Starting today, decide to be happy, to understand one's actions, to be considerate, to appreciate what you have, to laugh more and to live your life.
Just one day, choose what makes you happy, listen to your heart, be kind to others, don't judge someone for their actions, be grateful for all of the little things in life, appreciate the little things that's making you happy. A hot cup of tea? Fluffy socks? Warm bubble baths? Long walks? Cold breeze of the air? Appreciate it and never complain about what you don't have. After all, it's the little things in life that matters most. Who knows, it might turn out to a great and awesome day!
Saturday, 8 February 2014
Friends
Friends. What are friends? There’s so many definitions for
“friends” but we all don’t have the same definition for it. Friends are the
ones you spend your life with. It doesn’t matter if they’re not the same sex as
you, same color as you and same race as you, but what matters most is that they’ll
be by your side through good and bad times.
Friendship is the relationship between two people who loves and cares for each other, who trusts each other. Keeping a friendship strong means you need to consider each other’s feelings, you need to take care of them and treat them like a part of your family and lastly, we need to love and care for them as much as they love and care for us.
But in order to make a friendship a real one, you need to give and take, trust, support, be loyal and considerate to each other. Friendships are supposed to make both people happy, not feel like you’re forced to be friends with them just because they’re popular and cool. That’s not what it’s supposed to be like. And there will always be one point in our lives where we’ll be having hard times finding real friends but that’s ok because that just means new friends are about to come. Things like these happen and its normal. It’s life. We just have to live with it and move on.
Friends make you feel safe. There’s even times when we feel like we’re closer to them than our family members, and you feel like they’re basically a part of your family. Friends are the ones who won’t talk bad things about you behind your back. Friends are the ones who will always accept you for you even if you have different interests, different races, skin color, different taste in music, different taste in fashion, they will always accept you because they want you to be yourself and not change for anybody else. Not even for them. Even if you think you’re not skinny, you’re not good looking, you’re not popular, you’re not smart, they will accept you and will not want to change anything about you. They even make you feel good about yourself and not let you down. And in my opinion, friends like this are the best and truly amazing.
What are friends? It’s someone you can count on. It’s someone you can trust completely. It’s someone who will make you realize that after all, there’s still someone who will want the best for you and only the best for you. It’s someone who makes you feel safe. It’s someone who makes you feel important. It’s someone who will always be there for you. The one who will correct you if you’re wrong and not tolerate the wrong things you’re doing. Accepts your call even if it’s already 2 in the morning and not get angry because they know you need them. They’re the ones who will laugh with you. They’re the ones who will make you cry not because of sadness but because of laughter. They’re the ones who will make you forget about your problems even for a short period of time. They’re the ones who will help you face all your problems and struggles and cheer you up when you’re feeling sad. They’re the ones who will help you with your assignments when you’re having a hard time on it. It’s someone who will laugh at your corny remarks just to make you smile. They’re the ones who will do even the stupidest thing with you. They’re the ones who will fight with you over a small thing but get together again in just a couple of minutes. They’re the ones who will visit you when you’re sick. They’re the ones who will support you in any way they can. It’s someone who will help you and not expect anything in return. They’re the ones who already knows what you’re feeling or what your problems are without even asking why, they just look at your face and they’ll know what’s wrong. They’re the ones who will always see the good in you. And once you get to meet them, you’ll think about how lucky and blessed you are to have someone like them in your life. Having true friends is probably one of the best feelings in the world. I hope everyone will meet their true friends and make a strong and true friendships with them.
Friendship is the relationship between two people who loves and cares for each other, who trusts each other. Keeping a friendship strong means you need to consider each other’s feelings, you need to take care of them and treat them like a part of your family and lastly, we need to love and care for them as much as they love and care for us.
But in order to make a friendship a real one, you need to give and take, trust, support, be loyal and considerate to each other. Friendships are supposed to make both people happy, not feel like you’re forced to be friends with them just because they’re popular and cool. That’s not what it’s supposed to be like. And there will always be one point in our lives where we’ll be having hard times finding real friends but that’s ok because that just means new friends are about to come. Things like these happen and its normal. It’s life. We just have to live with it and move on.
Friends make you feel safe. There’s even times when we feel like we’re closer to them than our family members, and you feel like they’re basically a part of your family. Friends are the ones who won’t talk bad things about you behind your back. Friends are the ones who will always accept you for you even if you have different interests, different races, skin color, different taste in music, different taste in fashion, they will always accept you because they want you to be yourself and not change for anybody else. Not even for them. Even if you think you’re not skinny, you’re not good looking, you’re not popular, you’re not smart, they will accept you and will not want to change anything about you. They even make you feel good about yourself and not let you down. And in my opinion, friends like this are the best and truly amazing.
