If I Resign At Work (Hopefully Not) , What's Next?
Isn't it lovely if ever that one day you will be resigning from your daily job and just focus on your crypto assets? Trade, collect NFT, or even curate posts and earn money from it.
This is something that I am looking forward to and excited to happen in the future.
I saw an article on the internet saying This ‘crypto mom’ quit her job and now makes up to $80K monthly from DeFi, NFT projects seem like the heavens are in agreement with the plan. https://www.cnbctv18.com/cryptocurrency/this-crypto-mom-quit-her-job-and-now-makes-up-to-80k-monthly-from-defi-nft-projects-11902892.htm
Or maybe google played another trick with the analytics again and feed me with articles that I invested time too. ( For sure this is the case and not the first one). Since I am checking Linkedin from time to time searching for some writing gigs and some freelancer groups/crypto groups for sure they have sold off my data again.
I am not seeing myself resigning yet but what if I do see it in the future what will be the plan? I am with my employer for more than 3 years and 4 months already. This is the longest employment that I had and I can say that I am well compensated by the company with the work though I can say that the stress level it gives is equal to the salary I think it is still better.
The first thing to do is to write a heartwarming letter to the leads and my onshore counterparts for the lessons that I have learned from them. While rendering my resignation I'll still try to be productive as I am.
I had experienced picking up multiple tasks from some of my previous workmates that resigned immediately. ( I don't want to be cursed by the folks that I will be leaving.) I did that so I don't want to have it returned back to me. Because when they left a mountain of workload was dumped on us, some are just relaxing and not working properly because they will leave. The project that I am handling involves reports and accounting thus it is imperative to have it updated on a weekly/monthly basis so if someone will be negligent a huge pile or task will be given to everyone to make ends meet.
Prior to the pandemic, I always say to my lead that if ever we will be back at the office I will be rendering my resignation.
I am seeing that it will be the case as they will be implementing the back to office set-up. Some are in the metro already functioning 100% but good thing our processes are still in our home because we deliver well even if we are in our houses.
Travel time will take 3 to four hours and based on my experience last May when I returned my locker keys at work the terminals are messed up! The places wherein I know where I can ride the bus to go home are non-existent anymore and when I asked the dispatcher they mentioned that only 2 buses are taking turns. Imagine the tiredness that I will have if it will be a daily journey again.
**How to make it happen?**
That is something that I am not 100% sure of. A short plan is to work my ass off on my blockchain accounts. Try to accumulate more tokens and stake them probably buy some from time to time after I pay off my loan to a friend of mine.
When I have spare cash, I will try to buy some tokens too with the salary that I am getting from work. A portion can go to savings, as I am beginning to lose confidence in banks especially the local banks that we have here. ( I will still be saving but it will be in cash). Local banks give a maximum of 1 to 2% per annum to the savings but you can get more than that in crypto.
In Hive when you place your earnings into savings it gives a 20% APR.
These are just short-term plans. I myself do not know what will happen next. While learning and trying to get some other investments I am also working on other projects such as podcast and video editing so that if I will say goodbye to my employer I still have another avenue to earn.
Celebrating Father's Day and Birthday on A Budget.
Going on a date and spending some time with your family outside our homes is not done for the past year due to multiple lockdowns and restrictions taking in place.
Back when we are in Biñan, there were a ton of places that we can go to like malls, coffee shops, restaurants, and other amusement areas within our reach. However, since the virus is still rampant and the government is asking everyone to stay in their homes we never had a chance to eat and enjoy the vicinity.
A year after, since some are already vaccinated and they are lifting the restrictions already we are able to spend at least this special day. I shared that I didn't celebrate my birthday because I had my tooth extracted the same day so we decided to at the very least eat out elsewhere after a few days. https://peakd.com/hive-188409/@tpkidkai/birthday-parties-are-overrated-or-a-visit-on-a-dentist-after-a-few-years
So Saturday morning we set our family date celebration. We chose Bahay sa Mojicap / House in Mojicap because of the good pictures that we are seeing on Facebook about the place plus it is somehow near to where we are staying. https://www.facebook.com/BahaysaMojicap/?ref=page_internal
The place was near Mojicap Lake thus it was named after the said landmark. San Pablo, Laguna is known for its Seven Lakes and Mojicap is one of them. The Lakes are the following: Bunot Lake, Calibato Lake, Mohicap Lake, Palakpakin Lake, Sampaloc Lake, Yambo, and Pandin Lake which we visited 4 years ago when my wife and I are still boyfriend and girlfriend. https://peakd.com/@tpkidkai/sharing-our-3rd-year-anniversary-a-visit-to-pandin-lake-san-pablo-laguna
Bahay sa Mojicap opens at 09:00 AM during weekends and since we saw some locals sharing the images of their visit we told ourselves to go there at around 10:30 and eat our brunch.
The place was serene and to our surprise, there were few people in the place and we are able to secure a spot where we can see the lake. They are offering rice meals on their menu and we ordered the following.
Chicken Tocino
Beef Tapa
Siomai
Kimchi ( side dish)
Mango Milkshake
Brewed Coffee
Yes, I am the one who picked beef tapa for my viand because it has been years since I ate it. Good thing the meat was tender and easy to chew if it was not I might have regretted it. But it was worth it! When we are eating, April and I are discussing that we will be back in this place in the future as she knew me as a picky eater. For the price, I can say that it is quite okay as the most expensive on their menu is 100.00 PHP / $2.00
After eating, we stayed for more than 30 minutes and enjoyed the scenery. Dyn-dyn on the other hand played and practiced her walking skills.
And because she got tired of walking a few steps she already asked to be carried by April and we all know what happened with the smile.
While we are eating and resting April and I talked about the importance of going outside for a while. Yes, it was quite costly compared to the usual prep meals that we eat at home but what matters is we will not be worried about preparing anything and washing the dishes after we ate. Plus it is a good way to unwind as I am working at home and each time I face my computer either I will be working or curating or creating content.
Overall this rest day was a blast for me as I was able to bond with April and Dyn outside without stretching our budget that much.
I will be doing some tutorials relating to Hive if you are interested on it let me know. Also you can send me a message using my accounts. Facebook , Discord or comment on this blog post. https://www.facebook.com/tpkidkai
When Weekends are Just Like Weekdays
Have you had such an experience wherein your weekend is almost the same as your weekday?
I had that just this week because of my negligence and laziness and here's a short story about it.
I am a part of Hiveph basically what we do is somehow guide some Filipinos that are new to Hive blockchain in that way they can at least skip some hardships on using the interface. The group consists of some old users from Steemit and some are totally new in the blockchain searches for possible additional income streams because who doesn't want right? https://discord.gg/2kuqfmBqDn
Now aside from teaching newbies about Hive, I am also assigned with the auditing and tracking of the finances of the community account. The job is relatively as I just need to put everything in a spreadsheet and make some infographics however because I delayed the report for more than 3 months already you now know what we are heading to.
So after the Hive Onboarding webinar that I did with @JenThoughts last Saturday evening, I started consolidating the data that's available on the blockchain.
It was hard! As the parameters only allow me to search and download the data for the past 30 days only and the data that I need for 90 days overall.
Because of that, I did everything manually and typed the data from March 20th till the present. It should have been easy if I did that before but yes I was lazy and working on other stuff as well.
I just completed the report at around 04:30 AM Monday and haven't created any post yet on my personal blog. Haha! But that is fine it was quite a good experience for me as I learned some of the stuff that can be used and applied to my corporate day job.
After consolidating the report in a google spreadsheet I encountered problems again.
*I only need to acquire certain data from a cell in the spreadsheet and remove the others.*
In my day job, all data are extracted by the reporting team and then forwarded to us to review and reconcile. I myself isn't that proficient in using spreadsheets and can only use the =SUM formula. But since this is outside my work I was forced to learn some of the formulas and steps to get the details.
After interpreting the data. I posted it to the community account and logged of my computer for a while. https://peakd.com/hive-188409/@hiveph/hive-ph-account-audit-update-rdqsns
I also celebrated Father's day but that will be a different story to be posted. that's all for now.
On the sidenote: If you are a Filipino and still trying to learn the ropes and wanting to understand Hive you can send me a message through discord or even join the discord group so that we can guide you.
It is for free btw.
How I Celebrated My 31st Birthday at a Dental Clinic
15th of June 1991 after more than 600 years, a dormant volcano in Pampanga released its rage on the northern part of the Philippines. Per information gathered from the internet, this is quoted as one of the most significant eruptions in the century. After a day, while ashes were falling a young man from the family of shoemakers was born in the basement of their home. Hospital birth isn’t the main thing back then as old folks rely on midwives for childbirth. It was a dark day as pyroclastic materials cover the vicinity, Laguna is quite far from Pampanga but the remnants of the volcanic eruption still affected some states.
Fast forward, the man that was born become an adult and had his own family. After celebrating the birthday of his first born he realized that he doesn’t need to have his own party anymore or prepare anything. He was happy with what life is offering him. Maybe because his own family is well and not in need? Who knows, but he is at peace and content.
After his night shift work, he just rested for a few hours and went to his newly found dentist. For the past few days last May, he is enduring the pain in the left portion of his teeth. The pain will go from a scale of four to five but since it isn’t that painful he said that he can still manage plus the fact that he is just new to the province and he is not sure if his healthcare provider will be able to cover the procedure.
By navigating the legacy website of his healthcare provider he was able to get a contact of two dentists from his place. It was around thirty minutes of travel and from the conversation, he is entitled to get a simple tooth extraction, a little cleaning with his teeth, and 2 oral prophylaxis which he acquired.
The cleaning took around 15 mins and 2 teeth were secured in the meantime for the prophylaxis procedure. Now the moment of getting rid of the perpetrator of pain. Btw, there was an extra charge of 500 PHP / $10.00 if someone will be using their health card for the infection fee. The price is quite cheap compared to the other practitioners that he inquired which will cost him more than that, almost double or triple.
Before proceeding with the tooth extraction the dentist asked if I have plans to go to work this day and he nodded yes. He mentioned that he just took a nap around 1:00 AM and he thinks that it is okay. They hesitated at first because they are worrying that the young man might bleed continuously while the extraction is ongoing so they asked again if he is sure and he answered yes.
While they are thinking about whether to proceed or not, the dentist mentioned that the coverage of his HMO will only be simple tooth extraction and when they say simply she mentioned that the tooth should be easily removed and no drilling equipment, etc. will be needed more often than not those teeth are the ones that are moving already. The young man was quite worried because he is sure that the affected tooth isn’t moving which the dentist confirmed. He has a healthy gums per se thus a moving tooth is close to impossible but since his tooth is already broken chances are the pain will escalate further and it may cause other issues in the future. He then asked for the possible price of the procedure and was quoted that it can be more than 1,000.00 or $20.00 depending on the situation. He thought about it for a few minutes, he has some spare money available but he will be buying milk for his daughter that day too! After pondering he said he will go with the procedure and will just buy a small carton of formula milk and told himself it is better than nothing as he will just go to the market after a few days again.
The taste of the anesthesia was bad! It tastes like bitter gourd extract and the two needles that were used caused pain. His left mouth started to get numb and the procedure begins. The dentist mentioned that if he experiences pain just says so in that way they can add an additional dosage of the drug and with the additional dosage there’s an additional cost.
They went back and forth and used different tools. The tooth was annoying and clingy and he doesn’t want to let go. The dentist asked every time if it is painful but the young man just said no it isn’t.
