'd like to thank my friends from Sun Life Financial, particularly my advisor/agent Jackie who introduced me to the wonderful people of PLDT. Through the help of Jackie and Eden, PLDT home became the venue sponsor of the first ever Hands-On Parents while Earning or H.O.P.E. Summit. I am honored to have these companies as co-presentors of the H.O.P.E. Summit together with my own company Full Life Cube.   

Second, I'd like to thank JV All Events for sponsoring the photo and video coverage of the HOPE Summit's morning session and giving me a discount for the afternoon session's coverage. I first met their owner when I was planning for my second child's first birthday party.

Third, I'd like to thank my friends and fellow members of the groups I am a part of who chose to be part of the HOPE Summit by being speakers and guest panelists: Martine De Luna of Make It Blissful, Ginger Arboleda of Manila Workshops, Jomar Hilario of Ideas That Prosper, Katrina Ambion of Mommyfide PH, Denise Bernardo of Indigobaby, Angeli Del Rosario of The Beadlady and Cherry and Jay Castillo of Foreclosure Philippines. Thank you to all of you for sharing your wisdom and inspiring stories to the parents present at the HOPE Summit.

Thank you also to Indigobaby and The Beadlady for the items you provided for our raffle.

I also thank Chef Jon Chua for agreeing to be one of our guest panelists and Chef Raquel Chua of Mama Chows for sponsoring our morning snack during the event. Mama Chows has been sponsoring the snacks in my previous events but it was my first time to meet the couple behind this company last weekend.

I also thank my friend Angelo Yaneza of Balai Pandesal for choosing to sponsor the afternoon snacks during the HOPE Summit.

I'd like to thank Arts by Ayerie for providing the lovely keychain and bag tag giveaways during our event.

I'd like to thank the following sponsors for the freebies and gift certificates they provided:

• Bert Lozada Swim School
• Gymboree Play and Music Philippines
• Halo Philippines
• Kids Acts Philippines
• Kindermusik with Teacher Suzette

I also want to thank the companies/brands who chose to support the HOPE Summit through their booth sponsorship, giveaways and raffle items. 

• Filway Marketing
• Fluffy Pwets
• GPG Bulilit Bookstore
• Heart Shapers Videos
• Mom and Milly 
• Moringana by Organica Asia
• OMF Literature
• Shepherd's Voice Publications

All these brands helped me make my vision of having a bazaar of products that support hands-on parenting and family relationships become reality.

Aside from having a bazaar of products and services at the summit, I also envisioned the following:

• a room where kids can wait should they need to go with their parents;
• a breastfeeding area;
• and organized activity for the kids while waiting for their parents.

All these were realized and I'd like to thank PLDT for providing us with an extra room and Ask Sheryl Today for facilitating the arts and crafts session for the kids.

I'd like to thank Smart Parenting Online for being my media partner again for my event. I'm very grateful for their support for all my previous events and I'm honored that they choose to promote my events in their website.

Last but not least, I'd like to thank the parents who went out of their way to attend the HOPE Summit. I was moved when I discovered that some of them are not from Metro Manila and that there was even a parent who came all the way from Mindanao to attend the workshop. Hearing their stories during the small group sharing inspired me as well.

I am amazed at how all these people and brands/companies helped me make the Hands-On Parents while Earning Summit possible! Truly, when we are clear on what we want, we attract into our lives the very ingredients that will make our dreams come true and turn our visions into realities.

I believe that that's what happened to me as I organized the HOPE Summit.

Are you also holding on to a vision? That vision could be your future. Hold it close to your heart and let it fuel your every move.

Let me end this post with this quote:

Photo source here.

Photo credit: All of the HOPE Summit photos (except the group photo) used in this post were taken by Christopher Salgado.

Check out Hands-On Parent while Earning on Facebook for more photos during the HOPE Summit.

Celebrations on the 4th Day of Christmas

The fourth day of Christmas gave me and my family more than one gift to be thankful for.

 

First, our baby Georg Daniel (Geordan for short) celebrated his first month of life. I was amazed to realize that he's already one month old. I still feel like it was just yesterday when I gave birth to him. Time flies so fast indeed!

