12th NU12- Entrepreneurship and Sun Life Financial, A new thing I have in mind.

Hi prof Jorge,

Here is my 12th NU12: Entrepreneurship and Sun Life Financial. (A new thing I have in mind)

                                                                

12th NU 12

"Entrepreneurship and Sun Life Financial"

(A new thing I have in mind)

I have been working in the Business Process Outsourcing Industry right after I graduated from college since 2005. I first worked as a call center agent/customer service specialist for a travel account and then went to venture on becoming a mortgage banking service specialist in one of the biggest banks in the USA and then with a known Philippine beer manufacturing conglomerate. I got promoted as escalation supervisor then eventually as a unit manager under the BPO arm of these companies. I am currently a graduate student taking up Masters in Business Management. This opened doors to opportunities and this made me want to have a promising career and eventually undertake other business opportunities.

I have been working in the BPO industry for eight years in a cubicle. This ended when I took a leap of faith and transferred to a financial company where the amount I earn commensurate with the amount of work I do. Within those years, my peers in AGSB thought that I have a future in sales and marketing. With knowledge on the Philippine economic fundamentals and benefits of financial and investment management, I started a full time career with Sun Life of Canada (Phils.) Inc.

I then realized the opportunities considering the network I have through years of being college student leader plus all the fora, conferences and seminars I have the opportunity to be present at, I was able to tap a market that needed and benefited from financial planning. As we believe in Sun Life, it is always the best time to prepare for a brighter future regardless of your stage in life as long as you are willing to pay the price, not only in the financial aspect but a decision to set aside and delay your present spending for future use. This has been my drive as take my Entrepreneurial Class (SPENTREP). I bear in mind that I will take advantage of everything that I would learn from it in establishing my own business— being a business partner of Sun Life in bringing financial literacy to Filipino Families.

I started SPENTREP with expectation that I will learn the technical aspect of starting a business but I was wrong, I learned more than that. I have learned the importance of Seizing and striking opportunities as it come along. It enhanced my thinking—out of the box. Every day of our  class encounter brings out the best in me. It challenges me to think more, work harder and deliver a class assignment that we are expected to on their deadlines. A day is never enough to absorb everything that we learn from each other's performances, reports and all things we share inside the four walls of the classroom. . It was even nice to know where our classmates are coming from through their personal inspirational videos. It had brought everyone and me closer to one another to an extent that I wished I have more time to mingle, learn, share, listen and be friends with everyone.

Another term just finished. It has been a rewarding experience that I took Entrepreneur Class, more than the technicalities on how to start a business, I appreciate the business cases we tackled, it made me realize that there are real-life business failures and strategies in writing that I could learn from.

Strengthened by the lecture of four guest speakers we have invited, the following are the important pointers I have learned:

-        To be an entrepreneur you must make your own branding, don't sell products, sell experience that no one can just simply have,  their Business concept: selling a lifetime experience in the middle of the ocean;

-        To think global and act local, it could be slow but steady. Local triumphs and collaboration brings you to the global market and fame which is an added value of your business;

-        To challenge the entrepreneur's self in dreaming of his preferred lifestyle, to determine the income he would need; and

-        To take the leadership role and call for the life span of the business. Taking a leap of faith towards the success of the enterprise itself—the entrepreneur's mandate.

I am now more driven to embrace the path I chose for managing my own business in the future and as a partner of Sun Life Financial. I am more keen and observant to the community I live in, seeking and noticing opportunities that will bring change and development. Indeed, Ateneo Graduate School  is successful in imbibing in me it's ideology-- "Our Nation is our Business."  < new ideas, this exercise is a practice on how to start a business, as well as group creative activities;  new ideas are starting point of starting a business;  writing the business plan is the technicality on how start  business.  the first step is to commit the plan into writing>  3