Lorie's Career Lifehackz

Do not worry about...

2009-01-13T06:44:00.000+08:00

Victory Christian Fellowship preaches the same thing, for this year-opening season. So you could understand that this is God's global call to believers and anyone human, right?

Discerning the Times, Part 13

As we are told in Hebrews 12 and other verses, everything that can be shaken will be shaken. However, we have been given a kingdom that cannot be shaken. A primary way that we build our lives on the kingdom that cannot be shaken is to use the key of the kingdom for every major decision in our lives. The key of the kingdom is described in Matthew 6:31-33:

“Do not be anxious then, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘With what shall we clothe ourselves?’
“For all these things the Gentiles eagerly seek; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.
“But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added to you.”

The first thing the Lord tells us to do is to refuse anxiety. Anxiety is a lack of faith in God. This is an especial affront to God because when we are anxious, we are implying that the problems are bigger than God. Whenever we begin to feel anxious, we must learn to look at God and resolve that we are going to use our trials to increase our faith in Him. He is much bigger than all of the world’s problems combined.

God is the ultimate answer to every human problem, and He wants to demonstrate this, starting with ours. We must trust Him, and anxiety is evidence that we do not trust Him. Reject anxiety. It is the sin of unbelief. We repent of sin by confessing it and then turning away from it. Determine that your response to a problem will not be to feel anxious, but to see it as a wonderful opportunity to grow in our faith in Him. We read in I Peter 1:6-9:

In this you greatly rejoice, even though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been distressed by various trials,
that the proof of your faith, being more precious than gold which is perishable, even though tested by fire, may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ;
and though you have not seen Him, you love Him, and though you do not see Him now, but believe in Him, you greatly rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory,
obtaining as the outcome of your faith the salvation of your souls.

To be tempted is not sin. We can all be tempted to doubt and to be anxious, but the quicker we recognize it and turn away from it, turning our attention instead to God, the more we will learn to walk in the peace of God. Walking in the peace of God is basic to a victorious life, as we are told in Romans 16:20: “And the God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet.” Notice that he did not say that the “Lord of hosts,” which means the “Lord of armies” would crush Satan, but the God of peace would. It is the peace of God that is an impregnable fortress. The peace of God is the linchpin fruit of the Spirit, which if we lose it, all of the other fruits of the Spirit will also be lost. Think about it: If you lose your peace, you will quickly lose your patience and faith—then it is hard to love…. We must guard our peace.

We can count on this being tested this year by many events in the world. Let us resolve now that instead of worrying about the things happening in the world, that we are going to grow in our trust in the Lord because He has already overcome the world. He is bigger than the world.

The best way to put our trust in the Lord is the next thing the Lord said to do after telling us not to be anxious—seek first His kingdom in everything we do. If we are anxious, it can be a sign that we have not been building our lives on the kingdom God, but rather the things of this world. Regardless of how far off the path we have gone, we can get back on the path by determining now to seek first the kingdom in everything we do, making it the most basic issue in every major decision that we make. When we know we are seeking the Lord first and His kingdom, the peace of God will come upon us. Having the peace of God rule in our lives will be critical in the times to come.

Freedom from Distractions - Lessons Learned in an MRT Station

2008-12-17T22:09:00.000+08:00

In a person's life, one of the biggest dilemmas is how to keep focused in a world filled with distractions. I learned something as I pushed past the people in MRT - Ayala Station:

I got to the area where I needed to go by keeping my eyes focused on the area where I wanted to land in, and not mind the people blocking my way.

So my lesson learned was, to get to where I need to go, I need to keep my eyes focused on God, and on the Vision He has for me; with that, I won't even know it, but I've gotten to where I needed to go, and I won't even feel the things that are distracting me.

Things that derail people include navel-gazing and nitpicking. I need to stop looking "deep into myself," and finding fault with myself, and then picking at the things that shouldn't concern me, and instead, focus on the things that matter: God and His plan for me.

This doesn't mean that I won't deal with the issues that I still have. On the contrary, I need to just surrender them to the Lord...

One thing that I learned one time was, I realized that I finally got the hang of controlling my brain: things are a lot quieter up there now; also, friends and meh have noticed, and are telling me, that I'm a lot less angry and reactive lately...

And you know what hit me?

I never really agonized to get from Point A to Point B. I never lifted a finger to get rid of my anger issues. I never lifted a finger to learn to be more faithful; All I ever did..................

Was say a prayer.

It's truly God's grace that I ever moved a single step from Point A at all. And how I got to Point B... Is nothing but a miracle.

I'm excited to move to Point C. :D

Slow Me Down: Seriously Sabbath Sunday

2008-12-01T00:46:00.000+08:00

Today, I had been filled with sermons telling me to REST. The entire November was filled with such toil and trouble that I was actually already wondering if I was a member of the cast of Macbeth or something.. "Double double, toil and trouble..."

I decided not to go to church and just have my own service in my room, again. No use wasting energy getting on a jeepney and seeing energy-drainin' scenarios and energy-drainin' pplz. Heheh.

Uncannily enough, I chose Pastor Joey Bonifacio's "Curse of Restlessness" for my "Sunday Sermon." The title was just intriguing, and I just thought it would be a fun thing to listen to for my "Seriously Sabbath Sunday."

And you know what it was all about? Entering God's REST.

There is a reason why God had created us on the Sixth day, and Adam woke up to fellowship with Him on the 7th day. Pastor Joey said that this is because God did not want us to see Him working. God's priority is that we be able to walk with Him and enjoy His presence, as well as His creation with Him.

From that sermon, I realized that the constant running around and the mentality of "Busybusybusybusybusy," is not a blessing; rather it is a curse: the same curse that God had put on Cain when he committed the first murder: Restlessness.

After this sermon, I had decided to also listen to renowned prophet, pastor, teacher and writer Rick Joyner's "Entering God's Rest." Same thing. We need to rest. Same thing: God did not create TOIL. In fact, it is a curse. But God DID create LABOR, and LABOR is supposed to be enjoyable. Work is supposed to be enjoyable and holy.