 

 

 

Second, our baby has been gaining weight steadily. We had been weighing him every week and so far he has gained weight every week. His biggest weight gain so far was last weekend! He gained 1.6 pounds! Hurray! This was surely an encouraging development for me as I strive to give him the best milk to nourish him.

 

Third, I was able to breastfeed our baby exclusively in the past month! Thank you, Lord, for the blessing of milk! I thank God for helping me endure the early challenges I experienced. Just like in my previous breastfeeding journeys, I had sore nipples again during the early days. I thank God for the grace and strength to persevere and endure the pain. I survived the crucial first month! Things are better now and I'm happy to see my baby growing bigger as I nourish him with my milk.

 

 

I have mentioned previously in one of my blog entries here that Georg Daniel's birth (he was born on November 28) inspired me to move our traditional family outreach to street children from Christmas Day to December 28, which is also the Feast of the Holy Innocents. The brown bags that we make will be like his and Jesus' loot bags and the street kids who will receive them will represent the poor children who were massacred on that same day more than 2,000 years ago.

 

 

 

I involved our two older kids in preparing our loot bags. I asked my husband to look for a photo of the Nativity scene in the internet and to print it in pink paper. I cut the photos and asked our older kids to glue them in front of the brown bags.

I also asked our 3-year-old to help sort/group the food that we will put inside the brown bags. When my eldest child finished sticking the photos in our brown bags, he helped his younger brother in adding the juice to the food that he has grouped/sorted.

I asked our maids to prepare the sandwiches and wrap them in napkins. I punched holes on our brown bags and cut the yarn which will be used to close our brown bags. My husband and older kids placed the food and juice inside the brown bags while one of our maids placed the sandwiches inside after they have finished preparing them. We also added some chocolates and candies inside them. Then, I tied our brown bags with pink and blue yarn.

 

Then, we all rode our vehicle and drove around the city to look for street kids. On our way out of our village, I prayed in my heart that God would lead us to the street kids who need these brown bags the most. It took us around an hour to distribute our brown bags.

 

I thank God for this fourth gift: the gift of family bonding over doing an outreach or work of mercy/act of charity towards our homeless, hungry and thirsty brothers and sisters. 

 

After that, we had some snack before going to Mass in our parish. Incidentally, it was also the Feast of the Holy Family. I thank God that we were able to go to Mass as a family. What perfect way to celebrate this wonderful day!

 

Our parish priest blessed our family after the Mass then we went to the Nativity Scene in our church and had our family picture taken there.

 

 

 

How is your Christmas celebration coming along? Hope you'd find time to savor the gift of Christmas.  

On Motherhood and Mission Work

"Give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God." Matthew 22:21 (You may read the other versions/translations and commentaries about this verse here.)

 

This was our point for reflection last Wednesday when our Parish Priest visited us at home during our eldest son's birthday celebration. This was also part of the Gospel yesterday.

 

I had been contemplating about how blessed I am to be given the privilege to have children this past week since it's our eldest son's birthday week. I feel a deep sense of gratitude for God for blessing my womb and allowing me to bear not one, but three children.

 

One of the blessings of motherhood that I feel most grateful for is the honor and privilege of raising kids and bringing them up to love and honor the Lord.

 

When I was still single, I had been actively serving the Church by immersing myself in a lot of evangelistic activities/work as part of the Catholic Charismatic communities I was a part of. Through these communities, I had the privilege to share about the Gospel and the love of God to many people.

 

I also shared my story/personal testimony to different groups especially after I published my first book When My Bridegroom Comes.

 

I travelled less often and gave talks less often after I got pregnant and had children, one after another.

 

I am home most days especially now that I am pregnant with our third child.

 

But one thing that God impressed upon my heart is that I am right where He wants me to be at this time of my life - at home with my children.

 

I feel a profound joy and peace knowing this.

 

I used to dream of doing big things for God and the kingdom when I was much younger. But when I got married, slowly but surely, God made me realize that my first and primary mission work is at home. That the first people I need to bring to the Lord are my family members. And now that I have children, my main mission (aside from being a witness to my husband) is to bring the hearts and souls of our children to God.