It was more than 10 mins until he heard the crack. The tooth is now moving and after a few seconds it finally fell off.
Was it painful?
Yes, it was but he was able to tolerate the pain or perhaps he conditioned his mind that if he will be adding another anesthesia then an extra cost will be charged to him as well.
Happy with the process the dentist mentioned that it was a good thing that he didn’t bleed that much and no equipment was used. She tap the back of the young man and said good job sir and visit us again after 6 months for the cleaning schedule.
For the final price of the procedure. He just paid 500 PHP for everything, no additional costs were charged to him as nothing extraordinary that isn’t covered by his healthcare provider was used.
Are You Seeing Your Addiction? What are the Stuff That I do.
When we talk about addiction what comes first into your mind?
By default, I will say it is illegal drugs, cigarettes, and alcoholic beverages. The place where I grew up was known to have multiple drug raids every now and then. We experience policemen knocking on our doors asking for certain people in the middle of the night and at that time we knew that our place is not a good place to stay. Pops started drinking during his teenage years plus the cigarette addiction was a mess that took a toll on everyone in the family over the past years. https://www.facebook.com/KalibreNgLente/photos/a.1705018103046179/2590822281132419/?type=3
So as someone who experienced multiple scenarios that negatively impacts everyone with the addiction I told myself that I will never be involved with those three which I was able to manage as of writing.
Photo by Mikail Duran on Unsplash https://unsplash.com/photos/siM_YaIGrzU
As I try to make myself more productive lately, I began to read a mini devotional book called The Daily Stoic 366 Meditations on Wisdom, Perseverance and The Art of Living by Ryan Holiday, and as much as I can try to incorporate the learnings that I get from the book. I am on the 8th day, and it talks about seeing our own addictions.
It shares some of the things that we think as harmless indulgences can become a full-blown addiction to which I agree 100%.
Have you noticed the notification bar in your Facebook account, Messenger, Tiktok, and Instagram and checked it from time to time? How about the never-ending scrolling in your social media accounts looking for something to react and watch too? Lastly, are you updated on the lives of celebrities or gossip from your friends, etc.?
If there's a court, for sure I will be marked as guilty as charged. This stuff may be small and I think are not that destructive are some of the things that I am addicted to and did I include reading **manhwa** and **manga**?
**They are my own addiction.**
It was fun until I will notice that some of the stuff that I need to do get delayed. A good example is creating a blog post and researching stuff on what I should write.
Though I stay away from my desktop to read my manga and manhwa I am using my device to access such. Also, when I scroll in Tiktok those funny videos don't seem to stop! As if the algorithm is telling me to stop being productive and just enjoy the moment and sing along with those catchy songs. Right now, if you will be asking me if I am up to date with the recent happenings in the showbiz industry, who cheated who, and what are the take of the influencers to cheating I am well versed in that too!
Now just because I see it, that doesn't mean that I do not care. I am well aware of how addictive it is but have never taken any action before.
**Actions that I did so far**
Currently, I uninstalled the Facebook application on my mobile device. I am on my 1st week and yes it is hard. More often than not, when I am idle at work I try to search for the app on my phone as my applications are sorted alphabetically so on the first page of my screen it will pop up immediately.
I still try to practice not using my device from time to time and whenever I go to the grocery or do my daily walk I try not to bring my phone even if the scenery in our place is serene.
In exchange for my manga and manhwa, I try to read books. Physical books that I can use markers and jot down some notes. E-books are one of the best innovations that we have but I am more to search mangabat.com or mangareader if I am not on my social media accounts rather than reading some of the ebooks that I downloaded from the cloud.
Right now, I am trying to read Telling the Truth to Troubled People by Backus in my spare time. I am hoping to have it finished before month-end as this book has been long delayed for more than two years already. https://www.amazon.com/Telling-Troubled-People-William-Backus/dp/087123811X
Gossips are quite hard to avoid! It seems that I am a magnet to such and I can feel if there is. Some say that men are much more gossiper than women but they do it in a subtle way. I am planning on not to indulge and view some pages that are known for such activities plus I might uninstall Tiktok in the next few days as it becomes my source of chismis too! Raffy Tulfo in Action, Papa Jackson, and other late-night shows gossiping I will try to avoid. On this one, I am not that confident that I can overcome but I will try my very best.
How about you have you seen your addiction? Are you taking action on it?
Being A New Parent is Hard: How Do You Handle Unsolicited Advice?
You will never be the perfect parent to your child in the eyes of everyone.
This has been the struggle of new parents when they are raising their own children. In reality, unsolicited advice should just be ignored as they do not weigh that much, however, more often than not people who give their unsolicited advice may be a parent, relative, or close friends and yes they are quite a trouble.
We all have different styles of parenting, what could have worked for them may have not worked on you, or the other way around.
I am a believer that unsolicited advice from someone comes from good intentions but they are mostly not welcome. Being a parent, we often get one advice from other people and it was quite an earful. My wife is the one who often gets those and at some point, she gets frustrated because she felt that in the eyes of everyone she is not doing the right thing.
Why Do People Give Unsolicited Advice
There are people who want to be involved in someone's life and it is a fact. Most of the time, it is the relatives who do such.
Back then April will do some Facebook stories of our daughter on her hairstyle because my wife is proud of how beautiful our little one's hair is. She was happy to share what she learned and the hair clips that we had bought back then. Until a relative commented about not using such hair clips as it is kinda rough to the hair of the baby.
It comes from a mother that never had a daughter, to begin with. So somehow the advice doesn't fit well as how can she say such if she never experienced having a daughter?
Some just want to feel that they know everything and by giving such advice they feel powerful and influential to the concerned parties.
Photo by Markus Winkler on Unsplash https://unsplash.com/photos/jOkfw6YfRGs
How To Respond to Unsolicited Advice
There's always a beauty in listening
I had been reading some books lately and I encountered a quote from Epictetus
We have two ears and one mouth so that we can listen twice as much as we speak.
I know and understand that some give advice that we don't need but before reacting have you tried to listen to what the message is? I have this thinking that if something comes up from a certain person I will never listen to them.
What I have learned is there's always something to learn from every person that we encounter in life. May it be the most annoying person on earth, they are there to teach us something. Changing perspective takes place.
Use acknowledgment statements
Working in the business process field we are required to acknowledge every concern that they want. When someone gave unsolicited advice say some acknowledgment words such as thank you for the advice, etc. Sometimes, those people just want to blurt out something out in the middle. Especially the old ones they just want someone to talk to because they don't have anything to do anymore except on playing candy crush.
Respond but not react
Each time someone will give their cents on how you are doing, at the very least try not to show that you are annoyed. You will be the villain in their story which we all don't want to happen right even if we all know that they are the ones who are not in the right way.
More often than not, arguments arise because the parent reacted negatively to the comment.
We had a fair share of that, which made us block some relatives as they gave negative remarks on how we are doing as a parent.
When we met a friend of ours that just got married. We asked them if they are planning to have a kid already and they mentioned that yes they are. The best advice that I gave to my friend was to ignore the naysayers and believe in what they know is right. They need to steel themselves as some wants to interfere with how you want to raise your kid though intentions are okay, still, some are outdated and not backed by science.
HivePH Webinar : Hive Basics
Happy Monday to everyone and I hope that you are all doing well. I am still busy with life and work thus I have little time to be online nowadays.
Technically the months that I am jampacked are March, June, September, and December due to quarter closing reports. At work, we are required to accomplish our deliverables and resolve any concerns each quarter so that we can hit the company's goal.
As a breather from the busyness at work. I decided to open a slot for a webinar this coming Saturday. I shared in my initial post here, that I am not that new to blogging and have been in the industry for quite some time. I think since some of us are looking into some alternative way to earn already heard about Hive Blockchain or maybe you already have an account available?
When I transitioned from Hive to Read.cash I find read.cash is easier to navigate and friendly to new users. Now for Hive, I think the majority can say that they had a hard time navigating everything and thus stopped creating a post midway. This is kinda sad, as there's also a huge potential on the said platform same with Read.cash and as part of the onboarding team from HivePH ( it is a local group of Hivers in the Philippines that tries to help Pinoy Hivers across the globe) we are tasked to help in that way the transition will be easier since most of us had a rough time as well figuring it out. https://peakd.com/@hiveph/
The webinar will just focus on the basic stuff in Hive.
How to log in using Peakd.com and install Hive Keychain in a browser.
How to create a blogpost
How your earnings are calculated.
How to grow your account and be accustomed to communities.
These are the topics that I am quite comfortable discussing. It will just be a short webinar and hopefully will not consume an hour or more so that everything can be applied the soonest.
If you are interested or you know someone who wants to learn about using Hive as an additional way to earn money you can use the link below on Saturday to join the webinar.
HivePH Webinar June 18,2022 Saturday 08:00 PM MNL
Will there be prizes for some of the attendees?
There's going to be a mini raffle for the folks that will join the webinar. If you are having trouble joining Hive, you can send me a message in discord and I can give you a special link that you can use to join.
This webinar is only open to Filipinos as I will be speaking in Tagalog for most of the topics covered.
If you have questions, feel free to comment I will try to answer those too.
Do You Still Believe in Superstitions?
Superstitions have been passed down from generation to generation and have been ingrained into the tradition of everyone. If you will be asking some people here in the Philippines, for sure one or two may be saying that they still believe in such.
Growing up, I had encountered multiple superstitions from my parents, relatives, and even strangers.
I always visit the wet market and have interactions with the vendors. Since I frequently go there early in the morning, more often than not I am their first customer for the day. They have this belief of "*buena mano*" at times I enjoy the treatment as they tend to be more attentive and happy with serving but there are times wherein I do not. I was called a *"salty"* customer by one of the regular shops that I frequently visit and guess what happened next. ~~( I made sure that I took a bath before going to the wet market after that scenario)~~. I never went there to buy my goods and just bought my stuff elsewhere. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/buena_mano
So last Sunday, after we went to eat in a local shop which I will share in the future heavy rain started to pour in our area. The terminal to where we should take our ride is quite far so we stayed in a small alleyway to keep ourselves dry.
In the alleyway, there's a salon that offers haircuts for kids that cost around 100 PHP around $2.00. Since Dyndyn is already 1 year old and we are there already we decided to have her hair done and also hope that the rain will stop after the session.
Contrary to what we are expecting she was calm during the process and the attendant in the salon was happy with how Dyndyn behaved.
**She was quite a sweetheart!**
As we are being interrogated by the attendant, she asked us if this is the first time that she got a haircut. We mentioned that yes it was her first and we are shocked that she didn't have any tantrums in the process. Welp, most of the time she only expresses or shows that she is irritated if she is at home.
Since it is her first we are asked to keep a few strands of her hair and then put them in a book. I am well familiar with that belief as my sister-in-law did that in her son. Strands were kept in a book that I own believing that the child will become smart and he is! He is getting excellent grades at school.
We just respectfully mentioned that we do not believe in such superstitions but still they insisted to keep them I just smiled and said it is okay. I am more into logical thinking so most of the time if someone will be saying something to me more often than not I might shrug them off.
If there's a scientific reason why not? This is what I am into.
One of the superstitions that I follow religiously is not sleeping or laying down if my stomach is full. They believe that it is bad for health if you practice such and my doctor also mentioned that I should not be doing it as I am experiencing issues with my stomach. Hyperacidity to be exact, and there may be a case wherein I may have acid reflux each time that I lay down with a full stomach.