After I listened to those sermons, I went, "WHOA!"

So for all those 8 weeks of grueling torture under toil, where I was actually being an idiot, running around like Alice in Wonderland's White Rabbit, I was, in reality, under a "Curse of Restlessness."

Most people would deem me crazy/idiotic/stupid for letting go of a client that had allowed me to neutralize a big chunk off my current debt. You know what, the day after I let go, and I decided to fully rest, and the depression dissipated, I FELT SO MUCH BETTER.

I let go of that client because things were already emotionally maddening. There was deception and power-playing involved, manipulation, so much strife, and it was no longer a healthy situation. My emotional makeup was absolutely shot: I hated them, I hated all work, even for the clients I've been with for a while, and even those that I had struck a great rapport with.

I had never made a better decision in my life.

After listening to this sermon, and searching for Jewish Superstar Emmy Rossum of Phantom of the Opera's SLOW ME DOWN, I finally got it.

After "my own service" at home, cooking lunch for meh and enjoying it with God in a lazy, quiet, Sunday, I went off to my boarding house's subdivision playground. I had always told God, whenever I passed by that playground, that I'd like to be on the swing at one point in my existence...

I got what I wanted yesterday. :)

I was swinging high up in the air and just being in general glee like a 5-year-old. I didn't realize that you could actually swing without anyone pushing you. Hey, I was experiencing powerful swings, and major gusts of swinging-induced air that allowed my hair to flap behind me! I was... In bliss. :D

I felt like God was pushing the swing for me, as I listened to rockin' Christian prophetic worship songs. If I knew what flying was like, swinging would most likely be just like flyin'!

So from this point on, I's swearin': Two days off fer meh after grueling seasons of work, and at least once a day of REEEEEST. It says in the Bible that we have SIX days to do our work. I might as well enjoy my Sunday Sabbaths. :D

And you, workaholic human, next Sunday, YOU TAKE A REST TOO!

Blog Resurrection: For the Umpteenth Time!

2008-09-14T03:53:00.000+08:00

Welcome to Lorie’s Career “Lifehacks” blog.

Before we go on, I would like to say that I’ve tried to resurrect my blogs time and again, only to be buried by work and neglect these again. And for that... for the umpteenth time...

I “repent.”

Again, I’m resurrecting my blog, hopefully, I’ll be more constant with writing for this “baby,” so that I could help you bring some clarity into your career considerations.

If you’re mulling over your career, or you’re thinking about what you ought to be doing, or you’re over your post-grad “rest” (heheh) period, I’m here to help. I aim to give you the most valuable things I’ve learned so far in my 2-year stint at this game of working.

So, all set to know more? Read on!

Scroll down for the latest post I’ve dished out on career planning and jobhunting.

Next week, I’m giving you advice on how to create an eye-catching resumé, and the secret to getting... And keeping... A job. :)

Blessings!

Fresh Grad? Tired of "Resting?" Maybe it's time to STRATEGIZE!

2008-09-13T03:54:00.004+08:00

|You’re a fresh grad, and you’re raring to get that job you’ve been working so hard for, through getting great grades in school. You’ve dreamed of this moment for so long, and now, months after school, you’re done with living the life and just resting, and you’re ready to go get a job.

Your mom breathes a sigh of relief when you declare that you’re going out to hunt for a job.

But you don’t know where to start.

There is no 3-step recipe that could get you that job you’ve always wanted, but tips like mine could help you figure out how to strategize and plan for your jobhunt.

Okay, breathe. I'm about to dish on how to plan and strategize for your job. So if you're ready, click "READ MORE"!!!|
_
|The first thing you need to do is to: identify what you want.

Do you want just a job to tide you over, to pay the bills, to have fun in for a while, while you wait for a passport to elsewhere, or for you to learn something while you wait to inherit your family’s business?

Or are you building a career for yourself?

A job is essentially different from a career in that a job is just that: a work that is the end in itself. A career, on the other hand, is a series of jobs that you want to take hold of, leading to what you want to ultimately learn in the long run, and leading to that final goal that you have in mind, before you retire.

So when you graduate, in those months wherein you are still trying to find out what you want to do in life, think about the answers to these questions, and you fill be able to map out what you want to do with yourself:

1. What do you want to remember most fondly as you retire? What would you want to be most known for? What purpose do you think you were made for?
2. What job, occupation, or line of work will enable you to get there? What steps could you take to get to that ultimate end goal?
3. What character traits, skills, or learnings should you gather, to serve your core purpose?

When you’ve found some rather clear answers to these questions, it’s time to start forming your career.

1. Create a logical path towards your end goal.
2. Go on an online search for the jobs you could consider, as your starting point.
3. Create a resumé highlighting the traits and skills that would make you more likely to be considered for the job you want to go out for.
4. Go get ‘em, tiger!

If you want a concrete illustration of this, let’s say I’m a fresh Creative Writing graduate and I want to die a famous novelist (not my true course, nor true goal, btw, heheh. :p).

So we put that goal on Tier 1.

Tier 1. Novelist.

How do you get from Fresh Creative Writing Grad to Novelist?

Let’s have a couple of quick goals.

1. Goal 1 - Deadline: By the end of 2 years: Get to the point of writing at top speed, with supreme flair for the words.

2. Goal 2 - Deadline: By the end of 5 years: Build a name for myself and get people to recognize my name or pseudonym, and associate it with a certain style of writing.

3. Goal 3 - Deadline: By the end of 7 years: Get the right contacts, so I can start writing that novel and get my own book published.

Then I would identify my Tier 2 and Tier 3.

Tier 2 is whatever is a prerequisite to my achieving Tier 1. Tier 3 is my problem (and YOUR) problem right now: getting a job to achieve my short term goals.

For this hypothetical strategy, my Tiers 2 and 3 would be:

Tier 2. Become a Famous Newspaper/Magazine Writer.
Tier 3. Be the fastest and most sought-after writer, even though I won't be famous yet.

As I've already identified the overview of my plan, I'll set aside Tiers 1 and 2, and focus on my right-now problem. I will have to answer the question: "What occupations could hone my writing skill?"