 

I learned that I am as much in mission as the missionaries who leave their families and homes to proclaim the Gospel in other countries.

 

It may seem that I am doing very ordinary or sometimes insignificant work (like routine chores at home) but the truth is whatever I do here at home for the glory of God is still part of my missionary work.

 

Before I should dream or work to evangelize people outside of my home, I need to evangelize the people in my own home.

 

God has entrusted these precious hearts and souls into my care.  I pray that I would do well in raising them to be the kind of men that God wants them to be.

 

Like what I shared with our guests last Wednesday, I actually think that it is much easier to give talks outside the home than to evangelize our kids daily, not so much with words but more so with my actions. I make a lot of mistakes daily and my kids witness these. It's humbling and at the same time challenging to keep on choosing to be faithful to the mission and to the call to follow Jesus and to encourage others (our kids particularly) to do the same.

 

Yesterday, the priest in his homily highlighted the verse "Give to God what belongs to God." He reminded us that we were all made in the image and likeness of God. Therefore, it is our duty to bring back humanity to God. His words affirmed me of my duty to bring my children to God. Yes, I will also do my share in bringing other people to God but I will begin in my own home, with my children.

 

I felt God encouraging me through these developments since I have started teaching our Catholic ABC curriculum to our two sons. It's my way of making sure I am able to pass on my faith and the catechisms of the Catholic Church to them even at a young age. I wanted to make sure that our Catholic faith is an essential part of their education. Actually, that's one of the main reasons my husband and I chose to homeschool them. We want them to have a solid faith foundation.

 

I've learned that is so easy to teach academic subjects to kids. But teaching them values and forming their character is not that easy. It's not something that you can teach in one or two sessions and you'd expect them to take those values on. I can teach my sons, especially the eldest, academic concepts in one or two sessions and he would remember a lot of what we have discussed. But with character formation, it's a different story. I need to exercise patience and I need to consistently give reminders. I need to model the values and be a good role model to my kids day in and day out.

 

That's why I believe that it's only by the grace of God that our kids are growing up to be these kind of kids -- loving and prayerful. With all my flaws and shortcomings, I thank the Lord that they are taking on the values that we want them to take on.

 

One of my joys as a mother is witnessing my sons pray with all their hearts to God. I rejoice every time I see them automatically turn to God in prayer for whatever need or concern they may have. My heart leaps for joy when they are eager to go to Mass to worship God and when they participate with hearts full of devotion. During these times, I feel that all my efforts are being rewarded.

 

When they remember things that we have discussed about our faith, I feel a sense of fulfillment because I know that I am somehow fulfilling my mission as their mother.

 

Give to God what belongs to God... these children belong to God. They were entrusted temporarily into our care. It is my duty (together with my husband) to lead them to God. I dream and look forward to that day when I would see them serving God and honoring Him in their own unique ways. Will God call one of my boys to serve Him through the priesthood? I don't know. If it does happen, I would be honored to have raised a son who will serve the Church in that capacity. But whatever God would call them to do, I pray that I would be able to give the support that they need to fulfill that call and mission.

 

I love these lines from one of my desk calendars:

 

"God knows the feelings of discouragement, inadequacy, and failure which conscientious parents feel. But it was His idea to make them parents and to give them this particular set of children. He is Father to the parents, and promises every kind of help they need." (emphasis mine)

 

I do not think that it is coincidence that these lines were featured today in my desk calendar. I know in my heart that it is the Lord speaking to me through my desk calendar this morning.

 

He knows how much I need His words of affirmation and encouragement.

 

I thank the Lord for choosing to use me in spite of my sins and imperfection. May He continue to give me the grace to walk faithfully in this path and to plant the seeds of faith in these young hearts and souls.

 

It’s not about me… It’s about the message God has entrusted to me.

I have perfectionist tendencies. I like being able to plan well and ahead for projects that I handle. I like the feeling of being in control of things. I want to make sure that whatever I choose to embark on would be successful.
 

 

But God has many times called me to do things I felt I wasn’t ready for. I felt unprepared and unsure during those times. It was not surprising that I found myself stumbling along the way. Generally though, I was pretty impressed with the results. Of course, I knew very well that the good results were not really because of me. I knew right from the start that if it were all up to me and my capability, the results would be different. 