So if you will be asking me if I believe in superstitions, I will say I do at times if there's a scientific backing. But if there's none I do not.
How Do You See Taxes in Life?
There are 2 things certain in life and it is death and taxes. Taxes is usually seen as evil and something that is a burden for everyone. If we have a choice to avoid it for sure the majority of us will be doing so. This is why multiple exemptions are being used and abused to ensure that everyone, especially institutions, will not pay taxes.
A higher tax might be implemented next year as the country's debt skyrocketed due to the pandemic and we in the Philippines see it as an additional expense that we need to shoulder But have you realized that we have what we called taxes in life?
In a quote from Seneca - a known person in Stoicism philosophy
>Nothing will ever befall me that I will receive with gloom or a bad disposition. I will pay my taxes gladly. Now, all the things which cause complaint or dread are like the taxes of life – things from which, my dear Lucilius, you should never hope from exemption or seek escape - **Moral Essays: Volume I De Providentia. De Constantia. De Ira. De Clementia** https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/1104180
Taxes in life are the things that cause complaint or dread which we should never hope to be exempted or escape. Do you happen to know why?
Have you ever lost some sleep these past few days just to pursue your goal? Do you render extra hours at work to get extra pay on the side?
Or maybe, instead of you resting during your free days off you still hustle at a different side gig?
If you are a student, to memorize and pass the exams you spend your midnight trying to learn more and answering your modules?
What do you feel when doing such?
I am working in a Business Process Outsourcing company here in the Philippines for more than a decade now. The pay is good since the daily rate that was given to us is above the minimum standard that the government-mandated. Just to give a figure an entry-level representative may be offered around 16,000.00 PHP per month on their salary this is around $320.00 per month it may still vary as some accounts offer incentive premiums depending on the complexity of the process. Back when I started my initial salary is 12,000.00 PHP ($240.00) + 3,000.00 PHP as an attendance bonus plus other premium incentives ( this was the offer 10 years ago.)
But here's the catch, you will be working at night well there are some that offer a day schedule but very minimal. Usually, the work will start at 8:00 PM PH time and the closing hours would be around 2:00 AM PH time. Imagine yourself working during these hours you literally make the evening into nighttime. To cope with these schedules a ton of my colleagues drink coffee, energy drinks, etc to stay awake during work. I myself consume at least 2-3 cups of coffee in a day religiously ( till now) and what do we get?
**Hyperacidity**
Which sometimes leads to hospitalization if it worsens.
Aside from that if your schedule is at 12:00 midnight do you think it is safe in the streets of Metro Manila? Dogs and vagrants roam around and you are the only one awake walking in the dark alleys to get a ride.
Lastly, you will not be getting enough sleep daily. Sleeping in the morning and afternoon isn't the same as sleeping in the evening. There are too many distractions such as the sunlight, noises from the outside, and activities in your home.
But I gladly accept it because this is the price that I have to pay to get better pay. This is the life tax that I pay.
You may be a migrant worker, working outside the country. I have some friends in the crypto-verse that mentioned they have chosen such jobs because they can provide better compensation to their families. What do they pay?
They pay for the lost hours that they can be with their families.
I believe that working overseas to provide for yourself and your family is a noble job. As they try to endure being away from their loved ones for too long. I myself, can't imagine being away from my wife and daughter for an extended period and this is why I hustle hard.
When we start to accept and pay them with gladness we will see our hardships in a different perspective. Though at times I wish that if they can be skipped why not this is the price that we need to pay to get to where we want to be. The journey is long and thorny but you must endure to get there!
All images used are from Unsplash.com
Practicing the Art: Become Who You Want to Be.
**First say to yourself what you would be; and then do what you have to do. - Epictetus**
I am in love with learning the philosophy of Stoicism and little by little I started to incorporate it into my daily life. Yesterday, I did plan to create a post but some unforeseen factors happened. Electricity was cut due to the scheduled maintenance and the internet ran amok. I was informed that the service got restored at around 2 or 3 in the afternoon and I am already in deep slumber.
Photo by Zlaťáky.cz on Unsplash https://unsplash.com/@zlataky?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText https://unsplash.com/s/photos/marcus-aurelius?utm_source=unsplash&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=creditCopyText
Going back to the topic of the art of who you want to be, have you thought of it thoroughly?
I have always thought about it lately and one of the things that spring up into my mind is to become a polished writer. Not a spammy one but someone serious about making meaningful content for other people. Am I good enough? No I am not for sure!
**How can I become a polished writer then?**
The answer is simple but I always tend to be lax and that is to read more and practice writing daily. Make it a habit wherein I will make sure that there’s something that I was able to write that fits the standard that I have set for myself.
I remember back then when I was working for my previous employer. We handle accounting, sales tax, lien, and bond filling.
I was having a hard time with such rules and conditions when I started and most of my colleagues are also in the same boat as I am. However, I decided that I wanted to become an expert in the field.
It was a pioneer account thus when it was migrated here in the Philippines very little information are cascaded to everyone. Most of the knowledge that we had acquired is from our U.S. counterparts who were back then in the process of resignation.
I read and inquired to them. Also, I took the liberty of researching the emails that they are sending trying to understand what the statutes of limitations are and when the time comes for a promotion I was able to secure a spot as I become a pillar of the process. I’d recall amending the SOP’s ( Standard Operating Procedures) in line with the updates that we receive from time to time. Now imagine if I didn’t say to myself that I would be an expert on the said process, will I be on that spot?
Why it is important to say it to yourself?
Because more often than not we tend to believe and accept what people say to us.
*I have often wondered how it is that every man loves himself more than all the rest of men, but yet sets less value on his own opinion of himself than on the opinion of others. - Marcus Aurelius.*
Ever wondered how many dreams are shattered because no one believed in them? Or maybe you had the fair share of such goals but since no one encouraged you to do so you drop the ball and give up midway.
We are in the same situation my friend. Prior to reading and trying to understand it more often than not I look for validation from other people. The validation that I am doing good and praise of what I have done.
For sure praises are good but what happens next?
By saying who you want to be to yourself, you are making a covenant to the highest being in your life second to God which is YOU. Though there are times wherein such words are a longshot, well will it be much better to start slowly to get where you want to?
As Stoics have mentioned in their books multiple times. We cannot control everything, but if it is within our realms of command we need to do whatever it takes for us to achieve it.
Say No to The Things That Don’t Matter ( A Personal Reflection )
Saying No is hard, though it is a two-letter word it holds a heavy weight for everyone. It also holds true to the things that do not matter to us.
***Each time that we say yes to something we say no to other things.***
Have you ever felt that you have less time in a day to do all the things that you do?
I always have that dilemma as I try to juggle being a corporate slave, a father, a blogger, a reader, a runner, etc. There are times wherein I find it hard to determine which to be prioritized as I feel that everything is set in prio one. Everything is a priority thus I need to say yes to all.
**But one thing I realized is I should not say yes to all and here’s why.**
I am working at night and trying to become a content creator after work. In my wee hours, I visit discord to chitchat with some friends. There are times wherein I take my lunch early and hit the sack to somehow rest my mind. Lastly, I spend time reading manga if I am bored.
On my end, I find it ***“productive”*** because I can do multiple things at once but am I really being productive as such?
*When I say yes to saying yes to chitchatting I say no to working with the reconciliation of books that I am handling.*
*Each time that I hit the manga streaming site, I say no to other things that I should prioritize.*
And so on and so forth, so we go back to each time that we say yes to something. We say no to other things.
What Are The Things That Matter to You?
This has been boggling on my mind from the start of this book. Setting the right priorities and targets. True enough, I have some list that should be prioritized on default but they are not set in stone thus more often than not it is discarded along the way.
Here’s mine in order:
Family
Finances
Leisure
So on this list, I set family as my main priority, second to finances and last is leisure. Family is a no-brainer choice as some of us tend to drop everything each time our family is involved.
Finances and leisure times interchange with one another at times and my most used and abused reasoning is I always work hard so a short break from everything is a must.
*We are not rich*, I can say that we are getting by on a daily basis without getting hungry. Though my goal is to be free financially my work will not get me there.
Being a corporate warrior will not make you rich. It can bring food to the table and sometimes good food. So this is why I hustle and at times I fail to do such.
Outside the working environment, I am lazy. Do you ever feel that you do not have the energy to do things anymore after work? That is what I am experiencing, and to destress I read manga or even watch some animes. I play at times and usually spend five to six hours a day playing. Statistics on my phone show that I have more or less forty to fifty hours of screen time per week. Almost the same as my time at work.
**Do you see where I am headed?**
**Leisure becomes a priority**, then family and last finances. I had some instances wherein my wife said that I am more into my device rather than having time with them which is disheartening to hear. I just excused myself that I am researching and all but it was a bad act on my part.
After realizing what I did, I apologized and promised that will do better this time. Right now, I cut my leisure time and allotted hours after work to take care of them.
Why To Learn is To Be Free?
Have you ever wondered why it is important for us to learn? Most of the time, we read to let the time pass as we flip one page to another we become free from the cares of this world a little bit. Now, are you learning about that? Yes and yes.
Some may say that you are not learning by reading fictional books, Errr some may cringe if they figure out that you are reading stories on Wattpad as adults think that it is written by folks who are in their pre-teens. But I myself find joy in reading such back then. I remember when “Diary ng Panget” was not yet widespread in my teen days. I was one of those avid readers waiting for new chapters to be released. But what did I learn in the process? I learned to be patient.
In this devotional, I have learned that self-knowledge is essential in achieving freedom.
Socrates had mentioned “**Know Thyself** ” which is imperative to our success in the future. But how can we be free if we know ourselves? https://www.ajol.info/index.php/sophia/article/view/115083
By understanding what we can and cannot do we can take action in our lives. Imagine applying to a higher position at work. After reading the basic requirements you already knew that you are qualified already in the post mentioned. But, you have doubts about whether you will pass or not so fear crept in and you end up with the same post till this year no movement.
**Do you know who you are?**
Most of us already knew who we are, what we want, and what we can do. Yet, what we lack is the encouragement to do it. At times we are afraid of the unknown. Well, more often than not we just want to sit still and watch for things to happen idly believing that if it will happen it will happen, (Mangyayari kung mangyayari)
**Your action today can be a small step toward your future**
**So what did you do today?**
Earlier, I read manga for more than 5 hours straight while doing the laundry. Did I learn something or had a chance to earn some $$ that can help me with my goal to be financially free?
I always want to justify myself, believing that it is an *investment* to me as I am eyeing to write blogs relating to manga that I have read but after reading today’s chapter I felt attacked. Nor ashamed of what I am doing.
I told myself that I want to be free and learn more about cryptocurrency. But what can Overgeared, Solo Levelling, and other mangas do to help me understand it? None.
Again, going back to the question, what did you do today. It is okay to splurge at times but every time that you feel distracted by your goals always remember what you are doing right now is for your future tomorrow.
For today and to the upcoming months I am committing myself to read more books. I have a ton in my books box that are left unread for more than 2 years already and I felt that the knowledge that I have are depleting from day to day. ( Do you also experience that? Is it related to getting old? )
The Stoicism book can be read for 5 mins a day only with some reflection on the side I guess will be around 30 mins I guess. But more importantly, read and reflect the Bible.
I haven't flipped the pages on mine for quite some time :(
Who Has a Control in Your Life and Why?
You do you, this has been a practice that I had been following since my teens. I was always consumed with impulses and actions back then but after toning down and realizing some of the actions that I did little by little I was able to manage somehow things in life that I have control over. It was a tough choice back then, I do not understand how to explain it to others so I just simply explain that "I just don't care at all" which is true.
