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Showing posts from May, 2015

Earning 3 Philippine Professional Licenses, Topping Twice in PRC Examinations

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As of this writing I have earned my third Philippine Professional license as a Real Estate Broker. Although I initially did not plan to get multiple professional PRC (Professional Regulation Commission) licenses in the Philippines after I topped and passed the Nursing Licensure Examination last November 2008, I suddenly had a change of mind after I saw an opportunity in the field of real estate. I do not have any background or whatsoever in real estate or in commerce, so it was quite difficult for me to take an examination with almost no actual knowledge. So, in this article I will discuss how I managed to pass and even topped licensure examinations twice. Knowing strengths and weakness is essential. In a theoretical examination, one must identify how he or she learns well. Some people read books, while most simply do not have the capacity to do so. It is quite boring for some. In preparation for professional examinations in the Philippines, it is common to attend review classes,

Philippines: Fun and Beauty in Chaos

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Being the largest Catholic Asian country and formerly under the Spanish, American and Japanese powers, the Philippines is surely a unique place to live and visit. One could identify within the country the similarities and strong contrast among the nation’s people, places and traditions. However, due to the innate variations, the question of the how one could define the true Filipino identity is difficult to answer. More complicated is to define a pattern, which truly describes and suits us Filipinos. Many would mistakenly associate Filipinos to Chinese, other Southeast Asians, and even Latin or Arabian origins. The question remains there is no distinct Filipino appearance or physical characteristics. It is simply a complex genetic mixture of Western and oriental races, which makes no pattern in attributes. Moreover, the relative and accepted concept of beauty changes fast in the course of time. Before a fair-skinned Latin-like beauty seems to be the gold standard, reflecting

Exploitation: The Vulnerables

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Who are at risk for exploitation - a deliberate act of ignoring human rights? We are all at risk, now I realize. Before, I kept in my mind that only those people who lack access to adequate and relevant information are those most at risk. Now, my thought about this has dramatically changed. On what way it has changed, this is the focus of this article. Firstly, exploitation happens because there are some people who have insecurities in themselves; such that they would need others to satisfy their needs. These people maybe in denial of the fact that they are entirely dependent to others, contrary to what they portray to the society. Regardless of what kind of background they have, one thing is certain - exploitation happens because of mankind's selfish nature. Secondly, a person has a risk of being used and abused by others because they do not believe the certainty of facts. These people always question whether things are as they are. As a result, the skepticism grows to a point t

The Pain of No Choice

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At this point of my life, I have come to realize how painful it is to be in a situation where options simply run out or influenced by people other than myself. This is totally different from what I wanted and expected this period of my life will be. Exactly how and why I reached this phase is something out of my control and beyond my limitations. I want to cry in humility and desperation but I know it will not do anything worth to make the situation better. I think I am starting to feel numb as I fight the challenges presented infront of me and my immediate network. Moreover, I pity myself for allowing myself and others to experience this. Perhaps, I could have done better. I want to believe that optimism still works. Generally, I am still hopeful that options will fall like raindrops from heaven. I continuously convince myself that I have been in worse situations before but I endured; and so is now. I have strong faith that I can endure this. What matters most is the resilience that

The Wisdom of Mother's Day

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Mother's Day is celebrated in most countries in different dates. The tradition also varies from one culture to another, but the celebration is equally important with other special events we mark every year. In the Philippines, every second sunday of May, we celebrate Mother's Day. We Filipinos have a simple way of remembering this day. Personally, I have made a blogpost as a tribute to all mothers today. Despite of the cultural variations, there exist similarities on the way we see and deal with Mother's Day. In this post, I will try to emphasize the importance of Mother's Day to anyone. 1. It shows the importance of women in the light of a paternalistic world. In this modern time when women are treated almost the same way as men, our mothers are symbols and great reminders of gender equality. Before we became respectable men, we were children of our mothers. During our childhood, our mothers took care of us, with the sole purpose of raising us to be good citizens an

Dreams, Needs and Wants

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Everyone of us has encountered situations in one way or another that made decision-making process very difficult and challenging, especially when it applies to our dreams, needs and wants. This is because making an order of prioritization is more complicated as it seems. There are theories on how we deal with our basic needs, but there are no discussions on how to differentiate and prioritize needs over our wants and dreams. The only rule of thumb that exists is that everyone must fulfill first his or her basic needs before anything else for self-survival. These includes all physiologic needs, safety and belongingness needs. These form the lower level needs every human being must possess. However, the question remains on where and how do we deal with wants in the context of our needs. Does it mean we all have to delay our wants and dreams until all our needs are met? Or, what seems to be intrinsic quality of wants and dreams that makes it unique from our needs? These are the questions

The Future of Certainties and Uncertainties

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No one knows about the future, but we can influence how we can shape our future. This is something I always believed since I was young. And so, this has led me to think that with grit personality I would achieve something in the future. Fortunately, all my efforts and sacrifices have paid off until I decided to start anew in Norway. Here, things changed and my experiences have somehow how I perceived the future. To describe in the easiest possible means, the future for me is filled with both certainties and uncertainties. The difference between the two opposing concepts is control. There are things that are within our control, capacities and compentencies, which yields certainties in life. By saying certainties, the probability is high enough to consider it happening in reality. Personally speaking, I have already fathomed my limitations and strengths, such that I gain confidence in the various fields I am good at. On the other hand, there exists uncertainties. This is something we,