The answer to this question would serve the Tier 3 core goal.

Occupations identified: SEO Writer, Professional blogger, copywriter, news reporter, lifestyle writer.

I would then narrow down the choices by what skill I should really learn first.

I’m going for SEO Writer, because the quotas and the pressure would force me to get the hang of writing within the least amount of time.

I’m going to go at that game for, at the maximum, a year. Six months would be best, because anyone who’s been writing for SEO has recognized how tiring it actually gets. :)

Then when I feel like it’s about time to start building my name, while getting to still practice writing at top speed, I’ll go for being either an ad agency copywriter, or a news reporter who passes in perfect copy.

Just an aside: Mind you, I’ve applied to one major daily for my country, and you know what... Some of their reporters pass in the most atrocious copy. So if you’re like me, who’s positioned herself in the writing field, you better aim for passing the most excellent copy you could, in record time.

Back to my creation of a strategy for my career.

I'll consider the traits of each job that would get me to where I want to be. An Ad Agency copywriter actually needs to pass great, sales-pulling copy in record time, while a newspaper writer needs to pass accurate, fact-filled and objective copy in record time.

A novelist needs to be able to sell him/herself to the public, so a sales bent would be great.

A newspaper reporter, however, gets an adrenalin-driven job and some kick-butt training in getting the facts straight.

I like adventure, so there’s a dilemma there. Let’s say I’ve put in around a year in SEO writing, so I’m ready for the next step, but I’d rather have fun first.

I could go at it logically: get the ad agency job first, stick at it for another year to two years, then get the name-pulling job, like in a magazine or on the daily news staff.

OR, I could be a news reporter for around 6 months, make the best friends while I’m there, then I’m going to go for the ad agency for around a year or two, then I’m going back to the newspaper/media industry after, but in a less stressful AND ideally, more influential position.

Over those years, I’d be gathering contacts, friends, and network with the right people who could get me the leverage I need to build a name for myself.

All through those years, I will have to take the stance of being a great friend, a joy to be around, generous to people, and glad to just make friends.

True friends would be there when you need them, and they are willing to help out people in a mutually beneficial arrangement. Try to burn the least, to zero, bridges, if possible, because in the future, if you’ve left unhealed wounds in other people, not only would you have a hate squad lined up against you, but it’s also baggage you won’t want to be saddled with.

On the whole, I wasn’t so mercenary with my career, as I suggest here. All I know was that back in college, I knew the power of the Internet, and I knew I should be earning off it.

In due time, I got my first job, but I left it, for ethical considerations. You see, it was a job making academic papers for lazy American students. Heheh.

When I was done, I decided to concentrate on school for a while, but economic considerations made me want to get another job. And it was my first initiation into the true moneymaking potential of the Internet: I had worked for an Internet Marketing specialist.

Today, I’m working for another Internet Marketing expert, and I’m enjoying the job. I’m not aiming to work at my career the way I described here, in terms of the details. This is just an example of how to strategize for one's career path. I may be considering applying to local dailies for exposure in the future, but as it is, I’m just working on my character traits, especially being faithful at a job and to a boss. :)

I had patterned this paradigm upon my own 10-year plan for my life. I'm a Psychology graduate, but I aim to become a church planter. So while God is still developing my character, I'm working on building a system wherein I would be earning more than enough for my own needs, as well as be able to give to people and the ministries I aim to support.

So my model is actually:

Tier 1: Become a missionary/church planter
Tier 2: Create a self-supporting business/income system
Tier 3: Get jobs that would propel me to Tier 2, to serve Tier 1.

:)

I hope you'll get the HEART of what I'm saying about strategizing for your career. I'm not saying that being a writer is the be-all and end-all of it. For all you know, you may be set apart for another purpose. As it is, this is the best model I know of, to illustrate my thoughts to you.

If you have questions, just leave your email on the comments area, and I'll try to answer them the best way I could.

Blessings!

Next week: I’m writing about how to further customize this process for YOU. Also, I would be putting out an article about creating the resumé and portfolio that is sure to wow your prospective bosses, as well as how to get a job and keep it. Blessings! :)|

Something to inspire.

2008-08-01T23:07:00.000+08:00

I don't know if this man, who has touched so many lives from this moving lecture, was a Christian. All I know is that what he taught in his last lecture series was something Christ would like to teach us, too. :)

It ain't about religion indeed. It's about LIFE and living life to the fullest, by... Loving (I'm guilty of the charge of having a metal heart, please pray for me..) and dreaming... And being passionate for excellence. :)

Below is the Oprah version.

And here is the full version.
Attached is the full transcript, ready for your download. :)

Check the bottom of this post. :)

Enjoy!

Calling the Next Generation!

2008-08-01T06:55:00.000+08:00

As usual, I was just minding my own business, trying to fix my blog, and a blog I had promised my Editor-in-Chief friends from Central Philippine University, where I graduated, and I came across this post by another Christian, detailing her agony about how she hadn't seen Christians developing FREE Blogger templates. If anything, she has even voiced out what I had only thought before: that software and what-not created by Christians for Christians are, well, in need of massive improvement.

I don't blame her. Because before, I used to complain the same thing about how the Christian community seems to be rather deprived.

I know that since Jesus was also persecuted and hated by the world, it's only natural that we're the minority, too. But wait up. The past of the Christian being on the sidelines of the world is gone.

This year had been marked by the American Prophetic community of the year when the Lord's people are taking back the land the enemy has claimed and closing the gates of hell.

If I'm speaking alien here nevermind. What you need to know is that, this year marks something in the air for the Lord. He is sounding the trumpet for His people to rise up and take their places.

Are you called to web dev?

Are you called to writing in mainstream media?

Are you called to love numbers and become an excellent accountant?

Rise up.

We were meant to live for so much more. We were meant to live for beyond feeding ourselves or our families. We were called to take dominion and seize what is Jesus'!

You're young you say? Timothy was young too.

Dudes, figure out what you love doing. Chances are, this is where God will use you to the fullest.

