According to Catholic Social
Principals at work, work should be viewed as a calling and an opportunity for
giving and contemplation. I believe that for me to do that, I should be able to
balance life and make use of time at my advantage.
I started my career as a
junior auditor in one of the top 5 auditing firms in Makati in 2007. I was so
idealistic back then- looking forward to a perfect environment where I can
receive a good paycheck to enjoy life and bring happiness to me and my parents.
I thought it will be different as compared to what I have experienced during
college with sleepless nights and terror professors. I was very hopeful that my
first work will be rewarding in a way that it will recognize my efforts. But
everything happened terribly in the areas of work, family, finances and leisure.
Work
I usually arrive at this
private auditing firm as the earliest because I wanted to start early and make
an impression to the company that I hate being late. I also refrain from making
breaks such as taking a nap or having unnecessary conversations with my office mates. I only leave my desk whenever I have to eat or go to the washroom
because I want to focus on my work to finish deadlines. These work deadlines
cause me to be present on the office even on weekends and gained an average of
2 to 3 daily hours of sleep. Sometimes I feel like fainting but my aim of becoming
a partner of the firm is stronger than my physical weakness and so I have to
stay awake despite the lack of sleep and rest. This work lifestyle was so
demanding and unhealthy.
Family and Finances
I received a salary much
lower than I expected because it was my first work and my lack of the
experiences needed for the salary I dreamt of. My salary back then was so low
that it was not enough for my daily expenses especially that I work almost 7
days a week and it was too costly for me to travel from Quezon City to Makati.
Therefore I did not have the money to share with my parents to finance some of
the household expenses and to support the schooling of my sister. Moreover, I
did not have savings.
Leisure and Faith
I did not have time for
friends and sometimes, going home because I stayed at the office and do work. My
mind was fully occupied with work and I considered sleep as a luxury. Still, I
have time for praying though I could not attend mass.
After my first tax season
experience, I got tired of this life that merely revolves around work and
decided to resign from this private auditing firm in Makati. I felt the need to
recuperate and restore my energy lost due to too much effort I put on work,
impressing my boss, and the company that set aside my right to get out of the
box for me to exercise my free will.
Searching for a new job
brought me into a non-stock nonprofit Christian organization that serves the
poor by lending the household a capital to finance and start their own
business. I became part of this organization as a junior accountant in its Head
Office in Makati – assigned to monitor and consolidate accounting reports.
Work
I still practice my habit of
being early because work here starts at 7AM. My work here was somewhat
routinary and quite voluminous because it involved recurring transactions from
different branches and year after year the organization is expanding. I got to
spend overtimes but with pay especially for preparing month-end reports. I also
did clerical works such as filing reports and calling the branches to follow up
on certain data and remind them of their deadlines. I got to experience having
many bosses here from different departments and do multi-tasking.
Family and Finances
My life in this organization
was simple in contrast with my life from my previous work. I and my office mates
practiced a simple lifestyle and we usually ate lunch at the carinderia owned
by the mother of one of my office mates –cheap but healthy and delicious. I
considered my office mates here as part of my family. They are one of my closest
friends.
Even though my salary has improved;
it was insufficient for me to shoulder some of my parents’ utility bills and
give allowances to my sister that pursued her undergraduate schooling. Luckily
she was a scholar. But I was able to apportion most of my bonuses to pay my
Mom’s debts and have a decent noche buena during Christmas. I was also able to
start my savings though a forced deduction from my salary.
Leisure and Faith
I got opportunities to travel especially in the
area of Luzon to visit its branches and conduct seminars to its branch accountants.
I got acquainted with the places and restaurants I have never gone before through
company team buildings and meetings.
My Christian life has
developed because it was part of the organizations’ mission to share and
practice the word of God. We have groups conducting a session every week to
have a bible study. The organization held mass every Wednesday morning. Prayer was
indispensable because the company prayed in the morning and in the evening.
Everything seemed to be
perfect, however there’s still something I have been searching for to fully
satisfy me on my job. I need to be on my own, to build my own auditing firm so
that I could practice freewill and use time at my advantage and have the peace
to contemplate. I have to come out of my shell to pursue my heart desires and
fulfill God’s promise that He has a plan for me and he wants me to prosper. I
am really excited for that moment that I will ultimately be the one who will
create work for my fellow Filipinos that will give them numerous opportunities.
Today, I am now part of the Supreme Auditor of the Philippines- the Commission
on Audit (COA). My work is noble because I am part of a group that promotes
transparency and accountability on the government through the audit of
government funds. I am able to finance my graduate schooling, somewhat support
the financial needs of my parents, and build savings and investments. With COA,
I was also able to visit several places both for the company and travel
purposes. I had the opportunity to mingle with a lot of people and most of them
are known to the society and have their own businesses. It is here where I have
a family of co-employees and a network in line with my faith.
As an employee for several
years and based on my experiences, it was really difficult to balance life and
to be passionate about work because your life somewhat depends on the company
you’re working at - its people, its mission and vision and its environment. I
believe that to become a self-employed individual is where I can fulfill work
as a complete calling, a means of giving and contemplation because it is the time when I
could truly do what I am passionate about and expand my opportunities.
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