The year 2020 shook all our worlds. The pandemic turned our lives upside down. It made us question so many things—questions like why this has to happen and what the endgame will be floated in our subconscious. Life became so difficult, and for some of us, thinking about where to get the next meal became a constant worry. Our life didn’t get to such hardship. In fact, we were even able to extend some help to others.
But the year 2020 took a toll on my health. I suffered from depression, and the constant worry made me so anxious. It also exacerbated my endometriosis, and I can’t work in the kitchen as efficiently as I should. Add to that the fact that my helper will leave to work abroad. Earning extra money now became a challenge, and I had to find another way where it would not strain my body as much.
I saw my cousin’s wife, Nicky, working on her computer one day, and I got so interested that I grilled her about it. The following week, I asked Lay to accompany me to buy a laptop in Cainta. Even if I didn’t have a job yet, I thought I had to start somewhere, and getting the right gear was the best first step. So I bought a laptop, an Asus Core i5, worth about P24,000. I paid for it in cash using my savings.
As soon as I got the laptop, I worked on creating my resume and making accounts on various platforms. Name it – I have Upwork, OnlineJobsph, Fiverr, Freelancer. I probably sent hundreds of proposals. But I didn’t get many responses because I don’t have any experience.

I tried offering my services for free so I could build my portfolio. I did my sister’s social media posting and simple graphic design on Canva for her cakes and baked products. I tried to offer my services to friends but got declined. It wasn’t an easy journey, and I was beginning to lose hope.
I was browsing Facebook groups and chanced upon a thread where a manager was looking for real estate cold callers, so I tried it out. I don’t have any call center experience, and I don’t have an American accent, and more importantly, I don’t know anything about real estate, but I still proceeded. I got hired but was only able to get a client after multiple failed client interviews. The first client I got was a real estate agent based in New York, so I had to work at Eastern Standard Time, meaning I had to wake up at 2 a.m. and conduct my calls until 6 a.m. My goal is to convince homeowners to agree to meet with the agent so she can convince them to sell their homes. I didn’t successfully book appointments for my agent, so she sacked me. I got another client from Colorado. But still, even after making around 250 calls in the span of 4 hours, I wasn’t able to secure an appointment. It’s a difficult job. The homeowners would curse at you and scream at you to leave them alone. So, it really triggered my anxiety even more. Not to mention that from the thousand of telephone numbers they’ll give you, about 80% of those are on answering machine, so the chances that you’ll be able to talk to a human being is really slim.
But before August 2021 concluded, Nicky told me she referred me to her boss for a social media outreach job. I got hired on September 8, which was Mama Mary’s birthday, and I was so grateful to her for giving me this opportunity. I dropped the cold caller stint because I know it’s not for me, and I can’t stand waking up at 2 a.m. just to fulfill my shift.
I started doing the Social media gig for this Israeli-based kid’s publication. The pay was average, but I had to grab it to have the experience to add to my portfolio. It was enjoyable but not enough, so I kept sending proposals and finally got hired by an Australian SEO-back linking company as a content writer. I got hired in the latter part of October, and I’m still here, enjoying what I love to do the most- writing! I resigned from the social media job because I was not enjoying it as much and had too many tasks. I was doing the job of 3 people for the same rate, and it eventually hit me that it was not worth it anymore, and I had to leave.
Now, after two years, I’m still here in front of my computer, logging in work hours for the moolah. Aside from those I mentioned, I also had several writing gigs for various clients. I continue to send proposals to this day, hoping to snatch a generous client who can help me improve my life.
One of the most important lessons I learned from this experience is that- failures should not stall you. If at all, it should fuel you to strive harder. Also, God has a reason for not giving you one opportunity because He’s preparing you for a better one. Because what if I got hired by another client before I got accepted for the job I have now? Then I wouldn’t be thriving today, right?
So, guys, don’t give up and dream big. God will always be beside you every step of the way.