Life is more than the paycheck. Life is more than the misery. When you are on track and on focus towards the goal that the Lord has set for you, three things will happen:

You will understand what needs to be pruned or chopped off in your life to make room for more focus in the direction you were called.
You will know exactly what it is you need to be doing.
You will stop running around in circles.

So yeah, my jobhunting to Manila Bulletin, Powermac, etc., were never in vain. Powermac, I'm sure I will have a season there. I was given the open door in case I still want to come back and I am taking it, when the time is right. Manila Bulletin, I am seriously not sure, but one thing is certain for me: our mainstream media needs new blood.

It may not be me,

It may not be you,

It may be your seatmate in the next D'Block, Yo-Jam, or whatever youth group meeting you are attending that day.

It may be that girl you've been praying for to fall in love with Jesus.

All I know is that we are called to pray, figure out where God is going to use us to the fullest, and walk, relentlessly, in that path.

Blessings!

Thankfulness Week

2008-07-18T12:07:00.000+08:00

I wanna start a "Thankfulness Week" for myself.. While other people are going to be heading out to parties later tonight, I will be here, at home, enjoying quiet time with myself, time to work: my most favorite form of play. :)

This "Thankfulness Week" blog will be a weekly thing for me. I want to be thankful to three key People in my life, and one "Wildcard"..

The constants will be my parents and Jesus, and the wildcard will be whomever my heart feels like it, every Friday. :)

I am thankful that the Lord Jesus had:

Saved me from this world since childhood, by giving me the gift of nonconformity.
Given me great parents who had given me the best of what they know; we totally disagree on a lot of points in life, especially the ones that matter most to my Big Boss/Father/Hero, but they have given me the best of what they know, and that is the biggest gift that Jesus has given me.
Given me the gift of excellence, balanced by the gift of "enough is enough," that He only allowed me ENOUGH of certain experiences and learnings to ensure the learnings I need to take for the calling He has for me.
Given me the gift of learning upside down. So now that I know Whom to work for, I know what I need to do. Yay!
Given me the capacity to appreciate life and enjoy the simplest of joys.

I am thankful to my Mother for:

Always praying for me.
The gift of integrity.
The gift of consistency.
The gift of faithfulness.
The gift of making arts and crafts.
The gift of giving attention to detail.
The gift of painful learnings. :)

I am thankful to my Father for:

Always being there to step in when I was about to screw up my life.
The gift of street-wise wisdom: what plants are there, for what, for being able to grow figs at home, the gift of WD-40! Woohoo! Imagine, I couldn't get the denged keys through the keyholes in this ancient house! A drenching and bath of WD-40 sure fixed that!!! In fact, the WD-40 incident just inspired this post!
The strength and strictness to keep me at home. Thank you, Tay. Because of this, I learned to not enjoy gossip too much now, but only after unlearning all the crap of television.
For surrounding me with educational stuff, because of this, my brain has been well-fed. :)
For the painful learnings; because of that, I learned to unlearn. :)

I love my parents, even though I do not agree with them a lot of the time. They may desire the temporary for me, but Jesus has a deep vision for me that I have to walk in, MY WAY. Because unless I walk in it the way Jesus has planned for me, it will never be realized, because I'm sooo denged busy working for the temporary.

Mother, I'm sorry. I have to prioritize what vision Jesus has for me and MY family. Or else, I will be stuck in poverty in the long run. I sacrifice today, so that in the long run, I will be able to fly.

Don't worry, God provides for the right now, if I prioritize the long run. Thanks for helping me out for an entire month. I need to act like an adult now. No more dependency on you. But I have to do this MY WAY. Our violent emotions just get in the way. I don't understand you, neither do you understand me. But at the very least, I get that you need me to be independent. So do I. It's just wrong to be dependent on you, and on others. But do not worry, God provides. Just don't stress the details.

So let's keep some boundaries for today, coz fights and negative emotions really delay both you and me. :)

Wildcard: I'm thankful to Kuya Chin Bon and Kuya Elim. These guys are my most loyal readers, and they encourage me to blog on. :)

Hugz to you guys!

Thank You

2008-07-18T11:34:00.000+08:00

I just started ground talks and an agreement with Ate Eunice, for a website.

It was the most painless business deal in my life.

I love God!

Thank you, to my mentors, Redmedia Solutions, Inc, especially to Dave Quitoriano and Mike Abasolo. Though the life lessons I had to learn in the Ploning Project were tough and almost no one understood, I owe you the credit for the apprenticeship.

Thanks so much!

Life Tip: wherever you are, whatever job you are going to get into, always have the goal of never becoming a slave to anyone else but Jesus. Grip and gather all the lessons you need to learn, and use it to help God in weaving the path of life that He has for you.

Blessings to those who read!

Work At Home, You Want?

2008-06-02T22:45:00.005+08:00

Geesh. I promised to resurrect this blog, but I didn’t... Until today, heheh. Well, no use crying over lost time. We better just make the most of today, eh?

Well, as you might know by now, I am a work-at-home girl, and while I love the job, I won’t recommend it to everyone. Unless you have guts, patience, and the perseverance needed to ensure your survival in this “business,” it would be easy for you to quit when the tough times come.

...Want to know what to expect in a work-at-home career? Click "Read more"!

Some people who go into the work-at-home business do so because they want to get away from a job that “enslaves” them. But contrary to the notion that the work-at-home career is a way for a person to not work at all, it’s actually a career that would necessitate for you to be more disciplined. Because if you slack off in this business, you won’t have anything to eat at all.

Before you go into the work-at-home career, you have to ask yourself: are you in this for the money and the time alone, or do you love it and would stick to it, even when the tough times come?

That being said, let me acquaint you with the three kinds of work-at-home careers, at least, in my estimation.

Virtual office work
Professional blogging
Self-employment

The virtual office is much like your real-world job. You have a boss to answer to. Some are virtual assistants who organize and do the administrative tasks of CEO’s in the US or elsewhere. Usually, companies hire virtual assistants when hiring a real-world secretary costs a hundred times more.

