Random Thoughts

Here's another nice article I wanted to share by BO Sanchez.

Don't Blame Your Circumstances

Mang Felix is a man who sits on his wooden bench all day.

When I leave the house in the morning, he's already there—sitting outside his home. When I return home in the afternoon, he'd still be on the same spot.

One day, I stopped to chat with him. I found out that he was only 38. I asked him, "Mang Felix, if you don't mind me asking, why do you sit here all day? Why don't you work?”

"You know, Brother Bo,” he said, "to succeed in life, you need five C's. I only have one.”

I asked, "And what are the four C's that you don't have?”

"First, I don't have a college degree. I only finished high school. Second, I don't have capital. So I can't start a business. The third C is connections. I don't have any. The fourth C is chance. It's just my destiny to be poor.”

I asked, "And what is the one C that you have?”

"I'm cute.”

I laughed. "How about confused?”

"Bo, this is my destiny. But it's OK. I get by. My wife earns a little and we have relatives who help us.”

I told Felix, "Do you know Henry Sy, Lucio Tan and John Gokongwei?

He nodded. "Of course, I know them. Who doesn't?”

I took a deep breath and began my lecture. "Henry Sy came to the Philippines from China as a young 12-year-old boy with no wealth to speak of except the shirt on his back and the slippers on his feet. At that young age, he worked in a sari-sari store 12 hours a day. Today, he owns 50+ SM malls all over the country.”

"Wow,” Felix muttered.

"John Gokongwei, at the age of 15, was a simple market vendor. He was the youngest market vendor at that time, riding his bicycle, carrying soap, candles and thread. He'd sell them to one customer at a time, face-to-face, belly to belly. He never graduated from college. Today, John Gokongwei is a multi-billionaire and owns Cebu Pacific, Robinson's and a host of other businesses.”

"Incredible,” he shook his head.

"Lucio Tan? Same story. Arrived from China absolutely poor. Never finished college too. But look at him now. He owns PAL, PNB, Eton Properties, etcetera.”

"That's great,” he said.

"Do you understand?” I asked.

"Understand what?” he asked, his face a total blank.

"They started just like you! Without the C's that you mentioned. The only difference is that they didn't sit on a wooden bench the whole day.”

"But I like my wooden bench!” he roared.

"It's never one's destiny to be poor. You may have been born poor but you don't have to stay poor.”

"But this is my bad luck!” he said, his hand pounding his bench.

"I don't believe in bad luck,” I said, as I turned to leave.

"What do you believe in?” he asked.

"I create my luck,” I said.

May your dreams come true,
Bo Sanchez