 

I’m at a time in my life once more when I feel unprepared. I also feel unworthy.  
 

God has called me to write a book about breastfeeding. I was able to complete it and launch the print book successfully by the grace of God. Now, He has called me to work on the eBook version.  
 

So, I started planning. Then, I got pregnant and I was forced to be on bed rest by my frequent vomiting. I thought of hiring assistants, people who can help me do the legwork so I wouldn’t be stressed too much. The project is almost done; but we encountered glitches along the way and somehow, I was stressed at those developments. I thought that the conversion of the print book into eBook is the hard part. I discovered that marketing and promoting it entails a lot of hard work as well. This realization kept me awake in the past nights. I felt overwhelmed with the amount of work (that I read in the internet) I needed to do to market and promote my book in preparation for its release in Amazon.  I felt that there isn’t enough time to do those things. I felt that I have very limited budget at this time to spend on marketing and promotion. Moreover, when I checked the category and subcategories where I plan to include my book, I discovered that most books published by Amazon in those categories were authored by doctors or medical practitioners. Thus, I felt unworthy. I felt the burning question creep into my mind once more: Who am I to write a book on breastfeeding? 

 

Then, God inspired me to reread a book that inspired me to persist while I was writing my breastfeeding book last year. Let me quote some lines that God used this afternoon to speak courage into my heart. 

 

“You don’t have to be ready. Conditions don’t have to be perfect. Because it’s not about you. It’s about God fulfilling his purposes through you, and he has always been able to make that happen in spite of our humanity and the fallen world around us.”

                                                            - Holley Gerth, You're Made for a God-Sized Dream

 

It struck me.

 

It's really not about me... It's about the message God has entrusted to me.

 

If I'm certain that it's God's Will that I publish this book and spread God's message, what's keeping me from doing the next steps? In this case, releasing it worldwide through Amazon's platform so that more people would have access to it.

 

God has given me enough resources and energy to get to this point. It's time to launch once more into the deep.

 

If I let my pride, fear and hesitations hinder me, I would deprive myself of the privilege to be God's vessel of wisdom and love to more people. For truly, whatever wisdom and insights I have shared in my book are not mine to claim. They were inspired by God. It was God Himself who revealed those thoughts to me and I am but His scribe.

 

Do you also feel called to launch a book, a business or a project? Do you feel that your circumstances are far from ideal or at least supportive? Do you feel unprepared and unworthy?

 

Here are two more important questions you need to answer. 

 

Is God calling you to embark on this?

 

Do you know that the success of this venture is not solely dependent on you?

 

God reminded me of something very important today. I only need to make myself available for Him and to offer Him my best. I don't need to do EVERYTHING!

 

The truth is, I can choose to delay things so I can plan and prepare well-enough to my liking. That would make me feel confident. But that would not guarantee my success still. Because doing so would mean relying more on my own capacity, instead of relying on God's infinite wisdom and power.

 

It's alright to plan and prepare. But when we know in our hearts that God is already calling us to act, then, we should obey Him.

 

Today, God wants me to plan for what I can realistically do myself and with the help of some people, and to entrust the results to Him. For if this book and this message means a lot to me, they mean so much more to God. 



Let me end with a quote from Isaiah 55:11, "So will My word be which goes forth from My mouth; It will not return to Me empty, Without accomplishing what I desire, And without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it."

Perfect Timing for My Radio Guesting

It has been months since George and I's radio guesting for Ang Kristiyanong Pamilya (DZME 1530 kHz, live streaming at www.dzme1530.com) has been scheduled and was postponed a couple of times. Finally, it will push through tonight at 9:15 PM but without George. He was sent abroad by their office for a special project so I will be the only one going there later.

 

Deep inside, I had been thinking that probably God will reschedule our guesting at a much better time. I thought that maybe one reason would be so that we/I can share how God delivered us from our house-related concerns. Because the last time we guested, we haven't moved to our new house yet. Now, we already live there.

