Friends, I thought that I might relax my style a little bit for this post. And keep it short since these are my random thoughts which spilled over into sentences and paragraphs. Voila - another post.
I was having a conversation with a friend the other day that unnerved and disturbed me deeply. She was not the first person who has said the same exact statement to me with the same exact phrasing: “Tina, you like the impossible!” These are people who know me quite well which makes their comments even more “challenging”…..
I’ve got news for you, boys and girls. “I BELIEVE IN THE POSSIBILITY OF ALL THINGS!” First, because my brain is wired that way and second, because I have incredibly strong faith.
Glasnost and perestroika, end of the Cold War, crumbling of the Berlin wall, gay rights, interracial marriage, vacationing on the moon, the internet, seniors leading healthy lives in their 80’s, the Terminator is now a Governor, 2 female Presidents in the Philippines, fall of apartheid, laser surgery, in vitro fertilization, cloning, physically handicapped men & women in competitive sports, 9/11 attack on the World Trade Center and coming soon to a theater near you - the first black President or the first female President of the United States.
The things, situations and conventions that were back in the day considered UNIMAGINABLE, now have become ordinary facts of life, quite commonplace. Was there really a time when a black person couldn’t sit in front of the bus and heaven forbid, beside a white person? You almost take history for granted since so much has changed. And for the most part, changed for the better.
I’m not an easy study in human psychology because I’m a pragmatist who is both highly analytical and introspective. At the same time though, the flipside of me is an idealist who loves to dream and listens to my raw instinct & intuition even when it doesn’t initially make that much sense to me.
I would not do something if I couldn’t defend it with logic. But it’s funny how sometimes logic has no place in the sphere of thinking that allows our minds to run unleashed and unfettered, stimulating us to do our most creative, innovative and productive thinking. The kind that is outside the box. The kind that breeds change in the world.
I’m a very keen observer of human nature because people simply fascinate me. I’ve noticed across cultures that this holds true for everyone. If you want something very badly, nothing is too difficult. If you don’t really want something, everything is too difficult.
Impossible is a limitation of the human mind and the human spirit. I think that IM in front of impossible only means two things. If you can I-magine it, you can M-anifest it.
This world wouldn’t be as wonderful as it is today if most of us started our days with thoughts like “Naah, it can’t be done. It’s impossible so why bother trying?”
I think I’ve defended my title, Ms. Nothing Is Impossible. Even if I haven’t, I’m happy that I never imposed boundaries on how far my thoughts, hopes and dreams will go. Keeps me thoroughly entertained. Plus, it doesn't cost me a cent.
I leave you with this quote from author Henry James:
“UNTIL YOU TRY, YOU DON’T KNOW WHAT YOU CAN DO.”
Tina Vitas
Makati City
Friday, June 29, 2007
Wednesday, June 27, 2007
IT’S ALL ABOUT ME VS. IT’S ONLY ABOUT THEM
With Filipina-Chinese blood in me, maybe some Malay, Indonesian, Aborigine (the original Filipino ancestors) and Spanish thrown in for good measure, that says I am by nature Eastern in design, co-existing with an American upbringing, that says I am by definition Western in expression, I struggle with “it’s all about me vs. it’s only about them” in Manila. A Filipina looking-woman with an arsenal of high-fallutin' Tagalog vocabulary plus a very American mentality and attitude towards life is not a normal combo in these neck of the woods.
I read a book by a Vietnamese Zen master and Buddhist monk named Thich Nhat Hahn a few years back called “Teachings on Love”. One of major premises of the book is that we must learn to love ourselves above all because we cannot really give to others what we ourselves do not have. Loving others begins with a healthy dose of self-love.
At first, I was a little confused by this because in my mind, putting myself first translated to arrogance, conceit and ego. But what he was really saying has nothing to do with self-worship but something as fundamental as “value yourself”.
The Philippines remains a very Catholic country to date which in and of itself is not bad. My problem is I see a lot self-denial, driven by Catholic guilt, around me. People who think their personal needs are last priority, behind everyone else’s – parents, spouses, kids, relatives, friends, bosses, colleagues and staffmembers. I can already hear the whispers inside their head that say: “As long as everyone else is happy, it doesn't matter if I'm miserable.” Eventually, feelings of resentment will start to surface. And the giving has now become a burden to everyone, not a blessing.
There is a saying which I love to tell my mom which is funnier in Tagalog but loosely translated goes something like: “Mama, martyrdom went out of style a long time ago.” And it did. No one gets any points nowadays for self-inflicted pain. The freedom to choose is ours, though not without personal consequences.