Now after some time wondering and researching about it and as I have shared in my blog somehow I realized that I am practicing Stoicism. https://read.cash/@tpkidkai/how-accepting-defeat-can-help-you-improve-your-health-5507812f
Stoicism **teaches the development of self-control and fortitude as a means of overcoming destructive emotions**; the philosophy holds that becoming a clear and unbiased thinker allows one to understand the universal reason (logos) - Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stoicism#:~:text=Stoicism%20teaches%20the%20development%20of,the%20universal%20reason%20(logos).
As I learn more about this philosophy, the more that I knew that I know less. I had the idea back that I am just embodying the persona of Ferb in the series Phineas and Ferb.
Image Source https://www.pinterest.com/pin/how-to-draw-ferb-fletcher-from-phineas-and-ferb--793407659352161714/
Right now, I am doing the The Daily Stoic: 366 Meditations on Wisdom, Perseverance, and the Art of Living and I am on the month of January. https://www.amazon.com/Daily-Stoic-Meditations-Wisdom-Perseverance/dp/0735211736
If you wonder to why I am starting with January, rather than May the reason is quite obvious. I just started this book and a better way to enjoy the process is instead of jumping on the middle part start with the beginning meditation.
The first part of the book is Discipline and Perception and January focuses on the keyword, **Clarity**.
*Clarity -* the quality or state of being clear - merriam-webster https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/clarity
One of the key takeaways that I had with the session was the idea of differentiating the things that we can control and the things that we cannot control. Also what we can have influence and what we do not have.
Why it is important to know the things that we can and cannot control?
Let's give a short example as a reference. Heavy traffic in Metro Manila, is it something that we can control or we cannot control?
If you answer, we cannot control we are in the same page. But if you answered we can can explain why such?
Going back to our example we will be using it again in a scenario about understanding our control.
You will have a meeting at around 10:00 AM ( whatever timezone that you are ) now, you knew that traffic jams exist in the road that you will take and probably will take you an hour or two just to reach the destination. Are you going to leave home early and a lot more than two hours of your time or just go with the flow and hope that you will arrive on time?
Aside from the traffic we have other external factors such as accidents along the way, jeepneys stopping and waiting for other passengers in every corner etc.
Do you get my point there?
By understanding such you can make informed decisions in life. This time I just used something easy but what about a grand plan?
**You can also apply this philosophy.**
Example: Have a savings of $1,000.00
Is it controllable or not?
This example applies to both can be and cannot be controlled. But this time I will say that it can. Simply because this is an inspirational blog post!
So how can we have control of having savings of $1,000.00?
**Buy only the stuff that you NEED don't be enticed to the mall sales 1/1, 2/2, 3/3 etc.**
**Do not let other people know that you have spare money - they will ask you to lend them some.**
**HUSTLE and Work Smart.**
**Look for other side gigs in your free time.**
And so on and so forth.
By following such, you will notice an increase of savings along the way.
You cannot undo the choices that you did before but you can always change the outcome of your future. Do not be slump in the present situation that you are in MOVE! and MOVE FORWARD.
If we can focus on the things that we can have control of within our day we will have an edge to the people who are still figuring out what to do in their life.
Personal focus:
*What are the things that you think you can control of right now within your day that can make some changes in the future?*
You can also find this devotional on this link Control and Choice https://dailystoic.com/control-and-choice/
4 Life-Changing Quotes from The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho that can help you be inspired.
Aside from the Bible, one of the books that I love to read is The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho, the reason for that is because it has many quotes that can help you be inspired by whatever challenges you are going through. A ton of people out there had a chance to get a glance of reading this book one way or another and got inspired by the tidbits of information that it gave.
But before going to the main topic about the quotes given to me when I read this book, let me share some of the information you might have missed out on when you read it.
Didn’t you know that this book was written only in 2 weeks and before achieving success there were a ton of struggles that Paulo had when he launched the book? Some of them are the following:
The publisher mentioned that he might not get any sales of more than 900 books which is something that he didn't; imagine as of this time per google search this book was sold more than 65 million copies and got translated into 80 languages way bigger than the expected amount of sales that the publisher forecaster
Also aside from that, the title that was given got a remark that will not be sold he was criticized that it is not a good title for a book.
And, when Paulo Coelho introduced the book to the masses he himself did the touring and joined book fairs to promote his work, in a blog post that I read he even went to places wherein some people do not go to promote the works. Which is remarkable.
Now go to the main topic of this blog post for the quotes that can help you be inspired what the relation of the removed words that I shared is.
**And, when you want something, all the universe conspires to help you to achieve it.**
Remember when he is trying to promote his work, the universe conspires him to have it achieved. The same goes with everyone when we want to achieve something in life we can be assured that the universe conspires to help us achieve it some say that this is where the law of attraction came from you attract what you want to attract. Most networkers use this quote to empower people and somehow it is true.
**It's the possibility of having a dream come true that makes life interesting**
All we have dreams that we want to achieve, now achieving them will be a challenge for us for sure, and having them makes the journey worthwhile. Some already achieved their dreams but others are still struggling to achieve them. It is the process of achieving it that makes everything interesting. Imagine if you do not have any goals in life, you exist to exist and have no plan ahead that is boring right?
But since you have goals and you want to get something in life it makes everything interesting and learning something in the process makes you go to extra lengths. Some of us spend time sleepless nights to realize our dreams.
You can all relate to that as we grind ourselves daily to achieve or at least get one step toward our goals.
Along the way, you will also meet like-minded folks that will help you in the journey like Santiago in the book. If you haven’t read it you take at least 1 week to read this amazing book because it is a life-changing one.
**When we love, we always strive to become better than we are. When we strive to become better than we are, everything around us becomes better too.**
I have shared it before, we always give our best foot forward to the ones that we love. This is not only applicable to the person but rather in general. If you love what you d, we strive to become the best at it. We try to learn more about the thighs that we love, and little by little we become better at it.
I would always recall how my writing and research suck but since I began to love the craft little by little I become better at it. I have spent many hours listening to some Youtube videos on how to write better and even reading blogs from other people and applying what I have learned from them.
Also, as you enjoy the process everyone becomes better too! You tend to share your craft with others and get feedback and their lives are being changed as well.
There is only one thing that makes a dream impossible to achieve, the fear of failure
This reminds me and every one of us that we can reach our dreams. Yet, what stops us is the fear that we will fail. I always remember how many dreams are crushed even before they started to be materialized because we are afraid to fail. So what if we fail? So what if we didn’t hit the right mark at first? Does it change you? You might have experienced humiliation I guess but at the end of the process, you learned something right?
**We fail but that does make us stronger and more knowledgeable in the process.**
So that’s it these are my takeaways and my answer to the 30 Day gratitude challenge A book that I love reading.
30 Days of Gratitude: Biggest Gift Received in Life
From all the gifts that you had received in this lifetime, have you tried to assess yourself on what is the biggest / greatest gift that you had received?
This is the question that I decided to answer for the 30 days of gratitude challenge from @Jane blogpost'. I am having some dryness on the creative side lately and even getting lazy on researching the usual topics that I am covering thus it will be a good breather for me this time. I hope that I can complete the 30 days gratitude challenge as I am not that consistent in creating content and doing them in my spare time. https://read.cash/@Jane/30-days-of-gratitude-challenge-accepted-unblocking-writers-block-1685d73c
Going back to the greatest gift that I had received, for now, you may have already a clue about what it is based on the image above. If you haven't guessed it yet, it is my wife and my daughter.
Some guys will say that a car, laptop, gaming device, basketball shoes, and NFTs will be the greatest gift that they can receive but in my case, it is quite different or I am not interested in such material stuff anymore.
Journey Being A Husband
We got married 29th of February prior to the start of lockdown here in the country. My wife knew each other for a while but not that much as we didn't practice living together as boyfriend-girlfriend. When we did the *"****pamamanhikan****"* ( I do not know the English term ) some of my relatives asked if she is pregnant and that is why we are getting married. Somehow, I am quite private thus the time that my relatives knew that I had a fiance is the time that they are meeting my in-laws. I always believe that there are things best kept in private.
Transitioning from being a boyfriend to a husband was quite hard! There are days wherein either you will be getting on her nerves or I will be getting on her nerves with the simple stuff. Budgeting was also an issue as we are both fans of eating out and ordering online. The bills that we pay are also one of the stresses that we have, from being a freeloader in our respective homes now we pay for rent, electricity, water, and garbage bills.
**So what is the greatest gift there?**
It is the joy of journeying together with the person whom you decided to spend your life with. The impromptu short walks in the morning that discuss what will happen next in life, supporting each other's dreams and aspirations. And more, someone to wake you up and prepare you a hot cup of coffee to start your day. ( So cheesy naman this guy)
As a young reserved guy, I am grateful that someone took a chance and said yes to me without any hesitation.
As of this moment, I am still learning the ropes of being a good husband. There's no Youtube course that you can enroll in but there are a ton of people that I was able to get a hold of asking for help and ideas. Also, the best resource person is available within reach too which is my wife.
On Being A Father
When becoming a parent, a new person lives in you. I will still remember the first day that I saw my little one in the nursing area. Mixed emotions surged into me and tears began to fall in my eyes due to amazement. I always joke with my wife that when we shared our wedding vows, I never shed any tear on it but when I saw our kid as if a cry switch was "on" I can't stop myself.
After becoming a dad, I understood why my father behave in that way. Back then I will always say that my father keeps on working days and never had the chance to attend to our needs. Dad is a workaholic and this is the trait that I think I inherited from him. I always tend to make sure to see things to an end when I start something and with my 6 siblings, my mom agreed as well that I take the personality of my dad. I am not the closest to him btw but, but I guess because we have both strong ideologies most of the time we clash.
**I never knew that I have an OVER in anything persona.**
Growing up as a middle child, somehow we are tasked to become independent ourselves. In a typical Filipino household, the middle children are the ones who are often neglected and thus required to become more capable. The firstborns may raise an eyebrow on this one but hear me out before you bat me an eye.
Firstborns still get some guidance from their parents as they are seen as the head of the household at times. However, middle children more often than not are disregarded as either parent will prioritize the older ones because they are the ones that will be able to help them in the future and the youngest as they are their babies.
So going back, now that I have our own child, I realized that I want to shower everything with all that we own. May it be food, toys, medicine etc if there's a need to buy something I immediately go to the nearest grocer to search. ( Such a spoiler)
If my daughter is not feeling well, I always say that go ahead and schedule a visit to the doctor and so on.
So there you have it, this is my response to the 30 days gratitude challenge. I enjoyed writing this blog post and working on the draft on my second day.
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Carpal Tunnel Updates: EMG Test Results
Hey guys happy Sunday to everyone and I hope that you are all doing well.
As I have shared in my previous blog post about my condition, I talked about the test that I will be taking to determine what is the actual score for the pain that I have. https://read.cash/@tpkidkai/take-care-of-your-hands-signs-of-carpal-tunnel-syndrome-9ebbae8b
I was not able to take some pictures of the hospital proper and the room of the doctor as they have some rules that we need to follow.
Saturday noon was the scheduled appointment with the doctor, as protocol the day prior to availing of the program the patient ( which is me at that time) should send a request to the Viber phone number of the hospital to have my request approved. I am using our company's pre-need health card for the test. Onset, I have asked Doctor Ong if the test can be covered by my card since I don't have funds to spare and he said that it will be thus my concern has been relieved.
