A young mom who was unable to finish her studies at first, Bea Vergara persevered to land remote jobs in order to pay for her education. Read on how she was able to establish her own startup company and give her daughter a good future all because of remote work.

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It was in 2013 when we became parents.

I was only 18 at that time and my spouse was already 19. We were both still studying in college at that time. I was studying Tourism Management back then at a famous state university here in Bulacan and my husband at a state university in Batangas.

We decided to stop studying to look for a job so we could tend to our child’s needs. Our parents also persuaded us to separate because they were afraid that we would not amount to anything in life.

Fighting To Stay Together

We still fought for our union and chose to stay together because we actually wanted the event that happened, and saw it as a blessing. It was an opportunity for us to change and become responsible individuals. We didn’t want to separate because we didn’t want our child to grow up in a broken family because both me and my husband grew up in broken families.

When our child was two months old, my husband and I eloped even if it was hurtful to us. It was difficult because we left our child with my mom. My husband and I went to Batangas. We planned on going back to our child after my husband and I got jobs.

Working At A BPO

Fortunately, after two weeks, I got a job at a BPO company in Batangas. I was 19 years old then. The salary was just enough—not too small, not too large. We were able to provide for our family.

We got our daughter back from my mom and explained to her that we didn’t want to depend on our parents financially and wanted to prove that we could establish our family without asking for financial help from others. We also wanted to redeem ourselves from the disappointments of marrying early.

My husband decided that I would be the only one to work then since I was the first one to get a job. He didn’t hesitate to become a house husband who raised our daughter for two years while I was working at an office. My husband was the one who played the role of a mother. It was very admirable.

We rented an apartment in Batangas. Sometimes I would leave in the morning to go to work and my little family would still be asleep. When I go back at around 9PM in the evening, they would also still be asleep. Sadly, I wasn’t able to talk or bond with them during these times, even if we all lived under one roof.

Life was so hard then that at times, we would be satisfied with chicken that costs P5! We would have it for lunch and dinner. We would partner it with boiled water spinach or kangkong and we would be satisfied. But no matter how hard life was, we would always prioritize my daughter’s milk even if expensive. We would loan money from the nearby store just so my daughter wouldn’t run out of milk. It didn’t matter if my husband and I got hungry; what was important was that our daughter was full and satisfied.

The Wake-up Call To Continue Studying

This difficult set-up went on for around two years, until my pay was no longer enough. My husband finally got a job at a call center, night shift. So whenever I went home in the evening, he’d be the one to leave. Whenever I’d leave in the morning for work, he would’ve just gotten home. This is why we hardly saw each other during those days. Our daughter would always be in the hospital because we could hardly care for her anymore. That was when it hit me that we can’t go on like this for the rest of our lives. We needed to study so we could get better jobs.

I humbled myself before my mom so she could let me study again in college. I looked for a course that I thought I would excel in, and where I could use my true skills. I found out about a Multimedia Arts course in STI. In April 2015,  I resigned from work and decided to take up this course.

I depended on my mom financially during my first semester but then decided to look for a job while studying so I could pay for my own education. I looked for freelance graphic design gigs. My routine was work, school, work, school. Finally, during my second semester, I told my mom I’d be the one financing my studies. I also applied what I learned in school to my job. I admittedly neglected my studies sometimes because I had to take care of my clients at work who paid me, and allowed me to finance my education. Without these clients, I wouldn’t have anything to pay for my tuition. This made me regret the first opportunity I had before to study, and how I squandered it.

I worked hard to balance my work with my studies. But sometimes, I still had a lot of difficulty due to sleepless nights at work. I was unable to attend some of my first subjects and even failed two of them. My mom didn’t know about these until I graduated. I wanted to catch up with my friends who already graduated before me. That’s why I appealed my subjects where I failed, until finally, I redeemed myself.

Finally Graduated, With Startup Of Their Own

It feels so good to graduate when you know you’ve worked hard for it. I graduated college at the age of 22.

Now that I am a graduate, both I and my husband are business managers of clients from other countries. We work as virtual assistants and now, we are establishing our startup web design agency business. There are four of us in our team right now and we look forward to expanding in the coming months.

Now that I am 23, I am able to close six-figure deals with my dream clients by helping them build sales funnels and assist them with their businesses without working long hours. This is also thanks to the book, 4-Hour Work Week by Timothy Ferris. I can’t brag about expensive things or luxurious travels but I can tell you I’ve already invested a lot of precious assets as a freelancer.

We are able to send our daughter in a private school and recently, we have bought our dream vehicle. By the end of 2018, our dream house would be complete.

So Many Opportunities

For all young moms, parents, like me—I know you feel like it’s the end of all your dreams. I’ve been there years ago. But believe me, it’s not the end of the road for you. There are so many opportunities waiting and you just need to believe in yourself, practice time management, make your family your inspiration, work hard, and do all your daily work with love. Don’t stop until it’s done. But of course, don’t forget to look after your health and ask guidance from God, you need it the most.

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