The United States, meanwhile, generally suffers the opposite syndrome. Taken to the very extreme, it's all about ME, ME, ME! I always come first, my personal happiness is paramount, even at the cost of alienating everyone, including my loved ones. It’s too much trouble to go out of my way to make people around me happy.
The truth of the matter is either extreme is not healthy for us or the people around us. The easiest person to take care of is you, just because you're with yourself 24 hours a day whether you like it or not. In that respect, I completely agree with the book “Teachings on Love”.
That is not to say that we aren’t going to be called to make certain compromises and sacrifices to honor our commitments. We can do that successfully only if we have already clearly defined with confidence that the love we are giving to others emanates from our self-love. Therefore, it is not really taking anything away from us.
No one is to blame for the sometimes costly mistakes I've collected in my life. Have a lot of battle scars to prove it. But I have always been responsible for my own mess. I am not someone who says, I did it for you and look where it got me?
I’d like to end this blog with a quote from American actress Tallulah Bankhead shared to me by my friend, Pablo Conill, since the quote reminded him of me when he read it.
“IF I HAD TO LIVE MY LIFE AGAIN, I’D MAKE THE SAME MISTAKES, ONLY SOONER.”
Tina Vitas
Makati City
I read a book by a Vietnamese Zen master and Buddhist monk named Thich Nhat Hahn a few years back called “Teachings on Love”. One of major premises of the book is that we must learn to love ourselves above all because we cannot really give to others what we ourselves do not have. Loving others begins with a healthy dose of self-love.
At first, I was a little confused by this because in my mind, putting myself first translated to arrogance, conceit and ego. But what he was really saying has nothing to do with self-worship but something as fundamental as “value yourself”.
The Philippines remains a very Catholic country to date which in and of itself is not bad. My problem is I see a lot self-denial, driven by Catholic guilt, around me. People who think their personal needs are last priority, behind everyone else’s – parents, spouses, kids, relatives, friends, bosses, colleagues and staffmembers. I can already hear the whispers inside their head that say: “As long as everyone else is happy, it doesn't matter if I'm miserable.” Eventually, feelings of resentment will start to surface. And the giving has now become a burden to everyone, not a blessing.
There is a saying which I love to tell my mom which is funnier in Tagalog but loosely translated goes something like: “Mama, martyrdom went out of style a long time ago.” And it did. No one gets any points nowadays for self-inflicted pain. The freedom to choose is ours, though not without personal consequences.
The United States, meanwhile, generally suffers the opposite syndrome. Taken to the very extreme, it's all about ME, ME, ME! I always come first, my personal happiness is paramount, even at the cost of alienating everyone, including my loved ones. It’s too much trouble to go out of my way to make people around me happy.
The truth of the matter is either extreme is not healthy for us or the people around us. The easiest person to take care of is you, just because you're with yourself 24 hours a day whether you like it or not. In that respect, I completely agree with the book “Teachings on Love”.
That is not to say that we aren’t going to be called to make certain compromises and sacrifices to honor our commitments. We can do that successfully only if we have already clearly defined with confidence that the love we are giving to others emanates from our self-love. Therefore, it is not really taking anything away from us.
No one is to blame for the sometimes costly mistakes I've collected in my life. Have a lot of battle scars to prove it. But I have always been responsible for my own mess. I am not someone who says, I did it for you and look where it got me?
I’d like to end this blog with a quote from American actress Tallulah Bankhead shared to me by my friend, Pablo Conill, since the quote reminded him of me when he read it.
“IF I HAD TO LIVE MY LIFE AGAIN, I’D MAKE THE SAME MISTAKES, ONLY SOONER.”
Tina Vitas
Makati City
Tuesday, June 26, 2007
TEN LESSONS IN THE FIRST ONE HUNDRED DAYS OF MANAGING A PINOY STAFF
1. Communicate your company’s values, mission and vision to your team members. Who are you, what do you stand for and where are you going? This doesn’t mean, especially in the area of where you are going, that you can’t change your route along the way. But at least you give them a map of where you want to take them, as a general guide.
2. There is power in these three traits: sincerity, loyalty and integrity. If you want your team members to learn these three necessary traits, show them by example. As their leader and guide, you have to live what you believe.
3. Raise their level of thinking if you want them to grow. Dumbing down only results in dumbing down and dumb people running around in your organization. Regardless of whether they have a grade school degree, a high school degree, a college diploma or a Phd, people understand basic concepts if explained clearly, in a way they can relate to, of course. I tend to use a lot of practical analogies so my team members can visualize what I mean.