For reference, the cost of the test is would range from 5,000.00 ($100.00) PHP to 8,000.00 ($160.00) (depending on the test that will be required. There are 2 test involved. The first one was just the electric shocks and then the other one was the needle. I experienced both btw and I will be sharing the experience.
I signed first the waiver in case something will happen after the test.
We started with the simple exercise again like holding his hand, testing the grip, and some tests that I had shared before.
Electric Shock Experience:
Doc Ong mentioned that the shocks don't hurt at all. If he will rate the pain it is tolerable as the electricity that will be used will just trigger some of the nerves in the process.
He started with my right palm, which is the dominant hand, and he is right it doesn't hurt at all! You will feel the electricity running to your palm but I haven't noticed that. My eyes were glued to the machine that reads the results. As the electricity runs into my palms, I tried to understand what does the graph means as he enter some details into his computer and guess what. I didn't understand it all. I just knew that there is something wrong with my palms as when he entered the details and the computer run the diagnostics I have a red remark. There he confirmed that I have a mild case of carpal tunnel in my right hand.
Now for the left side, he did the same thing and I had the same diagnostic. My left part isn't somehow used but for the past day's itis the one who is causing me to pain especially the shoulder part.
The needle test:
Are you afraid of needles? This is the first question that I was asked. I mentioned that I am not as long as I will not see the insertion because if I see it, I will feel the pain.
**How about you? Are you afraid of needles?**
After trying to send a dry joke to Doctor Ong, he mentioned that the pain will just be the same as the one in Matrix.
I was not aware of what he is talking about. Though I know The Matrix movie but I guess I am not that attentive when I was younger. I am well aware of the fight scenes on that though. So for everyone's reference here is what is talking about.
Image source https://www.gamespot.com/gallery/the-matrix-37-things-you-didnt-know-about-the-orig/2900-3521/#19
We had a small pep talk prior to inserting the needle and I found out that we are in the same age bracket! After the intermission, he prepared the needle and asked me to bow my head and he will now insert the needle into the left side of my neck.
He told me to inhale as deep as I could prior to insertion. It was painful indeed.
If I will rate the pain level I think it is 5/10 I felt the pain, but it was tolerable until he asked me to try to bend down a little and force my chin to reach my chest with still the needle on my neck. Was it fun? No, it is not, I wasn't able to see the graph anymore but while we are doing the test he mentioned that I have a twisted nerve around my shoulder.
This time, there are sounds that can be heard from the machine. If you are familiar with the ultrasound in the OB-Gyne then that is the sound that I heard.
He did the insertion on my right neck too but didn't notice any irregularities. Good grief it is okay. But I will agree with the said results.
Overall, I was stabbed by the needle six times 2 in my neck, 2 in my forearm, and 2 in my elbow and they are all painful. He wasn't able to see the pain that I am experiencing personally as we are wearing facemasks in the process.
Recommendation :
I was recommended to continue the medication that I am taking and need to do my physical therapy the soonest. I have 6 sessions that are pending and was informed that if incase that my situation will not be better after a Magnetic Resonance Imaging ( MRI ) will be conducted to further check on what is going on. I was also advised to limit my computer usage and continue using the ergonomic items to avoid the pain escalating.
For everyone's reference here's the short youtube video that I found in the internet:
https://youtu.be/n4UqGQRvjnc
How Accepting Defeat Can Help You Improve Your Health.
Experiencing defeat is inevitable in life. We all experience that one way or another. Now the question is why it is important to accept our defeat and how it will improve our health.
For sure we all have our coping mechanisms per se and I can say that whatever works for you may not work for others. So what am I pointing out now in my blog then?
Welp, I am just here to give some insights on how accepting defeat can be of help and improve your health.
**Now let's talk about acknowledging our emotions first.**
Image source
Growing up, I can say that I am not exposed to a variety of emotions. Some say that I was trained to be a robot as I can only respond yes or no to some questions. https://pixabay.com/photos/man-depressed-sitting-on-the-floor-2734073/
I had a hard time navigating the right mix of emotions as it is always been suppressed. In a household where men should not shed any emotion, being fragile is a sign of weakness.
Until I reached the working age. Got involved with many people and little by little became more aware of it.
Going back, identifying the correct emotion of defeat is important. You need to take time to acknowledge everything and what it means to you to win. Getting mad, upset, and frustrated is normal and it will help you heal and cope healthily.
When you learn to accept defeat, and did not rush the process you give time to yourself to understand what will be your next action. You can fast forward everything by downplaying the emotion but once the triggers resurface again sure you will be back in the same defeated situation.
Overestimating Your Abilities.
There are times wherein we need to be humbled. When was the last time that you felt that you can do everything perfectly but for some reason, folks around hated you in a way because they felt that the air has gotten in your head?
I am not saying that it usually happens, but it happens right? When we always experience winning proud and invincible.
Overestimating our abilities can sometimes lead to injuries too! The first step in fixing such problems is facing the reality that we over-estimate ourselves rather than downplaying and pretending that it didn't happen. The second is to re-evaluate how you approach it and adjust your expectations.
Image Source https://pixabay.com/photos/mirror-man-darkness-sadness-3864155/
**Fewer expectations, less hurt.**
Underestimating your abilities can mean missing out on reaching your goals that are completely within your reach. A point to consider too is if you give up before even trying because you think you are not good enough that will be the same as overly thinking about your skills.
Tsk, it is just a thin line but that thin line does matter.
Avoid comparing yourself to others.
The benefits of better health are also the benefits of simply being happier. And if you are happy and you know it it will show! You will be more effective at work and will have a better relationship with your family and friends and sometimes you will feel that whatever challenges life has to offer you can face the day with a smile.
The key to improving one's health is accepting the process and not the end goal. I know some will say that the end goal will be either victory or defeat but have you already checked the process, and your improvements along the way? How about the learnings that you had accomplished?
Accepting yourself where you're at, will help you avoid the comparison with others who may be also struggling with their journey.
Comparing oneself to others can also lead to stress and depression as you try to compete with others, you tend to focus more on them than on yourself.
Have You given yourself time to heal?
I know it is devastating, allow yourself to grieve and get used to the reality that you have right now. CRY if you must and scream if it is needed.
Some folks will say that to feel better, you just need to go out with your friends, keep yourself busy, or party but that doesn't work in the long run. Again do not rush the process and do not force yourself to move forward if you are not ready.
Also trying to be productive will not work thus don't force yourself to do anything productive. Your life may be a mess right now but there's no pressure to have it together in an instant. Trying to squeeze productivity, will not work. TRUST ME.
I have tried to work when I got a zero score in my call before and I was more prone to committing mistakes. Pressured to deliver because that is now how I work.
Conclusion
In some parts of life, we will win and we will lose, defeat is inevitable perhaps but what more important is we get back on track and come back prepared.
I Travelled and Voted for A Losing Candidate and I am Proud of It.
Have you had the chance to vote yesterday?
If you did how was the experience?
I proudly say that I voted, and I voted for a candidate that doesn't have any chance to win at all.
Before sharing whom I voted for, let me share my experience first.
4:00 AM PH time, I left our home in San Pablo City Laguna to go to my precinct in Biñan, Laguna. I waited for more than 20 mins to get a tricycle ride going to the city proper. It is 4:00 and a holiday, thus few people are going outside nor going to the city proper to buy some goods. The pathway is dark, though there are solar bulbs within the area still the light is too dim. because it wasn't sunny for the past few days? That I am not sure.
After arriving in the city proper I rode another jeepney to reach SM San Pablo, this is where I usually ride the bus going to Calamba, Laguna it is around 1-hour travel. The bus is jampacked and social distancing is not practiced anymore. I stand in the aisle holding my bag tightly. Btw I still have a work at night thus I brought my laptop in that way, once I am done voting I will just go home to my parent's house in the afternoon and sleep till evening, log in and work then after ending my shift will go home at 5:00 AM in San Pablo. ( This is the plan that didn't happen)
I reached the terminal in Calamba, I found out that the public vehicle that we used to ride isn't there anymore. The terminal lost its franchise and I need to travel back to the grand terminal to get a ride to Biñan. I arrived at the grand terminal at around 5:30 AM I guess. Voting starts at 6:00 AM and in my mind, I know that I am too late already to vote as I will need to be waiting in lines for sure.
I got my ride to Biñan and arrived at the place at around 6:30 AM. In the interval, I walked for almost a kilometer as the school isn't near and my money is just enough for the regular fares. The only bill that I have is a thousand pesos, and I cannot find any store to have it changed thus I walked. I am now used to long walks already as for the 6 months living in San Pablo I usually walk for more than 30 mins just to get to the waiting shed for tricycles.
In the voting precinct after getting my sequence number I already followed the line of people in my precinct. Waited for 4 hours in the line as some "watchers" give misleading information to everyone. Some watchers advised the PWD and the seniors that they cannot vote in the area and there's a designated place for them and some said that they can just fall in line and they will be set to priority. After the fiasco, they advised that seniors will be a priority. Thus the senior citizens flooded the doorway.
Somehow I was frustrated but I understand very well the importance of them being at first. But to be honest, I felt that it was unfair as we came in early but once a new challenger will be there immediately the regular line will stop and the seniors will take in. There was a time wherein the seniors occupied the whole room. The machines are working perfectly and the election officers are fast so now you understood why it took me 4 hours just to cast my vote. Some left their post while waiting as they are not seeing any movement in the first 2 hours and I cannot blame them I felt that too,
Who did I vote for?
Some may not understand why I spent much time voting and I also doesn't before. I also wonder if I should be going home or not as my candidate will not win for sure.
**No, I did not vote for Leni**
Leni is a second choice but I voted for **Ka Leody de Guzman.**
The reason why I picked him is because of the legwork that he did when he is campaigning during the election. He went the extra mile and show his platform to the poorest of the poor. He even visited indigenous people to ask for votes. I know from the very first day that he will not win the election and told myself that he might be a nuisance candidate but he shows up and twerk his way to be noticed.
I saw his social media presence and even if there were no funds to spare he managed to get the hearts of other people. He also took the opportunity to voice out some concerns and file some cases to the agencies of the government since the media is following him too.
What is the plan now?
Since it is now showing that Marcos is leading most probably he will be the next president of the country. I will still support the government and be a law-abiding citizen. **I will not go to the streets** but will submit myself to the authority.
I have mixed emotions, but overall excited about what will be happening in the next 6 years.
Take Care of Your Hands: Signs of Carpal Tunnel Syndrome
**Have you experienced that when you are holding something you feel that at any time you might drop the said object?**
I felt that in the past few days when I am holding a glass of water.
I haven't dropped anything yet but there's something wrong when I grip an item with my hands. I can feel that it is not that as tight as it should be. Also over the past few days, there's been a pain in my hands thus when I try to write, using a pen and paper I am not able to finish one or two paragraphs. ( Have you experienced that too?)
Our hands have been one of the major parts of our body, especially in our work and here on the platform because this is what we used to create content. Now having said that we need to take care of it and since I have my rest days during weekends I decided to schedule a visit to a doctor.
Nowadays, before you can set an appointment within the hospital you will need to have it scheduled first with their app online. They are using the Now Serving app to schedule an appointment. Other hospitals use such to make sure that they will be able to get the details with their client and for a timely transaction as well because you will be given a number and time on when you can visit the hospital. https://nowserving.ph/
We are still in a pandemic thus they want to make sure that we have fewer folks in every location to cut the spread of the virus.