 

Also, I realized that God rescheduled my radio guesting at a time when my upcoming book on breastfeeding is almost out. I had this insight when I read the readings for today especially the Gospel and the reflection in KerygmaFamily.com. The featured Bible verse in today's reflection is from Luke 11:27 which says, “Blessed is the womb that carried you and the breasts at which you nursed.” I'm excited to share some of the things I learned while writing my book on BREASTFEEDING: A Journey Worth Taking about how privileged we mothers are to have kids and to breastfeed them.

 

I'm also excited to share once more how God's grace has been instrumental in helping me carry out God's call to me to write and publish my upcoming book.

 

God's timing is indeed perfect! I was reminded of this truth when I read the readings and reflections today. I pray that God would give me grace to always trust in His perfect timing and not to rush when I feel that things are unfolding slowly based on my perception. I pray that God would always enlighten me so that I would not subject myself to unnecessary worries.

 

There's a storm that landed in Philippine territory last night and the weather reports are a bit gloomy. But I am positive and excited because I know that the Son is shining His light on me today/tonight. I pray that His angels would protect us and provide for us as we go to the radio station later. I pray for His humble wisdom to speak His message that He wants me to proclaim tonight.  I pray that through this opportunity, the anchors and I would be able to inspire and touch hearts and souls tonight. May God be glorified!

 

So, don't forget, friends! If you are free later around 9:15 PM, do tune in to Ang Kristiyanong Pamilya (DZME 1530 kHz live streaming at www.dzme1530.com). Have a safe and blessed weekend!

Offering my five loaves of bread and two fish: Full Life Cube

I was struck with these words from Loyola Press' 3 Minute Retreat last March 5, 2013 entitled Blessed and Broken.

 

 

 

I was most especially moved by these lines:

 

 "By providing food for the multitudes, Jesus teaches us how our unconditional trust in God can turn the smallest gesture into a great grace... he calls the disciples to step out of their comfort zone and do something that must have felt futile in the face of so many hungry people. Today Jesus asks us to do the same; allow God to show his care and generosity abundantly through our efforts."

 

 

As soon as I read these words, I knew right away that God wanted me to offer something.  So, I asked myself.  "What are my three loaves and two fish?"  The answer came easily.  I acted on it right away by writing my ideas on what I can offer to bless others.  I continued to mindstorm for days and shared my ideas with my husband who in turn gave me feedback and helped me put up a simple website.

 

 

Putting up this website is definitely not my comfort zone.  Expanding the services that I offer as an HR person is also outside my comfort zone but I believe that God wants me to do this because I could make a difference to a lot of working people through this "new" service.  As He has pointed out to me recently, my experiences are not only for my benefit or for my family's benefit.  God allowed me to go through my unique journey as a working professional who eventually became a freelance consultant and business woman for a purpose.  He wanted me to use my skills, experiences and testimony to bless others and lead them to fullness of life.

 

 

My website which I call Full Life Cube is still a work in progress but it already contains a lot of information about the services I offer to business start-ups and to employees or individuals.  It's another concrete way for me to say YES to God's call to offer the little that I have so He can bless it, break it and use it to nourish His hungry people.  I pray that with this move, I would be able to touch more lives and lead more to fullness of life in Christ.

 

 

Take a peek into my new website.  We will be updating it as soon as we find the best person/team to work on developing my membership site.

 

 

 

 

 

Here's an excerpt from the Career Coaching and Counseling Page of my site.

 

Do you have a burning question about your work or career?

 

Do you badly need to talk to someone who preferably has experience in HR about your work/career concern?

 

Do you experience problems in keeping a job? Have you been job-hopping for some time now?

 

Do you need to make a career decision soon that can impact the other aspects of your life and you need to discuss your plans with someone who can give objective feedback?

 

Do you need help in achieving work life balance in your current job or business?

 

Are you contemplating on resigning from your job?

 

Are you thinking of making a career shift but unsure if you should push through with it or how to do it?

 

Do you need guidance in choosing which job offer to accept?

 

Do you need help in determining which career path to take and what kind of jobs to pursue?

 

Do you need help in clarifying your career goals?

 

Are you eyeing a promotion or a position but you’re not sure how you can be qualified for that position?

 

Do you need help in developing a long-term career plan?

 

Do you need help in developing a plan to help you transition from being an employee to an entrepreneur?