4. It’s not just about the money; your team members want to feel that they have a personal contribution to your company no matter how small and that their voices can be heard. When you promise to get back to them with an answer to their question, request, complaint (yes, no, another time), do so in a timely fashion.
5. Set specific expectations of their performance so they know what it is you want them to accomplish. Give them the tools and the support to perform ably. As a follow-up to setting the standards of their expected performance, evaluate their performance on a periodic basis (monthly, quarterly, yearly).
6. Admit when you are wrong. This is a tough one but it shows them that everyone makes mistakes, can learn from them, must move on and do better the next time.
7. Invest time, money, energy and effort to educate them. Your team members are more valuable to you the more skilled they are and the more they use their heads. The brain is an organ which is severely underused. There is much room for it to get sharper with constant exercise.
8. You can, as an employer, treat your team members extremely well and still encounter those who simply have the wrong attitude and bad character (both incurable, unlike lack of skills and lack of education). This might cause you to be discouraged. Don’t let that happen. Weeding out is part of the process. Sometimes, it’s better to part ways sooner rather than later.
9. Exercise patience. People need time to change their way of thinking, especially if that’s the only way they know and they’re comfortable with that way already. People by nature are creatures of habit so they dread change.
10. Discipline your team members very early on in the relationship. Always be firm but fair (the analogy of the velvet glove rather than an iron fist). Correct when needed, definitely compliment when called for. People, especially Filipinos in my experience, will try to get away with as much as they can, if you allow them.
P.S. On a lighter note, I highly recommend the MANAGING A PINOY STAFF DIET to anyone who wants to lose weight. I must’ve lost anywhere between 8-10 pounds in 6 weeks without even trying.
Tina Vitas
Makati City
2. There is power in these three traits: sincerity, loyalty and integrity. If you want your team members to learn these three necessary traits, show them by example. As their leader and guide, you have to live what you believe.
3. Raise their level of thinking if you want them to grow. Dumbing down only results in dumbing down and dumb people running around in your organization. Regardless of whether they have a grade school degree, a high school degree, a college diploma or a Phd, people understand basic concepts if explained clearly, in a way they can relate to, of course. I tend to use a lot of practical analogies so my team members can visualize what I mean.
4. It’s not just about the money; your team members want to feel that they have a personal contribution to your company no matter how small and that their voices can be heard. When you promise to get back to them with an answer to their question, request, complaint (yes, no, another time), do so in a timely fashion.
5. Set specific expectations of their performance so they know what it is you want them to accomplish. Give them the tools and the support to perform ably. As a follow-up to setting the standards of their expected performance, evaluate their performance on a periodic basis (monthly, quarterly, yearly).
6. Admit when you are wrong. This is a tough one but it shows them that everyone makes mistakes, can learn from them, must move on and do better the next time.
7. Invest time, money, energy and effort to educate them. Your team members are more valuable to you the more skilled they are and the more they use their heads. The brain is an organ which is severely underused. There is much room for it to get sharper with constant exercise.
8. You can, as an employer, treat your team members extremely well and still encounter those who simply have the wrong attitude and bad character (both incurable, unlike lack of skills and lack of education). This might cause you to be discouraged. Don’t let that happen. Weeding out is part of the process. Sometimes, it’s better to part ways sooner rather than later.
9. Exercise patience. People need time to change their way of thinking, especially if that’s the only way they know and they’re comfortable with that way already. People by nature are creatures of habit so they dread change.
10. Discipline your team members very early on in the relationship. Always be firm but fair (the analogy of the velvet glove rather than an iron fist). Correct when needed, definitely compliment when called for. People, especially Filipinos in my experience, will try to get away with as much as they can, if you allow them.
P.S. On a lighter note, I highly recommend the MANAGING A PINOY STAFF DIET to anyone who wants to lose weight. I must’ve lost anywhere between 8-10 pounds in 6 weeks without even trying.
Tina Vitas
Makati City
Saturday, June 16, 2007
BEHIND THE SCENES OF THE SCENTSATIONS LAUNCH
SCENTSATIONS has arrived…..
I picked up a line of locally manufactured, designer-inspired fragrances in the hopes of branding and distributing it. Tall order for a petite entrepreneur like me. I figured that if I was able to make a brand icon out of my mom with her restaurant, Mama V, I can do the same with an unknown line of high-quality designer inspired fragrances. (Imitation is, after all, the highest form of flattery, isn’t it?) Started with the appropriate name – SCENTSATIONS. A play on the word sensations. Sense of smell evokes a lot of memories, emotions, thoughts and sometimes, even imagery.