Now going back, luckily there's a doctor who specialized in Physical Therapy. Back in the old days we only have massages and other stuff but it is a good thing that there is one nowadays who cater to such need.
After getting all the details and going to the hospital I was diagnosed that I have signs of carpal tunnel syndrome.
So what are the signs that you might have it?
If you've ever experienced numbness, tingling, and other symptoms in your hand and arm you may have carpal tunnel syndrome. Thus runs from the forearm into the palm of your hand.
In my case, the pain starts from my forearm up to my palm. The pain in my forearm usually starts each time that I will be typing on my computer and the palm is when I write stuff.
When Doc. Ong performed the test using the reflex/patella hammer. He asked if I can feel the pain each time he hit my forearms. Told him that it doesn't hurt that much but there not quite.
You can't feel; things with your fingers, such as if someone touches you with a feather or if you bump into something.
Doc Ong asked me to do some exercises like touching my forearm. Then my hands, thumbs middle finger, and the pinky finger. He asked if I can feel some sensation and told him that there's is but my left hand my hand doesn't feel that much compared to my right hand.
He mentioned that some of the nerves in my hands might be twisted and that is why the sensations are not that solid.
He said that there's nothing to worry about it since it is not a life-threatening condition and a cure is available if deemed as it is.
On Saturday I will be having a nerve test - not sure how it will be done. He mentioned that he will do an electronic nerve test and searched on Youtube for what will be done. ( Next week I will be giving an update )
Common medications used for carpal tunnel.
As I have searched on the internet, one of the most prominent cures for the said disease is physical therapy.
And we know that when we are looking for a cure we search on Facebook right now, my account has been flooded with Facebook ads showing physical therapies.
Aside from therapies, depending on the pain that you had experienced you will be required to take some over-the-counter medicines.
I was prescribed to buy 3 medications, one anti-inflammatory, one nerve vitamin, and an ointment for pain.
The ointment that he prescribed is different from the OTC ointments that we can buy. Now that Vicks vapor rub isn't the cure to anything.
How to prevent carpal tunnel syndrome:
There are a lot of steps that you can do but I will be sharing what I have learned and how it will be applied on my end.
1. Use ergonomic devices such as keyboards, mice,, and chairs. I understood that the way my mini office was set up was not helpful.
2. Take breaks and avoid repetitive activities.
This is why I stay away from using the computer and my device for quite some time. I decided to limit my screen time and I will be doing all the computer-related stuff up until a certain time.
3. Performing some stretching exercises before and after the activities.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q5G916yCyF0
I never did some exercises before when I wasn't diagnosed and now I am doing it! Oh boy, the difference of doing a warmup exercise is a great help! You should try it too.
Conclusion:
We all know that we need to grind, work hard and do our thing with our hands. But, we still need to make sure that they are well taken care of. Always remember no matter how cliche it is.. prevention is still better than cure. So if you haven't done any hand stretching exercises this is your sign to do it!
How to Spend Quality Time With Your Family
All we have is our very own type of busyness. I myself I busy at work wherein I spend more than half of my day sitting in front of my computer and doing all the accounting stuff.
After work, I have Read.cash and Hive as a side hustle because I have a dream that our family will be financially free in the next years ahead. I always have this mindset that it is okay to struggle now, work hard, and do your best then, later on, enjoy the fruit of your labor.
But there are times when tired. There are instances as well that when we are tired, we cry. ( I had such an instance while sleeping, my wife woke me up because I was crying in my sleep.) This is where family takes into play.
We all want to spend quality time with our loved ones for sure you are too! But how can we do that? How can we have quality time despite our busy schedules?
Ensure that every moment together counts.
Spending quality time together with your family can be as easy as watching your favorite TV show. Every time that you are permitted to do so, spend it wisely. It gives us a chance to better understand them in a way and connect with them without any outside barriers that can hinder the conversation.
Not every time that you are with them is counted. I will always remember myself scrolling on my cell phone while we are watching an anime together with my wife. Sometimes, I am typing something too on the other computer or doing something. The focus and the attention are divided.
This isn't a quality time but rather a rest mode for you. So rather than pointing your eyes to the screen. Try to talk with your family members during those precious times.
Embrace family mealtime.
Remember the Lucky Me instant noodles commercial that talks about the importance of eating together as a family? That is the main thought of this topic.
Okay, no further discussion on this bullet. , watch the video below.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K7_DVikMXM8
Kidding aside, I grew up in a household that doesn't practice the idea of eating together. We are a family of 8 and each one of my siblings and parents has their own schedule on when to eat and that is we will eat once we get hungry.
During breakfast, lunch, and dinner I am used to eating alone as long as there's food available in the house. It further escalated, when I began working as I eat outside most of the time.
Now, since I have my own family we make it to a point that we eat together ( if I am awake ) since my work schedule is different from my wife's. There we talk about what happened to our day, politics, religion, breakthroughs in our daughter's life and the latest showbiz happenings may it be a celebrity or a random person within the area.
They'll help create positive memories and help you bond more easily together.
Pursue common interest.
Not because you turn down your mobile device and stay with them is considered quality time. Some say that relationships start to blossom further with activities together.
Do you recall doing some rock climbing? How about parasailing together? Or making pots and vases? I don't recall much because my wife never did that. But we climbed waterfalls together back then.
On our first year anniversary as boyfriend-girlfriend around 5 years ago, we went to Hulugan Falls in Lousiana Laguna. There were some drizzles of rain and it was muddy but it was FUN. We bonded very well to the point that we slipped together and had some mud on our knees while going down to the fall area. There we talked about the next activity that we will just do crochet or whatever that is not that extreme because our body got beaten big time.
Have you asked your family member what they like to do? If you get an answer and are committed to joining them in the said activity sure they will appreciate that.
Quality time isn't spending the time together only but rather making amazing memories that will last for a lifetime.
Right now, we just enjoy walking after my work around 5:30 AM and enjoying the view of our surroundings.
Conclusion
The above approaches are the perfect way to have quality time with your family without feeling stressed. These are things that you can enjoy doing and feel good about.
Aside from being a parent my wife and I are doing some projects on the side. She is a voice-over artist and I support her with the audio editing stuff.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=11R7pdryI8s&t=9s
We are currently working on the side for some of our projects but I think my podcast is somehow our brainchild this time. https://anchor.fm/podspam
My First Withdrawal In Read.Cash A Small Achievement Worth Celebrating.
Earlier this morning around 3:00 AM I decided to try to process my first withdrawal here in Read.Cash
I was quite adamant about whether I should do it or not as I told myself when I started here that I will try to save up those earnings and will withdraw them if there was a need.
We are currently saving some money for Dyn-Dyn's 1st birthday thus I look for multiple income streams that I can get to make sure that we will not be lacking if incase we splurge our money in the process.
Withdrawing money in crypto and sending funds isn't something that I am used to, especially if the string of text needed is too lengthy. A small mistake can lead to a loss of money thus when I try to send some funds I double, triple and quadruple check if the recipient is correct and the wallet that will accept the funds is valid.
The amount that I withdrew earlier is around $11 or $12 I think as a test try. Transaction time processing, I can say that it was FAST. I used my other crypto experience as a reference on this case. Usually it took me 4 hours to 6 hours to show in my wallet the pending transaction for BCH. But for my first transaction it is just minutes and saw that it was already posted based on the transaction hash.
**Now, what will be the plan going forward?**
I am not that quite active on this site, I tend to switch from my main blockchain site to this one so seeing how everything is doing smoothly here I will become more active here and add more time in my bucket to learn more from others and interact with new folks around.
I think that my activity here is increasing too as I get connected with some folks already and have small chit-chats with everyone that I gets accustomed with.
I will also try to introduce this to some of my friends who are looking for an alternative in earning some money online. Some find Hive as a complicated site and IT IS! So maybe this may work for them as it is quite simple.
Btw I am part of the Onboarding team in HivePH so if incase that you joined Hive and get lost along the way, you can simply tap me in discord tpkidkai#1650 and I can be of help.
I will also plan to include this on my podcast. Currently I host Pod Spam wherein I talk about content creation and other ways to earn some money in the internet. If you have the time, you can listen to my work and probably guest in one of my episodes? https://anchor.fm/podspam
I think that is all that I can share for now. It is truly a remarkable experience joining this site. Though I hate comparing Hive and Read.Cash I can say that this one is better for an old time user experience.
You can also support me by clicking the link below: If you are planning to order in Lazada please use this link to check-out.
Why It's So Much Easier To Give Compliments To Kids
Have you ever wondered why it is easy to give compliments to kids compared to adults? My wife and I had a conversation about it after we attended the service last Sunday. Dyn-Dyn got several remarks on how she looks and presentable she is and as a parent, it makes us happy that she is appreciated by other folks.
Giving compliments isn't that hard right? Errr I guess it is especially if it is to other people. Growing up, we are not used to receiving complimentary remarks rather what we get from others are derogatory messages in any form, most of the time it is from a short banter from someone.
In this blog post, I will be sharing some of the reasons that are why it is easy to give compliments to kids vs to adults.
Kids are genuine and ADORABLE!
You will never appreciate one until you have one as some people will say. I myself is a proof of that.
In general, kids are not afraid on showing their emotions. Whatever compliments are thrown at them they will respond back with either a huge smile, thank you, or a hug and kiss.
I myself grow up in a household that doesn't cater to such emotions and compliments. Such comes in the form of sarcasm, thus I am more into using sarcasm rather than complimenting.
**How about you are you good at giving compliments to others?**
When we talk to a kid, we are talking to someone who doesn't have a HUGE EGO yet.
Depending on how the child was brought up, kids, in general, will be more likely to be concerned about what people think about them. If they are happy then they are happy and if they are not in the good mood then they are not in a good mood.
When we give compliments to them, they are not yet someone who is full of themselves and they will not think further if what you are saying is a sarcastic remark or not. As an adult, when we receive compliments from everyone we tend to make it big at times in our heads. Like, is there something wrong today? Why is this person giving compliments to me? Are they talking behind my back etc.? **Admit it, you have such thoughts like that too I guess?**
Kids but, know that it feels good to receive a good remark from someone. No added gibberish at all.
They don't hold grudges like adults.
As I shared earlier giving compliments to other people is quite hard. I mean it is tricky! **THERE ARE A LOT OF THINGS TO CONSIDER!**
***Let's use a classic example as a case study***
Imagine you are a couple. You give a flattering remark to your partner, what is the first thing that your partner will say? Aside from *thank you!* the other message that you will get is *what is your sin against me this time?* or *what do you need?*
There are times wherein the best-intentioned compliments are often received because adults now have their own insecurities and issues that we deal with!
Conclusion
I know it is hard to give one especially if you are not used to giving and receiving one but as we all know practice makes permanent let's start by giving such remarks to other people. But still few points to consider before sending those compliments make sure that you need to be mindful in giving it and show sincerity. As a parent, we need to nurture them in a way that they can empower other people with their words and build everyone up.
How To Be More Efficient & Productive When You're Feeling Overwhelmed At Work
> When work feels overwhelming, remember that you're going to die - funny quotes on Pinterest.
If you have known me or via discord more often than not I will be saying that I am quite busy with the reports that I am doing daily. And yes I am living proof of being overwhelmed at work most of the time. Though there are some leeways along the day still if I will be rating the overwhelmedness level I will say it is around 80.
