If I Could Talk To A 20-Year Old Me

Because I worked in the call center industry for 4 years before moving to IT, I am already used to friends and acquaintances randomly come up to me for suggestions on working/surviving in a call center. Two months ago, a friend's younger brother approached me asking for advice on which BPO company offers the best work environment and career growth.

He told me that he wants to start a career soon but doesn't know where to start. "I want to be a trainer in the long run, but I'm not sure which company to go."

He began asking one question after the next:

"What do you do in your job right now?"
"How did you jump from call center to IT?"
"Why did you do this? Why didn't you do that?"
"Are you happy with where you are now?"

We started talking pretty frequent and this question-and-answer portion went on on a regular basis. I answered his questions as best as I could, and tried to give decent advice based on what I have gone through in my career and life in general.

After a bit of thinking though, I realized that those conversations were actually quite nostalgic for me. He reminded me of myself five years ago. So I started thinking about his questions again, and I began imagining how someone would've told me the answers to those questions when I was starting out.

If only I could turn back time, here are the 11 things I wish someone taught me five years ago:

1. Find work you love doing. If I could offer my younger self some real career advice, I'd tell myself not to choose a course based on someone else's recommendations, or because it's popular or is said to make more money. I would tell myself that the right career choice is based on a single factor: Find work you love doing. It may sound such a cliche, but finding success through passion is realistic and attainable. Don't wait for 20 or 30 years waking up and regretting being in a career you don't enjoy doing. As Steve Jobs says: "Find the work that you love, and you will never have to work at all."

2. Take risks. Everyone is allowed to make mistakes. Mistakes teach us a lesson. I used to be afraid of taking risks in fear of making a mistake, and I still partly am until now. But I have come to accept that in life, it is not about getting a chance, but about taking a chance. I would advise the younger me that yes, doing something will not guarantee that it will work 100%, but you can be 100% sure that doing nothing won't work.

3. Accept that change is constant. What you have or do right now, no matter how good or bad it is, it will change. It's the reality of life, and I wish someone had told me that sooner. It took me a while to accept that changes happen for a reason, and it won't always come easy. But in the end, it will always be worth it.

4. Don't worry too much about what people think about you. For the most part, what other people think shouldn't matter. When I was 20, I was paranoid of what other people think of me. It even affected some of the major decisions I made in life. Sure, you have to behave in a certain way that is acceptable to the eyes of people you care about. But not to the point that it will compromise your ideas and goals. I used to be that person who let the opinion of others make or break me. Later on in life I realized that this is a foolish way to live. What other people say is not important, what matters is how you feel about it.

5. Decide fast, and act upon it. It is true, opportunities knock only once (or maybe twice if you are lucky), so seize them while it's there and take action. Nothing will happen if you sit and do nothing while everyone else is out to receive their grace. Bear in mind that there is a huge difference between knowing how to do something and actually doing it. Don't rave about that knowledge that you have because it is basically useless unless you use them.

6. Speak out. People are not mind readers. If you don't feel good about something, don't hesitate to speak up because people will never know how you feel unless you tell them. Your boss? Yeah he doesn't know that you want to move up the ladder because you never told him so. That pretty girl you like but too shy to ask? Well, you guessed it right, she will never go out with you because there is no question to answer "Yes" to. In work or in life, you have to work on your vocal cords if you want things to happen. Simple.

7. Talk to lots of people as early as now. Friends of friends. Professors. Colleagues. Bosses. A medical student friend. Old classmates. Practically everyone in your Facebook! Why? Professional networking. While it's still early, having so many people in your network is a huge advantage. Lucky for me I was able to build mine early on, and I was offered several career opportunities as a result of this. Always remember that when employers look for people to fill positions, the first they do is ask recommendations from people they trust. Overtime, your current network and the associated opportunities will be a snowball for the duration of your career.

8. Live with integrity. For a career-driven person, reputation matters. And to get the respect and trust of the people around you, you have to maintain a good reputation by living with integrity. Be honest to yourself because being honest creates peace of mind. And trust me, having peace of mind is oh-so priceless!

9. Respect other people and make them feel good. As they say, respect begets respect. Elders, minors, strangers, -- everyone deserve to be respected. One of life's greatest rewards is the ability to touch other people's lives in simple ways. It is such a humbling experience to make someone's day just because you did a small thing for them. Trust me, it will come back sooner than you think.