My first step was to convince a few direct sales agents who were in my natural environment - voice teacher and receptionist at music school, therapist at beauty salon, housekeeping at my office building, secretary at my financial adviser’s office, my nephew’s yaya - to sell the fragrances on commission. The goal was to get feedback from a diverse set of customers. I was encouraged by the overwhelmingly positive responses across the board.
Quick lesson in my direct sales experience was to downsize. The 100 ml. bottle was value for money which made it relatively cheap; but Filipinos are generally more concerned that the product is absolutely cheap in real peso numbers. Interesting for me to see this at play because I learned the opposite philosophy in Emerging Markets investments. Relative value is more important than absolute value. In a sense, Filipinos are a very peculiar breed.
Step two was to switch to the 50 ml. bottle and try a bigger audience at a bazaar setting. I turned in an application to the monthly Karl Edward Bazaar at the NBC Tent and was told there was no availability. After several follow-up calls from my office, I was accepted on May 21st for the mid-June bazaar. Perfect venue to launch SCENTSATIONS since the Karl Edward Bazaar already has a loyal following.
With 9 women’s fragrances and 8 men’s fragrances I handpicked myself, I officially introduced SCENTSATIONS to the general public today, Saturday, June 16, 2007. Successful launch of a new product as measured by visual appeal of the bazaar booth, the presentation of the product and lingering first impressions. I knew that I had to temper my expectations regarding sales volume this early on in the business cycle.
Depending on how the reception grows over the next few months, step three is to bite the cost and rent retail space in a heavy traffic mall. I wish to be able to achieve this within a year’s time in order to have a bigger platform for distribution across a wider market. I will not do this, though, until I’m ready for the long-term commitment of paying exhorbitant rents and until I feel comfortable that my product already has a good base.
I would like to thank Babsi Angeles, my new Business Manager, who has been patient, supportive and tolerant of me in the initial stages of the business-building of Scentsations. She’s doing this while also running my 24-Hour Convenience Store and managing me, her boss (the more challenging of the three).
Many thanks to Kyle Gozo, up and coming Junior Art Director (he refers to himself as “visualizer”), who has helped me with the design, concept and the execution of the bazaar booth above and beyond what I would’ve imagined, especially since he donated his time and creative genius without compensation. It was a great pleasure to collaborate with Kyle because we just threw ideas back and forth at each other until we reached an outcome where we both had our distinct input. I felt like I was back with my old Emerging Markets Team of superstars at Offitbank, a fertile and festive breeding ground of brilliant ideas coming from Richard Madigan, Scott McKee, Lenora Suki and Eduardo Raz Guzman. This is what I miss most in the corporate world – people who stretch your critical thinking and creative imagination beyond your comfort level.
I must say that in the almost four years I have lived in the Philippines, working with Babsi and Kyle has been a breath of fresh air. A rarity indeed. After this reaffirming experience with these two colleagues, I am confident that this country has a pool of people, hiding somewhere, undiscovered, who have the talent, drive and desire to work hard in pursuit of the finest. Very passionate about what they do and have such attention to detail. They will simply not settle for what we have grown accustomed to in our society as “puwede na iyan” and “cutting corners”. These two lethal Filipino work attitudes together produces mediocrity. A sad waste of many of the Filipinos’ natural abilities.
Something worth mentioning to you. Although Babsi did not finish her college degree, she has the panache and the will to overcome what other people would consider an obstacle – lack of education. And because I recognized that she had the attitude of a winner, it would be up to me as her boss and mentor to invest in her, to bring out the “diamond in the rough”, if she survives me…..I am not only demanding, tough and particular, but I also have high standards and high expectations of myself and other people. Mind you, whatever I do is always done with a “wicked” sense of humor, a unique flair, entertaining drama on some days and with a generous hand. Never boring, I promise.
Kyle, meanwhile, is in his twenties. You can’t fathom where he gets the depth of his talent and professionalism from, inspite the lack of work experience on his resume. It must be genetic. He is the nephew of Minyong Ordonez, formerly of Basic Advertising and recently retired CEO of Publicis Group. Most famous for creating the classic and much loved “langhap sarap” ads of Jollibee, among many others. A legend in the Philippine advertising industry. From the looks of it, Kyle could be following in a legend’s footsteps this early on in his career.