With the US recession in progress, companies are looking at ways to cut costs, and Asia, since it’s becoming more world-class by the moment, is one fertile field to look for great virtual assistants.

My friend Jen is a virtual assistant, and she seems to thrive in it. It’s just not my thing, though.

I, on the other hand, was a pro-blogger. I used to write for SplashPressMedia, and while I loved the community, I’m just not suited for organizations. I’m better off working with a person who can respect my personal deadlines and my own quirks.

Being in the pro-blogging biz is not exactly easy. You need to follow deadlines, and though it gives you training and an idea for how to set up your own blogging career, it’s not forever. There is a point where you would get tired of being nagged, and not to mention the virtual office intrigues. Yes, office intrigues exist, even in the seemingly solo world of working online.

The good part about this is that if you can manage your time efficiently, you can actually make a go of working for others. It doesn’t get you the flexible income you may want, but at least you have something to look forward to having at the end of every month.

Lastly, working for oneself.

Working for oneself would entail either making your own e-books, maintaining your own monetized blog, or doing other online moneymaking gigs to keep yourself fed.

I recently ventured into working for myself, and I have to be honest with you, it’s hard getting started. But something tells me that this could prove to be a rewarding venture.

Over the next posts, I’ll be discussing how you can go about getting into a virtual office setup, into professional blogging, or how to go about starting your own business.

Watch out for my future posts!

Thank you for the image:

http://morethanweknow.wordpress.com/

Work at Home Girl? Stressed?! You're Kidding Me!

2008-05-26T12:05:00.000+08:00

Isn't it funny how most of us are in the business of wanting more, more, and more. It hit me how I swallow this lie every single day. And it's funnier when a doctor, someone from a conventionally high-powered and equally high-stress job, would be the first to recommend that we rethink our priorities.

I found this article as I was researching for one of the articles I was writing. In the process, I also took a test for stress levels. Even as a work-at-home girl, I had registered a score of 100, and the results advised me to get professional help.

And I'm not even commuting daily.

I have come to the conclusion that the solution is not to work more or to scramble for a regular day job. The solution is to hold my days sacred: whatever task I have for that day, I better wrap up before I sleep.

I also need to minimize external activities. Anything that takes me away from my home would have to be pre-scheduled, prepared for, and I would have to wrap up tasks before I would go out.

Also, I would do better to actually have lesser meals. The dishwashing kills me.

But best of all, I really should just work smarter: efficiently, and more maximally.

I thought I would do great if I worked at night then slept during the day.

Au contraire, what happened was I just wrecked my life.

So I guess this means sleeping at night, then working during the day, and making sure that I've covered all my tasks before I go out.

Sounds like a plan. :p

‘Be’, Not ‘Have’

By Dr Roger Henderson

I am very rarely lost for words. In fact, most people say that is the last thing that would happen to me. I also view myself as unshockable being privileged enough in my job to see people as they really are ensures that - but I remember a particular patient who not only shocked me but reduced me to silence. In doing so he showed me just how destructive ‘need to have’ thinking is on both our stress levels and our mental health.

James came to see me in a state of considerable mental anguish. I had known him for many years, and had watched from the sidelines as he built up a massive business by the age of 40, along with the trappings of success. These unfortunately included a deeply dissatisfied wife and two children who never saw him from one week to the next. When he asked me what he could do to reduce his stress levels I bluntly suggested he should sell up and get out. I was therefore surprised to hear that he had been thinking of doing just that, but couldn’t because his pension fund was not large enough. It was when he told me this fund had ‘only’ four million pounds in it that silence descended on my side of the desk.

The reality was that James could never have a pension fund big enough to satisfy him, and even if he did there would always be bigger and better ventures after that. He was always thinking about what he didn’t have rather than what he had, and so remained deeply dissatisfied.

As expected, my advice fell on deaf ears and James lost his wife and children shortly afterwards, and faced an expensive divorce settlement. He still sees me for advice but freely admits that he is continually moving the goalposts in his life, so that once he has achieved his latest target - bigger bonus, better car, another million - he sets himself a higher one.

Satisfaction can never be achieved if you view life this way. When do we ever have enough? If you list the good points in your life - that you actually have a job in the first place, that your partner does have some redeeming features, that your health is better than some people’s - you will actually end up getting more of what you want. If you can focus on enjoying life at home rather than waiting for two weeks in the year when you go on holiday, you will know how to feel good. If for any reason you don’t get your holiday you will still have enjoyed yourself.

A lesson we all need to be reminded of is that much of what we have in life is good and satisfying as it is. Look at what you have - house, car, work and relationship - and write down exactly why you feel it needs to be improved. Change is good, as long as you are not simply trying to fulfil an endless wish list.

Many of us imagine happiness involves a bigger house or more money and possessions. But all these do is set more targets and stresses for ourselves. Start investing in the truly important things in life - not just the bank balance.

• Dr Roger Henderson is the author of Stress Beaters: 100 Proven Ways To Manage Stress. Buy it online at www.amazon.co.uk or call the order line on 01476 541001.
• You can also visit Dr Henderson’s own website at www.doctorhenderson.co.uk.

OMG.

2008-05-24T04:35:00.000+08:00

I seriously don't know how to react. Today, amidst setting targets in the wake of the Rick Joyner e-book thump on the side of my head, I had seen this after seeing that my AOL email did not contain any email from my gramma, since AOL.com shows news bites.

It is so chilling to know that God's monetary principles had been upheld since time immemorial, and it's so funny, as in hilarious, ha-ha-ha to note how people in the seeming land of milk and honey that we so envied before are now selling their houses for such a fraction.

I do not want to be smug. It actually makes me realize all the more how I should seek Him first, be faithful to my tithes (which I am admittedly not), and work on getting out of debt a week at a time.

The wealth of the nations are being driven into the coffers of Christians. It is starting. Are we ready?

Click here to be as shocked as I.

Blog Resurrection!

2008-05-04T12:07:00.001+08:00

I finally “resurrected” my old moneymaking homepage. It was created as a place where I could put up my online moneymaking discoveries. But as my paradigms changed with the past few weeks’ events, I realized I should change the title from “moneymaking” to “career lifehacks.”

