Always the budgetarian: When passion and career meet

Choose a job you love and you will never have to work a day in your life. This is perhaps one of the most common career advice out there, but it still rings true for Cathyrain Ramirez.

Cath has always been a homebody. Growing up in Taguig, Cath preferred to stay at home and do house chores rather than play with her peers. She often wondered if it comes with her role at home. At an early age, Cath learned to be independent since her parents were both working. At age seven, Cath had to learn how to wash her own clothes, walk to school on her own, and be alone at home most of the time.

Her dad works as a tricycle driver. They lived sufficiently until the pandemic happened. Quarantine measures restricted everyone’s movements and it consequently affected his livelihood. Since then, Cath assumed the role of being the family’s breadwinner.

Her sister, who has a one-year-old child, has also been staying with Cath.  “Kailangan ko talaga mag-doble kayod.” The responsibilities on her shoulder may seem overwhelming, but Cath never sees it as a burden as she values her family more than anything in the world. 

Dreams and frustrations 

Cath has always been fascinated with numbers, particularly budgeting. “Parang gusto ko i-budget lahat. Paano kaya ‘to na-budget?” This fascination inspired her to dream of becoming a certified public accountant. 

But her father’s earnings could only support their daily needs, so Cath instead took a two-year vocational course on business information management. She would have wanted to continue the ladderized program, but she knew that her family had immediate needs. She has a one-year-old niece to feed. Providing for her family was her priority.  

Cath set aside her dream of becoming a CPA and immediately looked for a job when she graduated in 2016. She realized then that the world can really be so tough. Employers prioritized graduates of four-year courses. At the back of her mind, Cath would always say that she also went to college so it makes her equally deserving. But the employers were not generous enough to let her gain the experience she needed. She often ended up frustrated not getting a call back. 

But life only moves forward, so she did. Cath accepted a job in a hypermarket and later in a department store as a sales lady. It eventually became her comfort zone. After all, numbers were her niche. Cath thought that the shopping store would be her home forever until a call from a college friend changed her life. 

Stepping up my game

After being rejected a couple of times before, Cath felt inadequate to be in the Zuellig Family Foundation (ZFF). Fear almost got the best of her, but Cath cast those fears aside. She took the exam without the hope of getting a call back. What happened next surprised her as ZFF called her that same day and asked her to report the next day.  

“Naiiyak ako noon. Halu-halo ang naramdaman ko. Hindi ko alam ang gagawin ko. Ang alam ko lang kasi maging cashier, mag-benta. Pero sabi ko itinadhana ito sa akin,” Cath recalled. Cath regards that call as the realization of a dream that seemed impossible to reach.  

Her first day at work astounded Cath. She grappled with the work that welcomed her. She came in during the audit season, so Cath found herself rendering overtime on her very first day. 

Shocked, Cath did not report on her second day. Fear consumed her. She was too afraid of making a mistake. To her surprise, Patricia Nable, Finance Manager at ZFF, reached out not to rebuke her but to give encouraging thoughts. “Sumuko talaga ako. Hindi ko kaya. Pero hindi ko talaga ‘yon makakalimutan. Sabi ni Ms. Pat ‘ano bang hindi mo naiintindihan pa? Try natin one-on-one tayo for one week. Tuturuan kita.’” 

Her fears quickly turned into hope upon hearing Pat’s words. It rekindled her spirits. “Malaking factor si Ms. Pat bakit na’ndito pa rin ako. Hindi niya ako sinukuan.” From that moment, Cath pushed herself to go beyond her perceived limitations. Work still feels too much at some point, but Cath has already seen that she is not alone in ZFF.

Blessed to be a blessing

Cath cannot help but smile thinking that she found a workplace that allows her to do what she loves the most—deal with numbers and do budgeting. But more than that, Cath considers it a blessing to have a job that blesses other people. “Thankful ako kay God kasi sobrang laki ng ibinigay Niya sa aking company. Hindi lang ikaw ang natutulungan. May natutulungan ka ring iba.”

She has always been a “budgetarian” but Cath shared that through ZFF, she learned to be even more responsible especially in handling her finances. At age 23, Cath got to secure an insurance policy, acquire her own property, and have some investment. 

All of the rejections Cath received made her think she was like the character in her favorite film, The Pursuit of Happyness. But like the film’s main character, Cath is already reaping the rewards of her perseverance and is now living the best life in an organization that finds joy in helping those in need and allows her to be a blessing to others.