Cheers to people like Kyle and Babsi. I am truly inspired after having worked with both of you. Maraming salamat!
Let me leave you with this thought: “If you give your best to the world, the world gives its best back to you.”
And everybody say, amen.
Tina Vitas
Makati City
I picked up a line of locally manufactured, designer-inspired fragrances in the hopes of branding and distributing it. Tall order for a petite entrepreneur like me. I figured that if I was able to make a brand icon out of my mom with her restaurant, Mama V, I can do the same with an unknown line of high-quality designer inspired fragrances. (Imitation is, after all, the highest form of flattery, isn’t it?) Started with the appropriate name – SCENTSATIONS. A play on the word sensations. Sense of smell evokes a lot of memories, emotions, thoughts and sometimes, even imagery.
My first step was to convince a few direct sales agents who were in my natural environment - voice teacher and receptionist at music school, therapist at beauty salon, housekeeping at my office building, secretary at my financial adviser’s office, my nephew’s yaya - to sell the fragrances on commission. The goal was to get feedback from a diverse set of customers. I was encouraged by the overwhelmingly positive responses across the board.
Quick lesson in my direct sales experience was to downsize. The 100 ml. bottle was value for money which made it relatively cheap; but Filipinos are generally more concerned that the product is absolutely cheap in real peso numbers. Interesting for me to see this at play because I learned the opposite philosophy in Emerging Markets investments. Relative value is more important than absolute value. In a sense, Filipinos are a very peculiar breed.
Step two was to switch to the 50 ml. bottle and try a bigger audience at a bazaar setting. I turned in an application to the monthly Karl Edward Bazaar at the NBC Tent and was told there was no availability. After several follow-up calls from my office, I was accepted on May 21st for the mid-June bazaar. Perfect venue to launch SCENTSATIONS since the Karl Edward Bazaar already has a loyal following.
With 9 women’s fragrances and 8 men’s fragrances I handpicked myself, I officially introduced SCENTSATIONS to the general public today, Saturday, June 16, 2007. Successful launch of a new product as measured by visual appeal of the bazaar booth, the presentation of the product and lingering first impressions. I knew that I had to temper my expectations regarding sales volume this early on in the business cycle.
Depending on how the reception grows over the next few months, step three is to bite the cost and rent retail space in a heavy traffic mall. I wish to be able to achieve this within a year’s time in order to have a bigger platform for distribution across a wider market. I will not do this, though, until I’m ready for the long-term commitment of paying exhorbitant rents and until I feel comfortable that my product already has a good base.
I would like to thank Babsi Angeles, my new Business Manager, who has been patient, supportive and tolerant of me in the initial stages of the business-building of Scentsations. She’s doing this while also running my 24-Hour Convenience Store and managing me, her boss (the more challenging of the three).
Many thanks to Kyle Gozo, up and coming Junior Art Director (he refers to himself as “visualizer”), who has helped me with the design, concept and the execution of the bazaar booth above and beyond what I would’ve imagined, especially since he donated his time and creative genius without compensation. It was a great pleasure to collaborate with Kyle because we just threw ideas back and forth at each other until we reached an outcome where we both had our distinct input. I felt like I was back with my old Emerging Markets Team of superstars at Offitbank, a fertile and festive breeding ground of brilliant ideas coming from Richard Madigan, Scott McKee, Lenora Suki and Eduardo Raz Guzman. This is what I miss most in the corporate world – people who stretch your critical thinking and creative imagination beyond your comfort level.
I must say that in the almost four years I have lived in the Philippines, working with Babsi and Kyle has been a breath of fresh air. A rarity indeed. After this reaffirming experience with these two colleagues, I am confident that this country has a pool of people, hiding somewhere, undiscovered, who have the talent, drive and desire to work hard in pursuit of the finest. Very passionate about what they do and have such attention to detail. They will simply not settle for what we have grown accustomed to in our society as “puwede na iyan” and “cutting corners”. These two lethal Filipino work attitudes together produces mediocrity. A sad waste of many of the Filipinos’ natural abilities.
Something worth mentioning to you. Although Babsi did not finish her college degree, she has the panache and the will to overcome what other people would consider an obstacle – lack of education. And because I recognized that she had the attitude of a winner, it would be up to me as her boss and mentor to invest in her, to bring out the “diamond in the rough”, if she survives me…..I am not only demanding, tough and particular, but I also have high standards and high expectations of myself and other people. Mind you, whatever I do is always done with a “wicked” sense of humor, a unique flair, entertaining drama on some days and with a generous hand. Never boring, I promise.