10. Excel at what you do. There's no point in doing something if you aren't gonna do it right. As soon as you found out who you were born to be, develop a reputation for excellence. Don't waste your life doing mediocre things, always challenge yourself to up the ante and be a better person, whether professionally or personally.

11. Stay hungry, stay foolish. I got to watch Steve Jobs' 2005 Stanford Commencement Address early last year and it was the most eye-opening grad speeches I have heard in my life. His last line got stuck to me ever since: Stay hungry, stay foolish. And it made perfect sense. One of the greatest adventures in life is our ability to ask questions to people who've been there. I hope that everyone realize that everything that we want to know all boils down to asking the right questions, to the right people.

I have to admit, I have done a LOT of mistakes in the past, and there are some things I wish I hadn't done. If only someone had told me these things earlier, I would've lived a more meaningful life. But hey, who says it's too late already? :)

Life is too short. Grudges are a waste of perfect happiness. Laugh when you can, apologize when you should, and let go of what you can't change. Love deeply and forgive quickly. Take chances. Give everything and have no regrets. Life is too short to be unhappy. You have to take the good with the bad, smile when you should, love what you got and always remember what you had. Always forgive but never forget. Learn from your mistakes but never regret. People change and things go wrong. But always remember, life goes on. -Unknown

X.O.,
Kat :)

Social Media Etiquette

Social media interaction is in many ways a part of everyone's daily lives. And since it is a communication medium with every single person in your life, it is important that each one of us understand the proper ways to behave online.

Would you do the following in a face-to-face interaction?

* Acting all close and spilling your secrets to someone you barely know?
* Be self-absorbed and consistently talk about yourself w/o regard to everyone else around you?
* Randomly approach a friend and ask for favors -- repeatedly?
* Constantly announce to the world what you are doing (even the littlest things: I am walking, I am eating..etc)

If you answered yes to any of these questions, then you may want to visit a refresher course on social media etiquette specifically Facebook and Twitter. Just because you are behind a monitor in your room doesn't mean that you can do and say as you please -- no holds barred.

Facebook
1. Randomly add people just because you have more than 2 mutual friends.

Many users like to keep their Facebook to their circle of friends and family or at least to people they have acquainted to in the past. If you are looking to make friends, properly introduce yourself when adding them. Don't always assume they know you -- especially when they, well, don't.

2. Tagging individuals in items that you sell.

I am severely annoyed by this ever since online sellers started invading Facebook. I like online shopping A LOT but I really hate it when people tag me on pictures that are totally unrelated to me. If you are selling something, send a message with the link to your album rather than annoy your friends and flood their walls with weight loss products.

3. Publicizing private conversation on a wall post.

There is such a thing as too much information. Even though you know everyone on your Facebook, have a little sense of privacy and use the messages feature to discuss private matters.

4. Harassing people to "like" your post.

Facebook contests are used as a marketing strategy of some businesses to make their product known. In effect, "contestants" request their friends to "like" their entry for them to win the contest. This is really fine with me, but harassing your friends and constantly sending them messages for you to win is just plain rude. One simple request is enough, but please..for crying out loud, huwag pilitin ang ayaw!

5. Abusing application invites.

Some people are just not that into games. Personally this is really fine with me bec I do enjoy some Facebook games, but I have encountered some people who really force you to click the application invite just to increase their "neighbors." Again, stop harassing people for your own advantage.

6. Spamming.

Facebook spam and scams are consistently increasing mainly because some are too naive to understand that not all that they see on their friends' feeds are true. For the last time, there is no application that will allow you to know who viewed your profile, you will not win an iPad by clicking the damn smiley pic, and you will never see Justin Bieber nude. Get over it!

Twitter
1. Mundane tweeting.