A “life hack” is a guide on how to maximize one’s productivity. It was first coined by programmers, to refer to their workflow tricks on how to short-cut their work process. Nowadays, “life hack” could refer to any clever way in which to solve everyday problems.

I expanded the word for this blog, to refer to my discoveries on how to go on a jobhunt, tricks of the trade for freelancers, tips and tricks for writers and bloggers, and whatever else helpful that I could think of to jot down for you to learn.

So since today is a Sunday, I won’t overload your brain--or mine-- for now. But I will be posting on a more or less regular basis from now on.

Enjoy your Sunday!

Do you need a job???

2008-01-03T07:42:00.001+08:00

You’ve been working in the call center day in and day out, and you know you’re headed nowhere. You are burned out and tired for the most part, and you’re disillusioned for the rest of that slice of pie.

So why not work for yourself?

Why stop at that 9PM to 6AM job that you are actually wondering if you can get out of it alive?

Well, if you are thinking about getting out of the corporate grind and you need a work-at-home gig, I can connect you to the right people.

So, what are you waiting for? Leave me comments or send me an email!

New Year Raffle

2007-12-29T07:44:00.000+08:00

You just have to hand it to Yuga, a.k.a Abe Olandres. He’s currently giving away prizes. All one needs to do to get a chance to win is just to link up his blog. It's a wise move in more ways than one, heheh.

For those of you who don’t know who Yuga of Yugatech is, he’s only one of the most prominent, if not THE most prominent of the SEO trailblazers in my country. He’s currently the Main Man on the scene, and the way I see it, seems like everything he touches turns to gold.

As I said, this promo of his is a shrewd business move in more ways than one.

For one, it brings good PR. I believe that Yuga seems to be a good guy. I have yet to come across a bad blog post about him, after all. Though I don’t know him personally, I already admire him for being a fellow Ilonggo and a trailblazer and leader-of-the-pack in this world of pro-blogging in the Philippines. This promo of his made him all the more respectable, in my book, because this shows generosity.

But you have to admit, this promo of his brings more than PR. It actually has several, absolutely sensible moneymaking strategies attached to it.

1) It actually promotes his own company, plogHost.com in a win-win way. While it may seem like he just threw away a year’s worth of hosting for two clients, which translates to revenue his way, in the world of shrewd business strategies, it’s actually much like a Bishop being put out to set the scene for a “checkmate”: the two winners of his promo may get a year free, but if they like the hosting plan they got, and would like to stay on, then Yuga wins for years to come.

2) If the winners like the hosting plan (so far I’m liking the speed with which the sites hosted on Yuga load), then he promotes it to his friends! What’s more, Yuga may ask for a linkie or credits back to ploghost, which is more than a fair del. Ergo, advertisement and promotion galore!

3) The many people who will be linkie linkie-ing up his promo post and the two sponsors, Auction.ph and his own company, plogHost.com, will be giving them so much link love, they’ll rise up the ranks of Google results.

4) The many links and the consequent hits back to his site will generate more AdSense credits.

So is it shrewd or is it SHREWD?!

You just gotta hand it to Yuga! ;)

But his disclosure made the promo all the more credible and it showed his integrity. ;) Rock on, Yuga!

Bosses vs. Clients and Other Career Craziness

2007-12-12T08:43:00.000+08:00

Busy busy busy! I think my new title as "Blog Empress" is an understatement. I am moving into a new role with one boss, and downplaying my role with another boss.. Because of an article I read, I realized that God wanted to be my BOSS now. He wouldn't want it any other way, and so I am going to treat the people I work for as clients, and no longer bosses. There is a huge difference actually. With a boss, you actually allow him to treat you like a peon, ordering you around and stuff. I had always taken pride in giving more than what is asked of me as regards my job, and sometimes, it becomes an unrequited, unrewarded gesture. But starting last night, I realized that I am on equal ground with my bosses now, if I choose to be.

Let's face it, they need me. I need them too. It's all a quid pro deal, because without me, they will not be able to produce content; without them, I wouldn't have gotten a start in this industry.

While before I allowed myself to be ordered around and the only way I can express my irritation at the workload was to be passive-aggressive and not submit on time, I guess it's time to grow up, be professional, and not need them. I have to keep remembering that my God is my provider, and not them. I have to keep remembering that no matter what, He is my boss and not them.

So, starting last night, I decided that I will be not needing my "main boss". If he decides to go for the proposal I have in mind wherein I do not have to meet a quota and will work as I please, no matter how many articles I pass or not, then I'm good. If not, then I may have to leave.

A business cannot run without its workers. I wonder why bosses and businessmen keep forgetting that.

My mother kept telling me the last time we talked that I should gear into managing other writers, farming out my work..

NO. I am not a manager, and though I want to take management courses, I do not want to be one. I want to have my time to myself and not care if some underling/minion/peon of my own wouldn't submit on time. If *I* didn't want to submit on time, it would be MY problem, not anyone else's.

I had tried to manage my cousins before, and I tell you, it's not a pretty sight. The fact that you have some of the same genes running around your bloodstream isn't a pretty thought when you are at the point when you realize that even some of your bad work ethics are theirs too. I love them both to bits, but on that week, I have to say that I was tearing my hair out secretly.

Frankly, it was my fault that the project has turned into a pain in my behind today. To have involved my cousins with that irritation (the project) was both a blessing and a mistake. But it showed me that I do not want to be stressed out with managing anyone else.

Though this sounds so clerk-mentality, this is actually more of the geek mentality wherein I would rather wake up, turn on my computer, work a bit, then go to chores, work some more, chat with people, talk with Porky, work some more, then go to sleep. (Yes, there are days when I avoid God. Today is one of them. :p)

And yet I had felt the need to create a "massive passive income," to quote an Internet Marketer's e-book title. Passive income is income wherein you just leave it there, and it works for you. THAT is what I want. Not the headache of timing someone else's deadline.