Kyle, meanwhile, is in his twenties. You can’t fathom where he gets the depth of his talent and professionalism from, inspite the lack of work experience on his resume. It must be genetic. He is the nephew of Minyong Ordonez, formerly of Basic Advertising and recently retired CEO of Publicis Group. Most famous for creating the classic and much loved “langhap sarap” ads of Jollibee, among many others. A legend in the Philippine advertising industry. From the looks of it, Kyle could be following in a legend’s footsteps this early on in his career.
Cheers to people like Kyle and Babsi. I am truly inspired after having worked with both of you. Maraming salamat!
Let me leave you with this thought: “If you give your best to the world, the world gives its best back to you.”
And everybody say, amen.
Tina Vitas
Makati City
Sunday, June 10, 2007
A LETTER TO HONORABLE ACE DURANO, DEPARTMENT OF TOURISM
I sent this letter via post to the office of the Honorable Ace Durano of the Department of Tourism not too long after my mother, my nephew and I went on a package tour to Banaue/Sagada last year. I never received a response from his office. Might have something to do with the fact that I am a private citizen with no political clout. Nonetheless, I wanted to share the letter with you.
July 16, 2006
Honorable Joseph H. Durano
Secretary, Department of Tourism
Room 400, DOT Building
T.M. Kalaw Street
Rizal Park, Ermita 1000
Dear Minister Durano:
I read a piece in the Philippine Daily Inquirer by Greg Bloom (one of the author’s of Lonely Planet Philippine edition) about the potential of the Philippines as a major ecotourism and adventure travel destination. This is obviously an area where the Philippines has a competitive advantage in that has not been fully explored.
Greg Bloom also mentioned in his piece that the Department of Tourism is aggressively promoting the already famous tourist attractions which include Boracay, Bohol, Palawan and Banaue/Sagada. I do agree with him that destinations like Banaue/Sagada are more heavily advertised than others, although it appears to me that we have to do more than just promotion – we need to focus on preservation, as well.
I acknowledge the fact that you have done a superb job during your current stint as Minister and congratulate you for your efforts. I know this because of the published statistics in the papers on foreign visitors and their more diverse nationalities, in addition to the visual evidence I see when I walk around in the Central Business District and my travels throughout the Philippines. There are more foreigners living and visiting the country today than when I arrived in 2003.
I have lived in the States for 17 years, the last 9 years in New York City. I returned home to Manila in August 2003. Since I am now a resident of Makati, it is my obligation as a concerned Filipino citizen to write my public officials if I feel they can do something to make this country a better place for myself and my countrymen. I am writing you to relate a story about my trip to Sagada in the end of May this year.
I took a walking tour with a local tour guide to a cave in Sagada to see the much talked about Hanging Coffins. I was deeply saddened to hear the story from the tour guide that the city is not given proper funding to preserve these sites. In fact, from where I was standing in the mouth of the cave, you could see bones left on top of the wooden coffins. Obviously, certain irresponsible and disrespectful visitors had already desecrated these burial sites. It is both embarrassing and pitiful that something like this can happen to one of our most beloved landmark treasures and more importantly, a sacred place of burial.
A top foreign female executive of a New Zealand bank in the Philippines said in an interview that Sagada is so magical that anyone who hasn’t been to Sagada has not been to the Philippines. This is a compliment of the highest order to the beauty and majesty of this place, Minister Durano.
If what the tour guide in Sagada told me is accurate, I urge you to please look into that problem. I believe that tourism, like it has in other Emerging countries, i.e. Thailand, can contribute significantly to our economy and bring our people out of poverty by giving them a source of income. Unfortunately, this will not happen if we allow the tourist attractions that make the Philippines a unique destination in Asia like Banaue/Sagada further deteriorate.
I thank you for your time and I hope you appreciate my concern. I would like to know what we can do collectively, the DOT and the public, to alleviate this situation. If there is anything I can do to help your institution, I may be reached by email at tvitas@pldtdsl.net.
Sincerely yours,
Tina Vitas
July 16, 2006
Honorable Joseph H. Durano
Secretary, Department of Tourism
Room 400, DOT Building
T.M. Kalaw Street
Rizal Park, Ermita 1000
Dear Minister Durano:
I read a piece in the Philippine Daily Inquirer by Greg Bloom (one of the author’s of Lonely Planet Philippine edition) about the potential of the Philippines as a major ecotourism and adventure travel destination. This is obviously an area where the Philippines has a competitive advantage in that has not been fully explored.