Tweets such as "I'm sleepy!" "Eating breakfast.." "About to sleep, good night!" may be interesting to some, but 90% of your followers could care less about the fact that you are eating or that you want to sleep. As much as possible, kill non-sense tweeting and tweet with purpose. Maybe you would want to revise your tweets with: "Breakfast at Banapple. This Banoffee pie is amazing. A must-try!" Always consider what's in it for your followers -- give them a chance to react to your posts. After all, there's really nothing much to reply to "I'm sleepy," right? :)

2. Using Twitter feed as chatroom.

I used to do this actually, but ever since some famous people started following me, I am now conscious with what I tweet and I tell my friends to just BBM me. Generally, conversations that are exclusive in nature should be kept private using chat platforms. Twitter is a broadcast medium, and although it empowers you to use the @ symbol to directly talk to individuals, it doesn't mean that you and your friend can flood your mutual followers' Twitter feeds. Using @mentions to talk to someone is absolutely fine, but everything should be kept in moderation.

3. Constantly asking your followers to follow your friend.

"Guys, follow my friend @Twitternewbie! Thank you! Pls RT" -- I mean seriously, why should we? Unless your friend is someone famous or is tweeting VERY interesting stuff, then please save yourself some time and effort because no one will follow your friend back. Revise your tweets with: "To my UP Diliman MMA classmates, follow Prof @Twitternewbie!" or "My friend @Twitternewbie tweets the funniest stuff about cheesy pick-up lines, follow him he's hilarious!"

4. Avoid Internet drama.

Broadcasting your how stupid your boss is, how your ex cheated on you, or how your colleague is having an affair with someone from work is a risky risky business. Not only will it make you look pathetic, it will also make you look unprofessional.

5. Tweet nothing but RANTS.

Expressing disappointment or frustration over something is fine every once in a while. But as I have said, everything should be kept in moderation. I recently unfollowed someone because I got really annoyed of her constant negative tweeting. Who would want to constantly read stuff like "F*ck you! You ruined my day!" "You really think you are pretty?! Ew!" "Lecheng buhay to!" "I am a bitch and I have a right to because I am hot." Irritating right?? And seriously, BEING A BITCH IS NOTHING TO BE PROUD OF.

Personally for me , it all boils down to three basic rules:
1. Respect the community.
2. Listen to others.
3. Be accountable for your actions.

Always remember that social media communities are real relationships with real conversations among real people. As such, social media interaction should be treated with respect as your personality reflects on it. Is it really that much to ask for people to be a NICE person, whether face-to-face or virtually?

Pottermore: The Quest to Find the Magical Quill

I first heard about Pottermore last week but I haven't got the chance to join because I was too busy with school midterms until I totally forgot about it. Anyway, last night I finally got the chance to join and I am one of the lucky Muggles who are able to register early! Yey!

My username: NimbusPixie57

It's too bad that users cannot design their own usernames and can only choose from the five randomly selected names. I was so prepared pa naman to use "FiendfyreKat" hehehe. But still, being able to find the Magical Quill is so fulfilling that I am beyond happy for being one of the chosen few!

Potter-what?

To those who may have heard this just now, Pottermore is a website that offers the die-hard Harry Potter fan the opportunity to access the wizarding world digitally. Fans are divided if PotterMORE stands for a Multiplayer Online Roleplaying Experience or a Massive Online Reference Encyclopedia. Because I am a gamer, I prefer the first one -- but until I get my "welcome pack," I have yet to tell which is more appropriate (the Welcome email will not arrive until the Magical Quill challenge is over). The site will be open to the public in October but if you are a die-hard fan, I am sure you would want to get an early admission. :) The site was launched on the date of Harry's birthday, July 31 -- and will allow a rumored total of 1 million fans to get early access to the site by finding the magical quill on the site for seven days (until August 6).

According to J.K. Rowling, the site contains new material exploring and detailing the wizarding world. Rowling once said that her fans wanted way more backstory and details of her world than she could provide within the story. Interested in the finer rules of Quidditch? Require more wisdom when it comes to wands? Well, this apparently, is where answers may be found. Enough to get a fan excited right?! :)

Day 4 just ended last night so there are 3 days more to try to register to the site. Seven days is equivalent to seven books so the Day 5 clue will be about Harry Potter & the Order of the Phoenix, and so forth.

Here are the previous clues that were taken from Books 1-4:

Day 1: How many breeds of owls were offered on the Eeylops Owl Emporium sign, then multiply this number by 49.

Day 2: What is the number of the chapter in which Professor McGonagall cancels the Quidditch match between Gryffindor and Hufflepuff? Multiply this number by 42.