 

Do you need help in tracking your progress in moving towards implementing your career plan and achieving your career goals?
 

 

If you answer YES to ANY of these questions, getting a Career Coach and Counselor could be what you need to get started in your quest to solving your FULL LIFE CUBE.

There's still a lot of work to do after all the learnings and inspirations I gained from the 2013 Wealth Summit organized by Bo Sanchez' Truly Rich Club.  It can be tiring at times like these past few days when I had been working long hours to fine-tune my ideas and putting them in this new website.  But I'm thankful to God for the grace to act on His Word and to move closer to where He wants me to go.  My new adventure with God is just beginning. 


"The secret of getting started is breaking your complex, overwhelming tasks into small manageable tasks, and then starting on the first one." - Mark Twain

 

To God be the glory!


Update: This post is linked to the Catholic Bloggers Network Monthly Link-up Blitz for the month of March.

God creates hunger in our hearts for a purpose

We lived in a small and old apartment when I was young.  I grew up in that room on the second floor of a row of apartments somewhere in Quezon City.  It was similar to the studio units that we have now in condominiums wherein everything is found in one room.  The receiving area, dining area and kitchen are all near each other.  The sleeping area would have been in sight if not for the partition that my parents built to provide some privacy.  We didn't have our own toliet and bath unlike the studio units we now have.  There were units like ours in that row of apartments that didn't have this facility.  Instead, there's a common toilet and bath at the end of this row of old apartments.  Since the apartments were already old, the toilet and bath was also old.  In fact, it was already dilapidated.  The floors of our home then had some cracks, big enough for me and my younger brother to play marbles in them. 

 

I lived a happy childhood in that neighborhood where some of my cousins were our neighbors, too.  But I think there was a part of me that kept on telling me that I could live in much better place, in a more beautiful house.  And so from then on, I started dreaming of having our own house that is beautiful, spacious and has it's own toilet and bath.  Daydreaming, sketching and looking at books and magazines with pictures of beautiful houses were my favorite past times.  I even considered becoming an architect or a civil engineer.  I eventually changed my mind.

 

Then, that row of old apartments had to be renovated and all the tenants had to leave.

 

My parents didn't know what to do.  They couldn't find another apartment that is being rented out within the same range that they were paying in our old apartment.  They couldn't afford newer apartments either.  They didn't want to go back to their province because both of their jobs were in the city.

 

They eventually decided to build a house in a land that wasn't ours.  The land was owned by the government and they found out about it through my mother's friend.  So from living in an old apartment, we ended living in the slums for years.

 

My desire to live in a more beautiful house with a much better environment became stronger.  Deep inside I knew that it wasn't God's Will that we lived in that place.  I knew that it was beneath our human dignity.  So I asked God why He allowed it to happen.  He didn't give me an answer right away.

 

Then, one evening, after coming from school and just before eating dinner with my family, I heard screams from outside. "Fire! Fire!"  I looked to the left.  I looked to the right.  I could not see the fire but only people running.  Then, I looked up and I saw that the house just behind the house in front of our house was on fire.  We tried to save as much possessions as we could but most of them were burned in less than an hour I think.  We were blessed to have survived unharmed with only my brother sustaining a few small wounds on his feet as he ran back and forth from our house to the street barefoot trying to save as much as he could.   

 

I remember crying to one of our close family friends then telling him that we no longer have a house.

 

Old apartment, slums then no more house because of fire.  It was really beyond my limited understanding.  There were a lot of times then that I struggled with God because I could not comprehend what He was doing in my life.  I got angry with God and got depressed.  For a while I didn't like to go to church or pray.  I even bought a small book entitled May I hate God?   

 

But God's grace truly abounds that no amount of anger or depression can separate me from His love.  God eventually healed me from those pains.  Then, He used those pains and experiences to fuel my passion and determination to buy/build a house that my family and I could call our own.

 

That dream became a reality shortly after I graduated from college and started working.  We found a small village which I thought was affordable enough given my parents' income and my income as a management trainee in a fast food restaurant.  From then on, I spent most of my money paying for the amortization, renovating it and decorating it to make it beautiful.  Finally, my dream became a reality.  It was not a big house but it was our own.  It had three small bedrooms - one for my brother, one for me and one for my parents.  It has a kitchen separate from the dining area.  It has a small receiving area and a small yard beside it big enough to park a vehicle or have a garden.  And we had our own toilet and bath. :)

 

Then, I got married.