Greg Bloom also mentioned in his piece that the Department of Tourism is aggressively promoting the already famous tourist attractions which include Boracay, Bohol, Palawan and Banaue/Sagada. I do agree with him that destinations like Banaue/Sagada are more heavily advertised than others, although it appears to me that we have to do more than just promotion – we need to focus on preservation, as well.
I acknowledge the fact that you have done a superb job during your current stint as Minister and congratulate you for your efforts. I know this because of the published statistics in the papers on foreign visitors and their more diverse nationalities, in addition to the visual evidence I see when I walk around in the Central Business District and my travels throughout the Philippines. There are more foreigners living and visiting the country today than when I arrived in 2003.
I have lived in the States for 17 years, the last 9 years in New York City. I returned home to Manila in August 2003. Since I am now a resident of Makati, it is my obligation as a concerned Filipino citizen to write my public officials if I feel they can do something to make this country a better place for myself and my countrymen. I am writing you to relate a story about my trip to Sagada in the end of May this year.
I took a walking tour with a local tour guide to a cave in Sagada to see the much talked about Hanging Coffins. I was deeply saddened to hear the story from the tour guide that the city is not given proper funding to preserve these sites. In fact, from where I was standing in the mouth of the cave, you could see bones left on top of the wooden coffins. Obviously, certain irresponsible and disrespectful visitors had already desecrated these burial sites. It is both embarrassing and pitiful that something like this can happen to one of our most beloved landmark treasures and more importantly, a sacred place of burial.
A top foreign female executive of a New Zealand bank in the Philippines said in an interview that Sagada is so magical that anyone who hasn’t been to Sagada has not been to the Philippines. This is a compliment of the highest order to the beauty and majesty of this place, Minister Durano.
If what the tour guide in Sagada told me is accurate, I urge you to please look into that problem. I believe that tourism, like it has in other Emerging countries, i.e. Thailand, can contribute significantly to our economy and bring our people out of poverty by giving them a source of income. Unfortunately, this will not happen if we allow the tourist attractions that make the Philippines a unique destination in Asia like Banaue/Sagada further deteriorate.
I thank you for your time and I hope you appreciate my concern. I would like to know what we can do collectively, the DOT and the public, to alleviate this situation. If there is anything I can do to help your institution, I may be reached by email at tvitas@pldtdsl.net.
Sincerely yours,
Tina Vitas
Saturday, June 9, 2007
WHY THIS COUNTRY IS POOR
I am approaching four years as a returning resident in Manila this August. End of May this year must have been an all-time low for me in this country. Back to back experiences made me shake my head in hopelessness. I am beginning to seriously doubt that the Philippines will ever rise above its current levels of deplorable poverty. Hate to break it to you, our people are stuck in a poverty trap. A “live for today and take what you can even if it’s not yours” mindset that keeps them poor and even poorer over time, if they don’t change. That’s on the side of the poor. On the side of the rich, there is a lot of apathy because it doesn’t really affect their lives whether there is no poverty, some poverty or a lot of poverty. They are already rich and will probably stay that way.
I had the experience of being a first-time business owner and employer in the Philippines with a small household staff of one (I have a studio apartment) and a few employees in my upscale 24-hour “sari-sari” store that caters to a 24-hour Karaoke/TV business. At the same time, not to pat myself on the back, I have and continue to support my church and other charitable organizations with my modest personal money as a way of giving back to the universe which has been incredibly kind to me.
Those wealthy philanthropists can throw large sums of money to organizations to help the poor. I had a better and more affordable idea of helping those few people whom I employ through empowerment. My strategy towards lifting my employees out of their socio-economic status was three-fold: pay them a good salary, give incentive compensation in terms of commission and extras and create opportunities for them to move up in my mom & pop organization when I recognize talent, loyalty, integrity and hard work.
The salary is what I owe them in exchange for the work they have rendered to my company; an even exchange, a quid-pro-quo transaction. Anything above and beyond that is extra. It is given out of the goodness of my heart, in my desire to share whatever I have with them. With this thinking, I was in shock at how a number of employees whom I have helped tremendously, especially the ones who had been with me a few years, had an attitude that can be summed up in one word: UNGRATEFUL.
In the end, they behaved as though they were doing me a favor by working for me and that I owed them for that privilege, even after I paid them their salaries. Additionally, that there was no need to be thankful for my generosity because that was nothing short of the ordinary. And please don’t even get me started about the ones who stole from me…..