Now, why not resign? Since you are already overwhelmed at work? That thought always pops out in my mind every time that drained but it is a thought I never took action to it because it is hard to look for another job. Plus the fact that I will need to prepare again the documentation and interviews all over again makes me lazy.
A constant grumbler at work I always tend to voice out my concerns to my lead which I appreciate and since we had our session before let me share with you some of the tips that she had mentioned to avoid being overwhelmed at work.
Some become useful to me and the others may be useful to you.
Admit that you are overwhelmed.
When dealing with workplace stress, it's easy to believe you're the only one who is suffering. It's in our nature to try to solve everything on our own. I will always remember handling one report because I don't want to be a hindrance to my co-workers. It took me a whole day to finish it!
You may have not noticed it yet but this is harmful in the long run—not only to you but also to your co-workers and employer.
What I have learned is the importance of admitting that we struggling so that you can get help from co-workers and managers.
This will assist you in dealing with feelings of overwhelm and achieving a more productive mindset for completing tasks at work.
Some of the things that I noticed each time burned out are the following:
feeling tired or exhausted
missing deadlines due to lack of time management
lacking focus or concentration on tasks at hand
avoiding responsibilities because they feel too difficult
**Have you experienced such things before? Leave a comment below!**
Learn How to Say No.
I am guilty on this one. I always say yes each time that a task will be given to me. I remember our conversation with my lead wherein she asked me if it is okay for her to give the report to me for handling and I answered.
*Yes and I will grumble later because it is hard and there's no other option for us right?*
Knowing our limits will determine whether to accept a project or not. Sometimes, rest and lunchbreak are compromised because we are so eager to commit. As I have shared, I am prone to overcommitting because I have the wrong mindset at work. Well in Hive I always say NO to my friends here, especially to the reports requested. ( Work TP and Hiver TP are way too different!)
**Do not feel guilty when you say no to someone** I understand that letting someone down is quite hard. Yet, when you try to overdeliver something let us say a rush item that needs to be handled if in case you took the item can you assure that you can deliver it on time given that you also have other stuff to do? Taking it whole may not be a good action but you can give some insights on handling them.
Learn to Delegate
Some of us are experts in the field of work, I always remember my colleagues asking for help in reconciling books from previous years because that is my specialty at work. But when it comes to excelling, VLOOKUP and formulas I suck big time on that, and requires me a good amount of time to understand what needs to be done.
In your team, there are some folks that can do the task rather than you taking the whole workload. Once you know where you excel, delegating and taking action will be quite easy.
Plus productivity-wise it will help everyone manage to complete the task faster.
Take Breaks and Schedule A Time-off.
Our work requires us to be a robot that does things as programmed. I guess that is the case for me. Errors should be minimized to avoid financial loss thus it takes extra effort to review everything. But outside work always remembers that we are not machines and we tend to experience burnout and demotivation.
Now taking breaks is a must. Sometimes you will need to freshen up your mind. I would always have such experience wherein I spend a whole day figuring out what happened to a certain item that I am reconciling but after taking my break and I stayed away from the computer it took me a few minutes to figure out the discrepancy.
A personal time off should always be used! This is the reason why leave credits are added each month. A productive mind at times is a mind at peace. ( I need to remind myself always to take my time off as the last one that I got was a few months ago.)
Conclusion
Finding a work-life balance does not mean you will never experience overwhelming feelings. Yet, it does imply that if you do become overwhelmed and experience severe stress, the consequences will be less harmful to your effectiveness and happiness. Learning how to deal with work challenges is a skill that will serve anyone in any field well throughout their lives.
Avoid Yourself on Getting Phished Bit.ly technique
Earlier today, I had a weird text message from an unknown number. The message mentioned that I am selected as a part-time/full-time staff and I can earn at least 9,000.00 pesos daily if I want to continue with the process I need to click the link that is provided.
At first, I didn't even care as I thought that it is 9,000.00 pesos per month but it is daily! Man, it is daily that we are talking about. Imagine working 20 business days which is the standard working days per month which is 9,000.00 x 20 = 180,000.00 pesos per month!
Image source https://pixabay.com/photos/hacking-cyber-hacker-crime-2964100/
Wow! It is an astronomical amount especially nowadays. If it will be converted into $ that is around $3,600.00 each month and that will be enough for me to buy a 50 sqm. lot in San Pablo as per square meter is $60.00. I still have some spare to buy some cement on the side.
Now, what am I trying to say here?
Though it is an amazing opportunity this message is a scam and let me give you some tips on how you can avoid getting scammed or being a victim of phishing.
If you are not expecting a message from someone most probably it is a scam.
I do not remember applying for a job or a part-time job elsewhere. So receiving one message from an unknown number is kinda fishy. But mind you I am also getting some text messages from other companies informing me of possible jobs and even phone calls as my friends give my phone number as a character reference when they applied. But those are very minimal only, and I will receive a heads up from them that my number might be contacted to such.
This is also the reason why my work-related number is different from my personal/business number. In that way, I will know which is which.
For this round, I did not complete any form or information online thus I am sure that it is a scam.
Avoid yourself from being trigger-happy.
When you see a hyperlink what do you usually do?
The majority of us will say check first if it is a valid link and then after checking then click it.
Some will say just click it as there's no harm in clicking it.
Whether we admit it or not, a huge number of us had experienced clicking an unknown link right away and scammers know that.
Especially if you are using a mobile device.
Have you experienced accidentally clicking a link even though you don't want to because your phone freezes?
Always check the link given via google.
Now since I cannot stop you from being inquisitive and you want to continue doing it though I had warned you the last step that I can suggest is to verify the link first.
**Now how to do that?**
If it is a bit.ly site you will need to add a "+" button at the end of the URL for example
The website that was given to you is bit. ly/36Q4lT1 now you are not sure what the heck that website is so at the end of the strings you can add the "+" sign and the link should be like this and the screen should be the one below. bit. ly/36Q4lT1+
Btw, the link that I gave is a safe link that will help you be routed to my anchor account. If you are interested to listen to my podcast you can listen to that. I just use it as a reference to this example.
After doing the search and you determined that it is okay and you are familiar with the site. By all means, go and click it at your own risk.
But if in case that you saw the message written in a language that you do not know. Please stay away from the site and do not click it at all.
Ending Message:
Phishing is rampant nowadays, always be vigilant and do not click links that are given to you by anyone. Even if it is your friend or someone you know of if you think it is unusual keep your gut feel and avoid it at all costs.
Issues with Paypal and Other Centralized Wallets.
PayPal has long been one of the industry's leaders in online money transfer and receipt. I recall when it launched the PayPal wish list when I was in college.
Whereas, if you recruit a friend to create a wish list, you will automatically earn $1.00 for each successful entry, with a maximum of 100 friends per account. KYC, or Know Your Customer, is not an issue because they will accept whatever information the client provides in their Facebook account.
Fast forward to 2022, there are numerous online wallets available, and PayPal remains one of the largest companies in the world. KYC has been strictly implemented on the said site in order to avoid issues such as money laundering and other potential crimes. Not only PayPal, but I believe the vast majority of centralized wallets.
Earlier, my younger brother sent me a message asking if I could access my own PayPal since his main account was restricted, and I told him that I could and that everything looked fine. He was asked to provide additional information, such as identification cards, for the company's review. By the way, my younger brother has had his account for more than ten years and uses it when he receives his commission at work.
Here's the issue: obtaining an ID in the Philippines is stressful. You'll need one to get one, and it'll take weeks to get one, not to mention the long lines you'll have to wait in to secure a possible slot.
His Paypal account was restricted this time, he attempted to send money to my personal account in order to withdraw his hard-earned cash for his expenses. The sad part is that he can't do anything right now.
While his account is restricted, he is unable to transfer or even send money to anyone. HE CAN, HOWEVER, STILL RECEIVE MONEY.
It was a little frustrating for him because he is not allowed to withdraw money, but he can still receive one. What's the point of getting paid if he can't withdraw the funds?
This also works with other wallets; for example, my Coins.ph account was restricted due to address issues. Because I am an NPA / no permanent address individual, their system triggered and I am now required to provide additional supporting documentation relating to my identity, which I do not wish to comply with. It's annoying, but I had to let it go.
In the meantime, I just asked my younger brother to use my account to update his invoice and change the email to mine since I am not using it. I also told him that once he had the money, he should withdraw it immediately and not leave it there because we never know what would happen if my own account was restricted as well.
Finally, at the end of the day... I still don't trust centralized wallets because they can freeze your accounts at any time and you'll lose your money. Alternatively, if they will release your money after the restriction, you must wait a minimum of 6 months.
The irony is that my job is related to banks, and when Paypal launched a new site in Muntinlupa a few years ago, I was one of the excited people eager to apply because the pay and benefits are far superior to the competition in the area. I just didn't go through with the process because the only opening at the time was for a phone representative, which I'm trying to avoid because I'm sick of taking phone calls.
Giving Value To One | Realization About Having Only a Few Readers/Listeners on Content
I was working on my reconciliation file at work earlier.
I was drained and exhausted from the work's recurring headaches. I saw a Buzzsprout video interview with Patt Flynn, one of my online gurus in podcasting.
Patt has been one of my go-to people in my podcasting adventure whenever I need to look out for something relating to the trade.
Despite the fact that I publish my work through Anchor.FM, I am a big fan of Buzzsprout's free YouTube courses. I consider both of their contents to be treasures, and I absorb what they say.
After watching the video, my view on the information I had shifted, and it is what I will share in this blog post. By the way, this will be repurposed into a podcast in the future when I have some free time, and I'd like it if I could get some help with that as well!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o7-3awzgPIo
There is a 1 to No Reader Issue.
We can all relate to how discouraging it is to no readers on our blog posts. We frequently question if what we're doing in the past is still worthwhile. Should I already cease creating content if nobody has contacted me?
I have one reader here on my blog, and I'd like to get more because one isn't enough.
This has been my attitude in my blog and even in the podcast, I'm hosting.
Even though I am trying harder, in promotion, and marketing, I sometimes feel like it's not enough.
Having those in my metrics rise exhilarates me as a creative, and I believe it is appropriate to celebrate the accomplishment.
To be honest, I'm on the edge of quitting my podcast because I don't think it's worth my time.
Audio editing, music selection, recording, and other tasks take up more than half of my day, and the results range from 0 to 5.
Returning to blogs, the same thing happens: we spend more than an hour and get a few views or no one notices your blog at all.
Isn't that a frequent thing?
Adding Value to Individual
My perspective has shifted as a result of what I've learned. Technically, I'm aware of it, but we all need someone to tell us something before we realize it.
And that is the 1 view that you saw is an actual living person.
A loyal supporter is far better than 100 people that come to see you as a result of a viral post. Because if the algorithm is messed up, those visitors will no longer be able to find your website. However, committed supporters will return to your content again and again, regardless of which algorithm is used.
However, committed supporters will return to your content again and again, regardless of which algorithm is used.
So, how do you take care of that one?
Interact with them! Fans/subscribers are ecstatic every time they are recognized by the people they like!
I'll never forget the time I messaged my favorite Tiktok content producer and received a positive response. Because of the attitude, that is what drew us in as fans.
Give them value for their time and, if at all can, avoid creating sub-par content for them ( Look whos talking spammer). They have already committed a portion of their time to spend with you, so make it worthwhile.
Mami For BreakFast
I wasn't able to share but currently, my family's residing in San Pablo, Laguna. Compared to the busy lifestyle that we had back then when we are living in the urban area our life shifted slowly in the province.