 

My fiance and I didn't have enough money to buy a single detached house so we decided to buy two condominium units instead.  We put an adjoining door and those two units became the first home of our young family.

 

It was really our plan to buy a bigger house and to sell our condominium units eventually.  But we were not in a hurry since we haven't found a property or house that we really liked.  Until, I saw this property that had almost all that I wanted in a property.  It was beautiful.  The neighborhood seems nice and quiet.  And it's literally a stone's throw from the church.  I liked it right away as soon as I saw it.  But we had one big problem... we didn't have enough money to purchase or even reserve it.  Then, God made a way and so we got to reserve the property and to this day we continue to pay for the property and we look forward to moving to it soon.

 

Have we sold both of our condominium units? Not yet. Only one.  This moved me to ask God why once more.  Recently, He made me realize that one of His reasons for this is so that I would have a hunger in my heart once more that is so strong, strong enough to move me out of my current comfort zone.  God also answered this question in my heart through Brother Bo last weekend when Brother Bo said, "God wants you to use your talents to solve your problems.  God will provide for your needs but He also wants you to be part of the solution."

 

God has blessed me tremendously in my career.  He has blessed me with abundance through my previous jobs.  Then, when I decided to become a stay-at-home mom, shortly after that, He blessed me with opportunities to earn from home through one of my hobbies (writing) and do consulting work on a per project basis.  I had been doing this for years now and usually, I would only choose to work whenever I feel the need to contribute to the family income.  That was not very often because God has been enabling my husband to provide for our needs and even some of our wants and because consulting and speaking in corporate events is a highly-paid service; so I simply wait for clients to come to me.  Again, God has been so gracious to me that I don't run out of clients and projects even when I don't market my services.  I relied mainly on word of mouth, repeat business and referrals from people in my network.

 

Until we found this property that we so badly want to get because God promised us that He will give it to us.  (You can read more about how God spoke to me through this property here and here.)  At first I was disappointed with God because we are still selling one of our condominium units until now.  But God made me realize that this was simply His way of creating hunger in my heart once more to use my talent and skills to earn and contribute to our family income.  And in the process, God led me to discover His higher calling to me in scaling up what I had been doing for years. He made me realize that He wants me to do this not just for my immediate family or extended family or to purchase this property.  He knew that if I make that my reason for scaling up my current business, I would easily become complacent and stop working again as soon as I reach my goal of paying the property in full or furnishing it based on how I dreamed about it.  Having my dream house and dream vehicle simply would not be enough to keep me going.  So God placed a much bigger dream in my heart for a much greater, bigger reason.  He made that big reason much bigger than me or my family's needs.  You can read imy ultimate big why for wanting to scale up my business here in my previous post.

Now, that I've discovered God's purpose and accepted His invitation, He has provided me with mentors.  As Dean Pax Lapid said, "The teacher appears when the student is ready."  I'm now ready to learn how to serve more people through my gifts.  May God bless me and my efforts as I respond to His call and follow Him.

The new books I bought at the Truly Rich Club Wealth Summit last weekend.

 

I praise and thank the Lord for creating in me this much hunger now enough to make a turning point decision in my life.  I thank God for disturbing my already comfortable life a few years ago to be in this wonderful adventure with Him.  What started to be a family adventure with God has become a much greater adventure which will involve more people.  Amazing!  God truly works in mysterious ways and I am awed at how He chooses to use very ordinary people like me to move His purposes forward.  It's humbling and at the same time amazing! 

 

Are you hungry for something now (other than food)?  Have you paused to search your heart and ask God why He has created this hunger in your heart and soul?  This season of Lent is one great time to pause and ponder on your life events.  I pray that in the same way that God has revealed much to me this season of Lent, He too would reveal much to you as you take time to seek His purposes in your life.

 

God bless!

Update: This post is linked to the Catholic Bloggers Network Monthly Link-up Blitz for March.