Day 3: In the Gryffindor versus Slytherin Quidditch Match, in Harry’s third year, how many points is Gryffindor leading by before Harry catches the Golden Snitch? Multiply this number by 35.

Day 4: How many students take part in the Triwizard Tournament during Harry’s fourth year? Multiply this number by 28.

Days 1-3 are harder than Days 4-7, but it is still best to have the appropriate book in handy when answering the clue. Once you solve the clue, add the answer at the end of the site: http://quill.pottermore.com/(answer) and you will be redirected to a page where the Magical Quill is hidden. Click the quill, and voila! The registration page will pop-up for you to enter your details. :)

Watch this video as J.K. Rowling announces Pottermore:



For help in finding the Magical Quill, click here.

Three more days to go! Goodluck!! :)

UPDATE:
Click here for additional info on validation emails and timings for the last two clues!

The Google+ Craze

At this point, most of you must already heard of  The Google+ Project and probably landed on my blog in hopes of getting an invite. But for some who are living under a rock, Google+ is the newest social networking platform that is believed to kill Facebook. As of this time of writing, it is currently under limited field trial and you can only get in if someone invites you to join their network via email.

Since its launching two weeks ago, Google+ has generated SO MUCH demand, with Google's social head Vic Gundotra even calling it "insane." People's interest spread like wildfire, forcing the company to close it's doors for new users periodically.

I gotta be honest, I also wanted to get an invite since day 1 so bad that I keep checking out technology blogs and trying to check if someone can score me one. It wasn't until last week when I finally got one from my previous boss and my smile was from ear to ear for hours! Haha. When I tweeted about it, boy I was bombarded with invite requests! Everyone wanted to join in on the bandwagon, some even told me "What's Google+? Add mo nga ko kung anuman yan." It made me laugh because why would someone want to be a part of something they don't even have an idea on what's it about.

I guess I just find it amusing that people normally aren't interested on being part of something new until they find out that not everybody can get in. It's like being in an elite group of people, the feeling of being special and having something that everybody is dying to have. I know this because when Google Wave was launched two years ago, it was immediately open to the public and nobody I personally know even signed up for it. A year after, it flopped.

Is this human nature? I honestly have no idea. I am a social media enthusiast for years now so I know that me wanting to be Google's beta tester is a given -- I just don't know about the others. But what I do know is that this marketing strategy made by the search engine giant is a very wise move indeed, well done Larry Page.

Okay fine, I know you are here for the invite. Please share this to your Facebook/Twitter then hit the comments below and leave your gmail address + your Facebook/Twitter profile link. Just don't forget to return the favor and add me to your circle okay? :)

Click here to add me on Google+.

Do You Think You're Pretty?

There is an unspoken rule that most girls abide by which I think was taught to us by jealous insecure bitches. It's known as the "Pretend You Don't Know You Are Pretty" rule and if you think otherwise then expect everyone to consider you conceited or "feelingera." So what's a girl to do who doesn't want to seem conceited while also not coming across as insecure?

CONFIDENCE. Everyone knows they should have it, but for some reason -- boys have it and most girls don't. If you are one of the many who don't have it, then let me inform you that most people who carry this trait have more friends than you, have better social life and have higher paying jobs.

Why is it that men were taught to carry this trait and should maintain a high opinion of themselves (sometimes a little too much--hello cocky guys!) whereas girls grew up knowing that they should never acknowledge their beauty out loud or else they are considered self-absorbed and egotistical? Think of the movie "Mean Girls" when the popular bitch Regina George makes Cady think that she is wrong for thinking that she is actually a pretty girl.

Personally, it annoys me whenever I compliment someone and they say things like "hindi kaya!" or "you think so?" and then goes on to complain about any unflattering thing that they have on their face or body. Same goes with people who are razor thin and sexy and then keeps telling everyone how FAT they are. Can you please just save that to the really -- I mean REALLY fat ones?

Most guys date you because they find you pretty and confident. But when they gave you a compliment stating that you are beautiful or gorgeous or really pretty you just shrug it off instead of saying thank you. There is nothing wrong with believing that you are a beautiful woman -- self-confidence and cockiness are two VERY different things. So the next time someone compliments you, smile and take it because there is nothing more unflattering than a girl who doesn't know her own worth.

So you agree? You think you're really pretty? Or do you shrug off a compliment in fear of being considered conceited?