Passive income, in the real-world sense, is all about stocks, mutual funds, investments that you can leave running without needing to micromanage. But Passive Income on the Internet means AdSense, Revver, and Affiliate Programs.

Passive Income on the 'Net is sooo much more fun: because it's FREE. Like AdSense. You set up your AdSense account with a Google Account login, set up your blogs with AdSense, and watch as the cents turn into dollars.

Revver is much like YouTube, wherein videos are hosted. But there is a twist: you get paid for your activity there.

There are so many possibilities and I want to explore them all. That is why I need to break free of the employee/manager mentality and keep moving into going solo. So that when I am flat on my back, 9 months pregnant, my revenue can still come in, and Porky will have something more to dip into in case of craziness. :p

So yeah, take it from Colayco, Kiyosaki, and all them finance experts: you need to create a bigger monetary income influx than your expenses.

And take it from God: sow seed and invest in people. Now THIS investment would yield returns in hundredfolds. ;)

Credits: Kuya David, Internet Marketers, my bosses, LC Saul for the book, and Francisco Colayco and Robert Kiyosaki. :)

Edit: I forgot my linkies! Eep!

http://urltea.com/2chs << quick veggie recipe
http://urltea.com/2chq << appliance essentials
http://urltea.com/2chx << I want a HappySlip DVD.

Funny Equations

2007-12-10T18:31:00.000+08:00

ROMANCE MATHEMATICS

Smart man + smart woman = romance

Smart man + dumb woman = affair

Dumb man + smart woman = marriage

Dumb man + dumb woman = pregnancy

______________________________

OFFICE ARITHMETIC

Smart boss + smart employee = profit

Smart boss + dumb employee = production

Dumb boss + smart employee = promotion

Dumb boss + dumb employee = overtime

_____________________________

SHOPPING MATH

A man will pay $20 for a $10 item he needs.

A woman will pay $10 for a $20 item that she doesn't need.

_____________________________

GENERAL EQUATIONS & STATISTICS

A woman worries about the future until she gets a husband.

A man never worries about the future until he gets a wife.

A successful man is one who makes more money than his wife can spend.

A successful woman is one who can find such a man.

_____________________________

HAPPINESS

To be happy with a man, you must understand him a lot and love him a
little.

To be happy with a woman, you must love her a lot and not try to
understand her at all.

______________________________

LONGEVITY

Married men live longer than single men do, but married men are a lot more
willing to die.

_____________________________

DISCUSSION TECHNIQUE

A woman has the last word in any argument.

Anything a man says after that is the beginning of a new argument.

_____________________________

HOW TO STOP PEOPLE FROM BUGGING YOU ABOUT GETTING MARRIED

Old aunts used to come up to me at weddings, poking me in the ribs and
cackling, telling me, "You're next." They stopped after I started doing
the same thing to them at funerals.

From Romeo Torreta

Online Selling: Keeping Sales Secure

2007-12-10T11:58:00.000+08:00

Selling online is a lucrative way to make more money, apart from what you already do. If you have a brick-and-mortar business, you may soon find that more sales get pulled in through your online business arm, than your brick-and-mortar business. The Internet is a great avenue to conduct business, and the possibilities only expand with time.

Keeping your online sales secure is an important point that no one would want to miss. Consider the losses and the opportunity costs when you seal a deal and it goes bad. I have been guilty of being a bad customer before, though those incidents were purely unintentional. Because of my experiences, I learned a couple of things:

Make sure I have the cash on hand when I want to buy something.
I should never commit if I’m not sure I can pay for the item if the seller says “yes” to a date.

But as a would-be seller, I believe I have learned a couple of things too:

I shouldn’t let my life depend on what I am about to sell.
If the buyer of my item keeps extending the date, I would extend the utmost patience, but give an ample time frame of around a month.

I think that as a seller, you should keep a couple of things in mind when conducting business online:

Conduct your businesses with integrity, no ifs or buts.
Always abide by the rules of the web marketplace you are a member of.
Keep all legalities in place, including disclaimers. The FTC is now making sure that consumers are protected. So make sure you follow rule #1.
As much as possible, do meetups. Or else, if you’re selling to someone whose geographical distance makes a meetup impossible, get his/her payment first and send your customer the item in the best condition, and as you advertised it. Again, refer to rule #1.
Don’t be afraid to hurt sales by declaring the condition of your item in all honesty. It will save you from gaining a bad reputation later if your customer was surprised to get a bum item when he/she expected only the best.

To wrap up, every business done online is incumbent on however you conducted it. Remember that when you are less than filled with integrity when you are selling, you only risk harming your business. Besides, a crook will never prosper. :p

For the intro post to this, see my other money making bloggie. :p

When It Comes to Making Money...

2007-12-10T10:26:00.000+08:00

We need to tithe.

So many testimonies abound on how God reveals His glory when His people tithe, and yet even I wasn't convinced of the need to tithe when greed got into me time and again.

I had learned that back in UPLB, when I would tithe faithfully, money flowed like a river, and it affected not only me, but my parents too. At that time when I was tithing to the letter, and not coincidentally, it was one of those times when their savings was at its peak.

It was all blown like chaff to the wind, however, when I had my psychotic episode that year.

Because of external influences and my personal materialism, I had trouble learning to trust God with my tithes again. Ten percent seemed to be much too steep for comfort.

Until these past three months, God had been more relentless with emphasizing that I give my tithes.

Last week, I got unexpected blessing when, after I finally paid the back tithes since my biggest folly, the hundred-page e-book fiasco, one of my bosses (not the main boss) finally forked over the months-old back pay that I was owed by the company I write for. Of course I rejoiced.

But I missed the mark again when I held back Php 200. I wanted the book so badly. I learned from it, but I should have given my tithe.

And so a week of hunger and lack ensued again.

So this week, when I got my last salary from my main boss, I tithed everything I owed Porky last week to stop the curse on his finances, and I tithed my Php 200 plus the week's salary.

You know what I got in return?

Not even twelve hours after I tithed, my mom announced she got in the same essay writing site I work for.

