There are few unhidden truths around us that we just take for granted but actually are the secrets to a successful, happy, and worthwhile life. Fulfillment and happiness in life depend on the choices that one makes. The circumstances are beyond our control, but the consequences are results of the choices we make. I choose work, love, and travel.
Studying the lives of successful people, the character that applies to all of them is hard work. Nobody succeeded without working hard and working smart too. Pondering on the stories about great people, the most admired and most loved in all humanity, the trait that distinguishes them from the rest is that they loved much, they also gave their best and served many, without minding the cost. And learning from the experiences of happy personalities, I notice that they travelled a lot, reached far places, and met many interesting people. Thus, my life's philosophy is anchored on these three activities; work, love, and travel. Many times, I combine two or all the three of them. I work to express love. I work while I travel, and never stop to love all the while.
About work, I am a very hardworking person. In 2020, during the pandemic, I was able to write and publish no less than 10 books on labor laws, HR, and legal ethics. I wrote 365 daily columns for The FREEMAN. I taught in three universities. I handled more than 50 cases in the NLRC, DOLE, Court of Appeals, and the Supreme Court. I conducted almost daily a webinar or two via the digital platform. I am a very busy man. I have no time to worry, hate, or think of trivial and nasty things. Work is my hobby, my therapy, and my vice. I don’t only work to live, I also live to work. I learned hard work from my late mama and my grandparents. From my papa, I learned how to be happy by serving others and doing my best in whatever I decide to put my heart and hands into.
When I studied the lives of Steve Jobs of Apple, Jeff Bezos of Amazon, Bill Gates of Microsoft, Mark Zuckerberg of Facebook, Larry Page and Sergey Brin of Google, the common denominator that cuts across all their lives is hard work. They were always the first to wake up in the morning and the last to sleep at night. They gave extra efforts to their passion and walked the extra mile in pursuit of their goals. Unlike others whose working time were controlled by the clock, the focused on their self-imposed tasks and sought better, bigger, and newer solutions to problems that they already envisioned while others were happy with the status quo.
On love, I know that famous people who were immensely respected and held in high esteem are the ones who showed more love for people, more love for country, more love for humanity. Characters like Mother Teresa, Pope St. John Paul, Mahatma Gandhi, Nelson Mandela, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Barack Obama, John F. Kennedy, Helen Keller, and the Dalai Lama. They showed their love by selfless service and tremendous sacrifices even giving up their freedom, convenience, and wealth, and even their own lives for some great and noble causes. Manny Pacquiao loves boxing, Serena Williams loves tennis, Cristiano Ronaldo loves football, Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods love golf just as these guys love basketball; Michael Jordan, Lebron James, Kobe Bryant, Abdul Jabar, and Magic Johnson.
I also noted that Dr. Jose Rizal was the most travelled Filipino in his time, visiting Spain, Germany, France, Great Britain, America, Japan, and many Asian countries. He also loved more than 10 women and served our country by writing “Noli” and “Fili” which roused the patriotism of Bonifacio, Aguinaldo, Mabini, the Del Pilars, and the Lunas. In 2019, I travelled to 17 European countries in 23 days. In 2018, I was in the US travelling in 17 states in 20 days. In 2016, I just traveled around our country. In 2015, I was in the Holy Land, Israel, Palestine, Jordan, and Egypt. I love to travel, if not for this pandemic, I would have visited Zambia, Zimbabwe, Burkina Faso, Nigeria, and Kenya to visit the relatives of Barack Obama. I am not rich but my clients are, and they take me along while I do legal work for them. Life is joyful.