After my Monday shift, quite hungry as I did some account reconciliation at work my wife and I talked about what will be our breakfast.
The dinner last night was spring rolls and since the weather is quite cold this morning a hot soup will be a perfect accompaniment to the food.
Undecided about the food, told her that I want some Lucky Me Beef Noodles to be prepared as it is easy to be cooked and she just needs to add 1 or 2 pieces of egg to make it more delectable. I also requested for pandesal as the last night's rice has been consumed and we are quite lazy to cook one.
Btw we are using black rice for more than 2 years already as it has low GMOs. My wife has been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes and if possible that we can avoid other foods we try to do that. But what about Luckyme beef? Haha, it is an exemption we are quite hungry already.
Now, since it is already 5:30ish we walked outside our home.
It was dark but the road can be seen thanks to the solar light bulbs installed recently on the way. On our way to the store, we noticed that it is still closed.
The nearest sari-sari store will be more than 15 mins walk and walking while starving isn't a good combo.
We talked about other option until we reached "Na Jessica's Mami House". After moving in for more than 4months I think I can say that our family is already a regular customer.
She greeted us with a warm smile and asked for our order.
As if there's another available in the menu.
Kidding aside we ordered 1 special Mami and 2 pork buns (siopao) instead of as we are not able to secure the pandesal too.
While we are waiting for our order, we were seen by my father-in-law eating in the place, and gave us some food and fish for our cats.
And while we are eating we talk about our plans for the upcoming birthday of our daughter. Like who will be the primary sponsors and if we are going to invite some of our friends in the metro area. We are not sure if we should send an invite as we all know that there's still a pandemic and we want to avoid any unnecessary commotion or one way or another they got sick because of the said event.
Taste-wise, I can say that it was superb and I cannot compare it to some of the noodle dishes that is available in the metro back then. The meat is tender too as it was boiled the whole night and the broth is also refillable if in case that you need second servings.
Na Jessica will usually start selling her noodles at around 5 in the morning and closes at 7 or sometimes 6:30 AM depending on the flood of customers. She mentioned back then that she only prepares 1 whole pot for the soup and doesn't try to add more water etc to the broth anymore if incase that she sees that it is nearing to be empty as the taste will be different and that is something that she doesn't want her customer to experience.
From then on I was amazed at how she treated the food and the quality that she had maintained that is when I also realized why her customers are going back and forth and even if our location is quite secluded to some folks there are cars and motorcycles parked within the area eating at her famous noodle bowl.
That is all for me this morning. I hope that you have already eaten your breakfast and if you haven't what is the food that you are craving for this morning?
Finding Your Inner Voice in Content Creation | My Introduction the Community
Hi everyone and I hope that you are all doing well. The name is Oli but most of my online friends called me TP as it is connected to my username tpkidkai.
I am quite familiar with this platform for quite some time but never had the chance to join yet nor create content as I am not sure what I should share here plus the idea that I will need to start over again from scratch.
I was torn whether to keep my username or create a new one but decided to retain it so that if in any case, they find me we can still connect.
Now, so what am I doing here?
I had a hard time thinking about what my content should be. In my first few post, I decided to share some blogging tips that I have learned from the years of experience that I have but for some reason, I think that I need to stay away from such ( personal decisions and to avoid repeating content).
I also want to start fresh, like have the same experience of building my new list of connections here too!
Maybe I should start creating some other posts that I do want to try and work on the other projects that I haven't created yet.
What's the Project then?
Aside from the daily random post that I will be doing here might as well create a podcast that is related to the content creators in the blockchain. I'd love to interview folks on the other website but quite hesitant to start there as I still have some reservations. Maybe some will be able to push me to do that.
I already have the title of the new project but doesn't have any guest yet.
Here's a sample of my work as a reference kindly note that this sample is different from the new stuff that I will be working.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=11R7pdryI8s
Thank you for joining me here and if you want to guest in my show let me know so that we can arrange a schedule. I am doing my recording every weekend at 9:00 PM Manila Time.
Setting Up SMART as a Content Creator
I am scrolling on my Facebook feed and saw an advertisement from a networker marketing friend that I have.
I have removed a majority of friends on Facebook back then when I did my yearly purge and for the reason that I always enjoy his memes, I decided to let him stay in my small circle.
When I attended their training session about networking I was presented with the SMART goals as somehow a key to achieving my goals back then. But as a lazy bum as I am I never took it seriously and just scribble some goals just for the sake of completing the form.
Now as someone who wants to take blogging seriously…. I think it is time for us to set some SMART goals.
Okay, TP you keep on saying SMART goals, I don’t know what it is! Care to enlighten this young virtuoso?
I got chu bru don’t cha worry.
https://unsplash.com/photos/zni0zgb3bkQ
SMART is an acronym for the following words.
S - Specific
M - easurable
A - chievable
R - elevant
T - ime Bound
Now since we explain what the acronym is then we are all set for the day and I hope that you learned something new. See you in my next blog!
It is important that we set goals when we are doing a project or anything that we want to be successful of. As the used and abused quotation from my good friend Lawrence J. Peter If you don’t know where you are going, you will probably end up somewhere else." Knowing what is your goal and taking action on it can help you become successful in the chosen field that you are aiming.
Am I successful already? In some areas, yes but in blogging, I still have a TON of things to learn and while I am learning I want you to learn too in my journey. Because that’s what friends are for right? For bad times and bad times we still stick to each other.
Now since we are planning let’s talk about each letter and elaborate it one by one.
S stands for Specific
When setting up a goal, it is important to give complete details on what you want to achieve as an end result. This is not the time to give examples that are broad such as my end goal is to become a famous blogger. Or maybe gain a ton of followers in my content etc.
I listed here as my goal this time at the very least earn $100.00 USD in my blog post this month and I also want to publish new content daily.
M is for Measurable
To know that you are improving or gaining traction toward your goal should be measurable. In my case, I want to earn $100.00 USD coming from my blog so to achieve my success if I will run a marathon of blog posts daily for the whole month I need to earn at least $3.33 daily. I also read that M could stand as “meaningful” like what does achieving this goal important to your goal. As for myself since on 1st of June, my daughter will celebrate her 1st birthday and since we don’t have any extra money to cover the preparation acquiring $100.00 in 30 days will be a fantastic thing for me as one way or another I put effort on achieving the goal.
A is for Achievable
Given the situation that you are in, the goal that you have set should be achievable on your side. Technically speaking $100.00 in 30 days can be achieved by some in less than a week or so but for me, I think I will need less than a month to get that amount given my previous earnings from the contents that I have created. Plus I was able to withdraw more than the said amount before.
Creating content daily is hard! But can be managed I was able to do that before but my buddy laziness always gives me the warmest hug that he can give each time that he has a chance. Do you experience that too? Like you are so fired into doing something but you get lazy and want to do other stuff?
R is for Relevance
You need to make sure that this does matter to you in the long run. Like why are you doing such and spending your precious time here? Why not watch an anime or a series on Netflix instead.
For example, since the goal of publishing daily content is written down it is relevant to other goals such as earning money and maybe in the future polishing my writing skills so that I can apply to some writing gigs in the next year and hopefully resign in my day job. Jeez, I want to leave the company already but I can’t the pay is lucrative and I don’t have any other means to earn for now.
T is for Time-Bound.
Until when are you going to push to achieve the goal? You need to set a deadline bru because if you don’t then you will be relaxed and will not take action on it.
I know you. You always have the tendency to cram few days before the deadline so lets stap dat owkei?
Now having said that and creating a small blueprint on what your possible smart goal is. You will have an idea on what to do next. So what are you waiting for if you haven’t created one then START NOW!
I am not angry okay, just want to emphasize that.
I think that is all on my side hope you enjoy this blog.
I am not an expert, can I still blog?
This has been one of the major roadblocks that a future content creator usually encounters and if you will be asking me if you should start a blog even though you are not an expert in that field, I will say NO don’t. Don’t waste your time creating a blog and come back once you are a pro.
I am kidding! Of course, you can, and if you could then you should.
Am I making sense there? Probably but hear me out, first young man. Before I started on my blog, I was not an expert welp, I am still not an expert as of writing this blog post but that doesn’t matter my friend.
Blogging isn’t in my roots especially writing in English. I always have a hard time translating my thoughts from Tagalog to English and there are times wherein if I translate my idea it was the literal meaning and more often than not, out-of-the-context translation.
But those didn’t stop me from writing and creating content. I think that being raw and “untalented” pushed me and helped me to strive for better.
Why do you want to create a blog?
I think that should be your first goal in mind. Why and for whom do you write your stuff? Are you just writing for the sake of existing? Are you blogging because you want to get monetized in the future? Or perhaps you want to use this blog for future employers?
I believe that whatever your reason is, those are valid points to start your blog. When I started my blog on Steemit.com ( A blockchain integrated platform), the idea in my mind was to earn money by creating content. I am familiar with Blogger, WordPress, and other platforms but since getting paid to write stuff is my goal I didn’t even bother to write on them at first. My blog was a mess and I think it is still a mess since I write everything that comes to my mind.
Looking back - I should have focused on certain topics hence I am now trying to consolidate everything.
So before you start your blogging journey, first, ask yourself why?
No one started as an expert in their field. Everyone was a beginner at first.
When blogging, you need to understand that it would be easier to write about the things that you are interested in. Blog the things that you are studying, put them in your own words and phrases show up, and do your job.
At times, when a newbie stumbled on a post coming from an expert on the said field, readers experience an invisible wall from their post. Probably because of the jargon and terminologies used by the writer. But since you are quite versed on the topic and you know some basic stuff definitely you can be of help to them.
As you go along the journey and engagement with the community that you have built you are also learning about it. I guess you will be forced to learn and upgrade from time to time as your readers will be asking you for more and will be seeking your expertise.
Stuff that you need to consider even if you are not an expert.
Do not pretend, be transparent.
When creating your blog, make sure that you share things that are true. If you are a newbie, then say that you are also new to it and you are also learning along the way. Your readers will know especially if they are well invested in consuming your content.
Most likely I will interact with a blogger who is new in the field, and willing to learn rather than with someone who’s already an “expert” as it is hard to connect at times with them.
Strive to learn more, and read a lot that is connected with your niche.
As Ka Ernie Baron said “ If there’s no knowledge, there’s no power” this will also hold true to your blog. You need to continuously learn and unlearn new stuff as you go along the way. Be open to corrections and feedback from other folks. A dislike button or a negative remark doesn’t merely attack you as a person but rather it will probably be a disagreement with your content.
What are the things that you can write?
Write about the things that you have learned.
Do you hate writing when you are studying? Same here! I hated it to its core! I would always remember myself cramming every last day of the grading period just to finish the notes in my notebook back then.
Writing it from your perspective can give a topic a new life. A new take or new learnings that your reader can pick from. No mind thinks alike thus even though you already found the same article somehow it is still fresh if you give your spin on it.
Plus it will be easy for people to relate to you if you do that.
How about an interview?
Aside from reading why not do an interview with the expert on the said field? As a starter, you might find it a challenge interviewing people for your blog but if you are well invested in a certain topic for sure you have a list of folks that you are following. Ask them some questionnaires that you want to be answered and for sure they will have some available. This works perfectly for content creators who are also new or their reach isn’t that high. Most probably they will do it for free as they will also need that for additional exposure.
Now that we talked about that it is not needed to be an expert on a certain topic before you create a blog, what’s stopping you?
If I can be of help on your journey in blogging - let’s talk in the comment section.
@tpkidkai
