What Got Me Here Will Take Me There: My Journey to Landing My First Job Abroad

Ever heard of the phrase, "What got you here won't get you there"? It's actually found in most strategy articles and books. It suggests the idea that if you want to be successful, you have to adjust and fine-tune your actions according to your goal.

What works for one thing wouldn't necessarily work for another so one must keep thinking of new ways and strategies in order to keep going. It's a basic management and leadership principle. Although it makes perfect sense, looking back to my past experiences & achievements has gotten me to challenge this whole idea.

​All this time I've been reaching milestones in life thinking that I've been holding unto one 'strategy' alone; and that I've been getting here and there with one and the same thing. As such, this management phrase I've just mentioned earlier had gotten me to step back and re-evaluate its relevance in my life.

For one thing, I was able to get to my dream school for college, fulfill my desire to study abroad, make it into the Dean's List at least once in my college life, get to Dubai for my first job, and meet people along the way whom I will cherish for life. All of these happened with this great deal of hope upon knowing that Someone Greater than me is always in control. And that's the reason why I could say this rather bold statement that what got me here will get me there.

What Got Me Here Will Get Me There

People may have been wondering why and how I got here in Dubai. As a fresh grad, I don't really have an idea what to do with life, nor was it part of my plan to work abroad. All I ever wanted was to get the best job I could possibly get and hope that I may have a bright future out of it.

I've been searching for jobs back home, looking for openings here and there, going back and forth from Antipolo to Makati for interviews, and enduring the Manila traffic only to get home feeling desperate to land a job. 

The first few months of unemployment, no matter how people would like to term it as (f)unemployment, is not easy. There's always this fear of uncertainty, and sometimes, that pain of rejection.  It is also in these moments when you'll find it hard to sustain hope and belief in yourself. Other times you can't help but compare yourself with other people. But these hard times, more than just a test of endurance, is, above all, an avenue toward self-discovery.

It is in between those feelings of frustration and inadequacy that I actually learned to find myself and remember that I am not in control. It is in my weakness that I learned to trust and depend fully on a Higher Being, which is God. As such, it led me to hope and look forward to what is ahead, believing that whatever the future brings, it would be the best. After all, if God is supreme, He definitely knows what is best. And indeed, He gave me the best.

I started applying for jobs early February, two months before graduation; and I only got to receive a job offer in June.  The wait was ultimately distressing, yet it was worth it. 

I still remember how the month of May was the toughest, especially when I had to deal with this rather torturing feeling of seeing my classmates' social media posts regarding their first days at work while I remain at home looking for yet another company to apply to. 

Looking back, seeing myself getting left behind gave me more pressure. The anxiety of not knowing where to start was even more dreadful.

And so when I finally received an offer from Dubai, I was ecstatic. The fact that I'm going to be based abroad for my first job was unthinkable. After months of dealing with uncertainty and doubt, I finally got the best thing I've been hoping and waiting for.

The beautiful thing about it is that while I was dealing with pain & heartbreak from being turned down quite a few times, I was actually being re-directed towards a better place I never imagined. 

And now that I am here, the journey and the struggles it entails doesn't end here, of course. As the saying goes, "new level, new devil." Every milestone warrants new challenges. And it's a never-ending cycle.

While it's a challenge on its own to face our struggles and fears, it's actually a lot trickier to remember that we can't deal with all of those alone. 

Seeing that I was able to get to places through God, I am even more inspired to look forward to what is ahead. And so as I may encounter several upheavals along the way, I shall not forget that there are reasons not to fear -- always remembering that Who brought me here will definitely bring me there. And wherever that may be, I know that it's always going to be the best place.

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Flight from Hong Kong to Dubai (August 12, 2015)

A visit to Dubai Cultural Heritage Village (August 15, 2015)

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