What are friends? It’s someone you can count on. It’s someone you can trust completely. It’s someone who will make you realize that after all, there’s still someone who will want the best for you and only the best for you. It’s someone who makes you feel safe. It’s someone who makes you feel important. It’s someone who will always be there for you. The one who will correct you if you’re wrong and not tolerate the wrong things you’re doing. Accepts your call even if it’s already 2 in the morning and not get angry because they know you need them. They’re the ones who will laugh with you. They’re the ones who will make you cry not because of sadness but because of laughter. They’re the ones who will make you forget about your problems even for a short period of time. They’re the ones who will help you face all your problems and struggles and cheer you up when you’re feeling sad. They’re the ones who will help you with your assignments when you’re having a hard time on it. It’s someone who will laugh at your corny remarks just to make you smile. They’re the ones who will do even the stupidest thing with you. They’re the ones who will fight with you over a small thing but get together again in just a couple of minutes. They’re the ones who will visit you when you’re sick. They’re the ones who will support you in any way they can. It’s someone who will help you and not expect anything in return. They’re the ones who already knows what you’re feeling or what your problems are without even asking why, they just look at your face and they’ll know what’s wrong. They’re the ones who will always see the good in you. And once you get to meet them, you’ll think about how lucky and blessed you are to have someone like them in your life. Having true friends is probably one of the best feelings in the world. I hope everyone will meet their true friends and make a strong and true friendships with them.
Wednesday, 5 February 2014
Interview with a Grants Manager
I recently interviewed Glen A. de Castro, a Grants Manager on Philippine-American fund. We talked about how his work is like, what's a typical day for him and so many more. The following is a summary of the conversation and interview with the manager:
I asked him a follow-up question "What would you say to anyone who wants to be like you if they grow up?" and he said that if anyone wants to be like him when they grow up, he would tell them to study hard, never give up on anything and if anything goes wrong, don't worry, its a part of a life, learn from it and you'll be successful. End of quote.
What is a typical workday for you?
According to Glen, a typical workday for him includes holding meetings to discuss proposals submitted to him for funding or
to plan some program activities. He also added, "the other side of my work is when I
get to travel to different places in the country to check the projects that
some organizations want us to support. I meet the members of the organization
and I ask questions about their proposals, what problems they want to address,
what are their activities, who will do the activities and how much will it cost
to do the activities. If the answers are good, then I recommend them for
funding. If not, I try to help the organization improve their proposal."
What do
you find most enjoyable in your job?
Glen said "There are many enjoyable
things in my job but I guess the most noteworthy is that I get to meet a lot of
people and I get to travel to so many places in the Philippines."
Are
there any negatives to your job?
He said that maybe it is not really negative, there are just times when work is overwhelming and it is just a part of the cycle and we all just have to live with it.
What's the toughest part of your job?
He said that the toughest part of his job
is when he's preparing the document that will invite proposals for submission to their office. He also added "I really have to be careful in putting in the priorities. Every word is
carefully thought of to ensure that the guidelines for submission of proposals
are clear."
How did
you get your job?
"When this project where
I am currently employed was conceptualized and developed, I was invited to be a
member of the proposal writing team." Glen said. He also said that when the proposal finally got approved,
they naturally invited him to fill in the post of Grants Manager for the
project.
If
you’d be given a chance to change your job, would you?
"No." Glen said. "There are lessons to
be learned here anyway." He also added.
How do
most people enter this profession?
Glen said that most of the people he knows in their industry started by working for non-government organizations -
especially the international ones. He also said "You really just have to be good at project
development and management and in grant-making to be able to land this type of
job. Once you get to know who are the donors in the country, how they do
grant-making and how do they manage it, then you are already in the position to
apply for the job. Of course, you have to wait for the opening."
What
educational preparation would you recommend for someone who wants to advance in
this field?
He recommends everyone who wants to be like him to take
social sciences courses. He also said "Depending on your passion, you can take advance degree
to be more competitive locally and globally."
How
long does it take for managers to rise to the top?
Glen stated "There is no one clear
career path. I became a manager 12 years after starting work."
Any "words of advice"?
"Keep on learning. Things
are changing fast and it is important that you have the skills, knowledge, and
capacity to ride the change. And when the going gets tough, try harder. Do not
ever give up." Glen said.I asked him a follow-up question "What would you say to anyone who wants to be like you if they grow up?" and he said that if anyone wants to be like him when they grow up, he would tell them to study hard, never give up on anything and if anything goes wrong, don't worry, its a part of a life, learn from it and you'll be successful. End of quote.
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