Soon we're going to celebrate Mother's Day.

And I'm pretty sure we'll celebrate it at home. 😉

But here's the thing.

Hindi man tayo makalabas para mamasyal or to eat out, let's not forget to give honor, hugs and kisses to our moms.

Speaking of moms, our guest for tomorrow's JasSuccess is a mother herself.

Her name is Glendz.

In fact, the reason she wanted to do freelance work is her daughter.

"I want to spend more time with her and support my husband and my parents financially."

She didn't initially know that it's possible to work from home.

"I have planned to leave my job a long time ago but I can't find any company that will
allow me to work from home.

At first, I didn't know that you can make a living online and I thought that it would be
impossible for me to find a job as a freelancer.

My major turning point came after I enrolled in VA Bootcamp and found a supportive community of fellow freelancers. This is when I started to have confidence and began searching for other opportunities."

What's great is that she's been an admin assistant for a few years so it's not difficult for her to choose virtual assistant as her freelance career.

"I was an admin assistant for a few years and I enjoy doing this job. That is why I chose to be a Virtual Assistant. I am willing to learn a new niche in the future but I want to take it easy since I still have a full-time job."

Learn more about her — how she's able to work full time, handle client work, and take care of her daughter — on this JSU interview replay.

INTRODUCTION:

Find out how Glendz, an OFW with a full-time job, a mom, a wife, and a freelancer juggles everything including freelancing. Learn how she managed to book two clients in one week because of the Hustle Challenge. 

NOTABLE QUOTES:

• In order na maging effective ka sa full time job at sa freelancing, kailangan may time management. Hindi pwedeng sabay sabay.
• Don't forget to take care of your health. Kasi kahit gaano ka successful sa freelancing at marami kang ipon lahat ng maiipon mo mapupunta lang sa hospital bills. Try your best na kumain ng healthy and drink plenty of water. Kung may time, try to exercise at least 10-15 minutes a day kahit 3 times a week. Kapag nasanay yung katawan mong maging active, mas magiging maganda ang buong araw mo.
• Isa sa mga reason na nakatulong sa akin para maalis yung stress sa full time job ko is yung freelancing kasi nagkakaroon ako ng new hobby.
• Feeling ko mas na cha-challenge ka talaga sa Hustle Challenge. Commitment kasi yun. Kailangan talaga maging committed ka. Kasi pag hindi ka committed lagi mong sasabihin na wala kang time. Pag may commitment ka, you work on time.
• Importante yung prayers number 1 sa lahat ng gagawin natin.
• Don't stop learning. Maging matakaw tayo sa knowledge. Huwag nating hayaan na mag stick sa isang type of work. Kailangan natin matuto ng ibang niche or mag try ng ibang opportunities.
• Isa sa nagustuhan ko sa VA Bootcamp is komportable ako sa lesson modules kasi madali siyang intindihin. Step by step at beginner-friendly yung modules so open talaga for newbies.
• Nagpapasalamat ako sa mga naging friends ko sa VA Bootcamp kasi kahit busy sila, they will find time na masagot yung questions ko. Hindi sila madamot sa information.

GLENDZ JOURNEY TO FREELANCING:

• An OFW working in Singapore for 8 years.
• She and her husband came to Singapore as a tourist in 2011. Both worked hard to find a job. The first month wasn’t an easy feat but they managed to get a job. She struggled on her first job because it was a different field of work compared to her previous job in the Philippines and she only worked for 3 months. Then, she found another job and quit again after 4 years.
• Confident that she would get another job after 4 years of experience, she remained unemployed for 9 nine months until she got accepted as an Admin Assistant in a telecommunication company. Her work demands a 9-6 pm schedule on weekdays and is very stressful. She has to learn how to work independently and to meet up deadlines.
• There were many times that she wanted to quit but she couldn’t because of her baby and her family staying together no matter what. She’s also scared of going back to the Philippines and going back to zero.
• Her major turning point came after she learned and enrolled in VABootcamp. She borrowed money from her husband and enrolled in an Accelerated Package in October 2018.
• She managed her time well. She would watch the videos while pumping breast milk during lunch break at work and by midnight at home. She eventually finished the course by January 2019.
• She struggled to get into Upwork so she asked a fellow freelancer in the VA Bootcamp community for help, and so, her Upwork profile got approved. Her struggle didn’t end there because she had a hard time getting clients.
• She joined as a Slack Moderator and then joined in the Hustle Challenge in February 2019 and committed to submit 3 cover letters during the Hustle Challenge. She finally booked two clients in one week because of these and within 6 months, she bought a new laptop.
• She found a supportive community of fellow freelancers. This is when she started to have confidence and began searching for other opportunities.

QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS:

Kumusta naman ang workload mo?

Sa office is 9 to 6 pm pero pag Saturday minsan kailangan mag work-from-home pag may kailangan e-follow up. Yung freelancing is midnight ko ginagawa.

How were you able to come with a good time management scheme para healthy ka naman?

Kailangan ko talaga at least 5 hours of sleep and the rest kailangan ko ng gumalaw galaw.Pag natutulog kasi ako ng mahaba, mas tinatamad ako. 

Do you have plans na mag full time sa freelancing and umuwi sa Pinas?

Yes, plano ko kasi dapat 1-2 years ako sa freelancing industry bago ako umuwi. Kaya maaga akong nag enroll sa VA Bootcamp para just in case mawalan ako ng trabaho dito sa Singapore confident na akong umuwi. Kailangan may back up plan.

Do you have a Time Frame?  Kailan mo balak umuwi?

Hindi lalagpas sa 2022. Mag fu-full time freelancer muna ako dito sa Singapore habang inaalagaan ko ang anak ko. Hindi na ako mag wowork as an employee sa company.

So if you're going to work as a freelancer, how do you fix your visa?

Naayos na kasi yung sa husband ko so confident na akong mag resign this year. Hinintay ko talaga na maayos yun bago ako mag jump sa freelancing. 

If that's the case, will you be involving your husband to freelancing sometime in the future?

Yes, tuturuan ko lang siya. Just in case na magkasakit ako, kaya niyang gawin ang work ko and ma maintain ko yung client ko.

You've booked two clients in one week because of the Hustle Challenge, how's the struggle before nag Hustle Challenge ka?

Walang interviews, walang responses kahit saang platforms. Merong nag reply na clients pero walang naging successful. 

Why is that? Ano ba ang binigay ng Hustle Challenge sayo na hindi mo na realize before you entered Hustle Challenge?

Feeling ko kasi kapag hindi ako sumali sa Hustle Challenge relaxed lang. Mas na cha-challenge ka talaga sa Hustle Challenge. Commitment kasi yun.

What is the biggest advice that you can give to everybody who is struggling right now?

Importante yung prayers sa lahat ng gagawin natin.

Kailangan talaga maging committed ka. 

Iwas muna yung netflix or watching movies. Pwede naman basta huwag lang mauubos yung oras mo dun.

Ako kasi kung ano naumpisahan ko, tatapusin ko kaagad.

Don't stop learning.