Then just yesterday, Porky belatedly announced that he and his bro got another wedding gig in Bora. Then, glory of glories, my main boss decided to waive the penalty that was actually part of the deal we made. That penalty is Php 500 a day. And I'm supposedly Php 1500 delayed now. :p

Then today, I got my salary for my November posts for a blog that I worked for! Totally unexpected!

Here is the Haggai verse that chilled me enough to tithe:

Haggai 1:4-11 (New International Version)

4-11 "Is it a time for you yourselves to be living in your paneled houses, while this house remains a ruin?"

Now this is what the LORD Almighty says: "Give careful thought to your ways. You have planted much, but have harvested little. You eat, but never have enough. You drink, but never have your fill. You put on clothes, but are not warm. You earn wages, only to put them in a purse with holes in it."

This is what the LORD Almighty says: "Give careful thought to your ways. Go up into the mountains and bring down timber and build the house, so that I may take pleasure in it and be honored," says the LORD. "You expected much, but see, it turned out to be little. What you brought home, I blew away. Why?" declares the LORD Almighty. "Because of my house, which remains a ruin, while each of you is busy with his own house. Therefore, because of you the heavens have withheld their dew and the earth its crops. I called for a drought on the fields and the mountains, on the grain, the new wine, the oil and whatever the ground produces, on men and cattle, and on the labor of your hands."

Porky was actually the one who found that, on the Bible that I had painstakingly installed on his cellphone. Here is the original text that scared me enough to tithe:

‘You expected a large harvest, but instead there was little, and when you brought it home it disappeared right away. Why?’ asks the Lord who rules over all. ‘Because my temple remains in ruins, thanks to each of you favoring his own house!

We were both convicted because he prioritized my hunger/lack of money over tithing, and I was prioritizing my stuff (which I bought to save money, except for the book!) instead of God. So I tithed.

I can't remember when I found this Isaiah passage, but I think it was on the same day I got rid of my tithe:

Isaiah 57:17-18

17 I was enraged by his sinful greed;
I punished him, and hid my face in anger,
yet he kept on in his willful ways.

18 I have seen his ways, but I will heal him;
I will guide him and restore comfort to him.

"Got rid of" because I treat that 10% as not just my homage to God. To be honest, I think of the tithe as more of a curse now: my finances will be cursed if I don't give it back to God and ASAP.

A part of me is driven by fear. But I am just allowing God to change my heart as regards to money, tithing and spending.

All I know now is that:

1) I need to tithe no matter what. So because Victory does not have a PayPal account yet, I am sticking to tithing to ministries that have PayPal accounts, because I just have to release my tithe before anything else I do with my money.

2) God is adamant and vehement about financial discipline. And it starts with tithing. Now if only there is a way to keep me from going crazy with the money the moment it's in my hands.

I wrote this to encourage those who are not convinced of the need to tithe. Malachi 3:10-12, the first verse on tithing that convicted me and stuck with me since, sums it up perfectly:

Malachi 3:10-12 (New International Version)

Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this," says the LORD Almighty, "and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it. I will prevent pests from devouring your crops, and the vines in your fields will not cast their fruit," says the LORD Almighty. "Then all the nations will call you blessed, for yours will be a delightful land," says the LORD Almighty.

Not convinced? Wait till God sends "pests on your grain". :p

*Please pray for me that I will grasp the need to and how to go about paying taxes next. Thanks!*

Kudos to:

http://www.biblegateway.com (For all the NIV quotes and other translations save for the GNB/TEV and the NET Bible quotes. :D For the Good News Bible/Today's English Version, go to http://bible.crosswalk.com :D)

http://www.bible.org (Home of the New English Translation, NET Bible)

Linkies

2007-11-03T03:12:00.001+08:00

Because we all need link and affiliate love, here are my linkies, for you to help me earn with. :)

http://viralurl.com/nenyalorien/blogsvertise >> Blogsvertise
http://viralurl.com/nenyalorien/myLot >> MyLot
http://viralurl.com/nenyalorien/yuwie >> Yuwie
http://viralurl.com/nenyalorien/paperz >> AcaDemon

Just click these links, and if you want to find out more, do send me mail at: lorie.hates.spam@gmail.com

Modern-day Parenting

2007-08-10T03:56:00.001+08:00

In this fast-paced world we live in today, the trend is that parents rarely see their children anymore. Technology is to blame, saturating today's kids with stimuli to the point that their already short attention spans are diminished further to the length of a gnat's. It would be easy to blame it all on technology and the changing times, but do parents realize that the very machines taking their kids away from them are the very ones that will draw them closer?

With cellular phones equipped with text messaging capabilities, and calls getting cheaper through VoIP, there would be no reason for you not to be able to reach your kids. If he or she is in college and lives further away, you can always reach your kid through email and instant messaging.

But using the tools of today is no substitute to the bonds that a touch, a word of encouragement, and spending time with your kids would build. Thus, even if you can always reach your kids through sms, calls, email, take time out and take your son fishing, teach him how to ride a bike, or shop with your daughter and giggle with her every chance you get. Remember that your kids' childhood is a fleeting period of their lives. If you let yourself be swamped with work, deluding yourself that this torture is for your kids, you will only have yourself to blame the day they decide to move out (and you're not ready) because they feel neglected or suffocated.

Building a relationship with your children is crucial in building them up as people. Use technology, and exhaust the means to communicate and bond with them. Instill time-tested values in them. Create family traditions, and make sure that there is a day set aside for family bonding time. Get to know them as the precious individuals that they are. Enjoy their being, and I'm sure, all these would make meeting those deadlines all the more worthwhile. :)

Making Money from Blogging

2007-07-17T08:34:00.000+08:00

Despite the fact that making money online through affiliate ads has been a very lucrative business for most, it seems that it was only today that I learned to catch on.

I decided to go for monetizing several blogs because I learned of a new blog ad service through a food blogger/photographer who happened by my i.ph blog.

And so, I'm gearing up for going full blast on the moneymaking on blogs. Thank you Chucky for making me realize that I can actually take revenge the healthy way. :p