Allow me to share an anecdote. I thought it most bizarre because one of my employees earnestly prays on bended knees every Wednesday in Baclaran Church for abundance. Did it not ever occur to her that the money bag was not just going to mysteriously fall out of the skies and land on her lap? That maybe the financial blessings would be coursed through an instrument perhaps like me, her employer?
I was the one who sincerely wanted to help them make a decent living and I turned out to be the bad guy for expecting any kind of appreciation from them. This kind of reciprocity made me angry, sad, appalled, perplexed, disheartened, disgusted, disappointed and regretful. With these experiences, what incentive do I have to continue the mission that I’m trying to accomplish? Absolutely none.
Fast forward a few weeks later, when things are in much better perspective. Like everything in life, you cannot give up because you encounter a few bad eggs, a few rotten tomatoes, a few bruised apples. There will always be people who fall short of expectations. When my emotions calmed down, I refused to be deterred by the task at hand. A task which I imposed on myself when I came back home to the Philippines in August 2003 – to change the lives of people around me by changing how they think. That what and how they think determines the actions they take and as a result, the kind of lives they will ultimately have.
If only because of my stubbornness in accomplishing this goal, I am able change one life, THAT IS ONE LIFE THAT IS BETTER OFF TODAY THAN YESTERDAY. I can go to bed with a feeling that I have done something worthwhile, even on such a tiny scale.
I leave you with a verse from Scripture with a promise, a promise that comes with an exhortation that we will have to help the Creator help ourselves.
“Ask and it will be given you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.” (Matthew 7:7-8)
Tina Vitas
Makati City
I had the experience of being a first-time business owner and employer in the Philippines with a small household staff of one (I have a studio apartment) and a few employees in my upscale 24-hour “sari-sari” store that caters to a 24-hour Karaoke/TV business. At the same time, not to pat myself on the back, I have and continue to support my church and other charitable organizations with my modest personal money as a way of giving back to the universe which has been incredibly kind to me.
Those wealthy philanthropists can throw large sums of money to organizations to help the poor. I had a better and more affordable idea of helping those few people whom I employ through empowerment. My strategy towards lifting my employees out of their socio-economic status was three-fold: pay them a good salary, give incentive compensation in terms of commission and extras and create opportunities for them to move up in my mom & pop organization when I recognize talent, loyalty, integrity and hard work.
The salary is what I owe them in exchange for the work they have rendered to my company; an even exchange, a quid-pro-quo transaction. Anything above and beyond that is extra. It is given out of the goodness of my heart, in my desire to share whatever I have with them. With this thinking, I was in shock at how a number of employees whom I have helped tremendously, especially the ones who had been with me a few years, had an attitude that can be summed up in one word: UNGRATEFUL.
In the end, they behaved as though they were doing me a favor by working for me and that I owed them for that privilege, even after I paid them their salaries. Additionally, that there was no need to be thankful for my generosity because that was nothing short of the ordinary. And please don’t even get me started about the ones who stole from me…..
Allow me to share an anecdote. I thought it most bizarre because one of my employees earnestly prays on bended knees every Wednesday in Baclaran Church for abundance. Did it not ever occur to her that the money bag was not just going to mysteriously fall out of the skies and land on her lap? That maybe the financial blessings would be coursed through an instrument perhaps like me, her employer?
I was the one who sincerely wanted to help them make a decent living and I turned out to be the bad guy for expecting any kind of appreciation from them. This kind of reciprocity made me angry, sad, appalled, perplexed, disheartened, disgusted, disappointed and regretful. With these experiences, what incentive do I have to continue the mission that I’m trying to accomplish? Absolutely none.
Fast forward a few weeks later, when things are in much better perspective. Like everything in life, you cannot give up because you encounter a few bad eggs, a few rotten tomatoes, a few bruised apples. There will always be people who fall short of expectations. When my emotions calmed down, I refused to be deterred by the task at hand. A task which I imposed on myself when I came back home to the Philippines in August 2003 – to change the lives of people around me by changing how they think. That what and how they think determines the actions they take and as a result, the kind of lives they will ultimately have.
If only because of my stubbornness in accomplishing this goal, I am able change one life, THAT IS ONE LIFE THAT IS BETTER OFF TODAY THAN YESTERDAY. I can go to bed with a feeling that I have done something worthwhile, even on such a tiny scale.
I leave you with a verse from Scripture with a promise, a promise that comes with an exhortation that we will have to help the Creator help ourselves.
“Ask and it will be given you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.” (Matthew 7:7-8)
Tina Vitas
Makati City
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