The Life I Had Before the Pandemic
Before the pandemic, my weeks had a simple rhythm. Weekdays were for school, intense, demanding, and honestly, something I was good at. I studied hard, and I nailed it. Then the weekend came, and that was mine. Time to breathe, relax, and just be.
I was confident back then. Maybe even a little carefree. I romanticized life. I had big ambitions but no real urgency behind them because everything felt steady. My family supported me, I didn’t have to think too far ahead, and learning things on my own came naturally. I was flourishing, and I knew it.
Then the pandemic hit, and so did reality.
My father lost his job, and something shifted in me almost immediately. The guilt set in fast. I thought about every peso I’d spent without saving, every little lifestyle habit I hadn’t thought twice about. The safety net I didn’t even realize I had was suddenly gone. I became practical overnight. Not because someone told me to, but because I had no other choice.
My confidence, which had always felt solid, quietly crumbled. My thoughts were running all the time. I wasn’t as present in school the way I used to be. The version of me that studied hard and thrived on weekends started fading, and I didn’t quite know yet who was supposed to replace her.
The Moment I Decided to Stop Waiting
I don’t sit in problems for long. I give myself a few hours, and then I start looking for a solution. I’m not sure if that’s a coping mechanism or just who I am, but I genuinely don’t like drama. I don’t like looking weak. So even when I was scared, I moved.
I asked my father for a small capital and started reselling cosmetics. It was a sudden idea, but it felt right. My sister had done something similar when she was younger, so I wasn’t completely starting from zero. I had just enough knowledge to take the first step.
And honestly? I was terrified and excited at the same time. Because this was mine. I wasn’t just following a path someone laid out for me. I was building something, learning as I went, applying things in real time. That felt alive in a way school hadn’t in a while.
My family didn’t push back at all. They showed up. They shared my posts, told their friends, and helped orders come in. In a season where everything felt uncertain, that support meant more than I could say.
Starting Over and What That Actually Looked Like
When the cosmetics market got too crowded, I stopped. My confidence was already low, and I wasn’t in a place to push through the noise. So I pivoted and kept pivoting.
I tried applying to call centers. Got rejected. I didn’t know what I was doing, honestly. I just knew I needed something to work on.
Then I reconnected with a friend who shared the same hobby I’d quietly carried through school: video editing. She sent me a link to Vidpros, and somehow, with no formal background, I got in.
Balancing editing work and college at the same time was genuinely hard. They both demanded the same hours, the same focus. My grades weren’t what they used to be, and it stopped mattering to me the way it once did because I was building something real in real time. The classroom felt theoretical. Vidpros felt like life.
When I graduated, I told the team I wanted to move into social media management and marketing. The Founder and CEO of Vidpros heard me out and opened a position. That was a turning point. Suddenly, I wasn’t just editing. I was exploring SEO, email marketing, funnels, sponsorships, and partnerships. I was trying everything and finding out I was actually good at it.
Sonny Tam, my mentor at Vidpros, was a big reason I stayed and grew. Four years of his patience, his guidance, and his belief in me shaped how I think about work and life. I’m genuinely lucky I got to learn beside him.
When I moved into a client success manager role, I found another mentor in Joe. Much like Sonny, he poured into me, especially on the sales side, and I learned so much from him. He made the role feel manageable and meaningful.
But when Joe left, I felt lost. The role started to feel heavier without that guidance. Somewhere along the way, I realized I had drifted far from the work that made me feel alive. It wasn’t anyone’s fault. It just wasn’t the right fit anymore. So I made the decision to move on.
How IreneChan.co Became Part of the Story
I first crossed paths with Irene Chan through Vidpros, where she had been hired to create video tutorials for the team. We stayed connected after that. But it was at WOSCon ’23, the World of Search Conference, the Philippines’ first-ever gathering of global SEO experts held in September 2023, that I really saw her clearly.
She was with her sister Lala, and what struck me wasn’t just her expertise. It was how long she’d been doing this, building remote teams, driving real results, long before working from home became the norm.
When I left Vidpros, I reached out to her directly asking if there was an opening as a video editor or social media manager. She absorbed me right away and allowed me to work with her clients through IreneChan.co.
That’s how I began working with Erica C. Boling, a former professor turned dog trainer and coach. But calling her just a client doesn’t quite cover it. What I admire most about Erica is how she moves: she decides what she wants, and she acts on it. No overthinking, no hesitation.
What made working with her different was that she genuinely understood the value I brought to her journey. She didn’t just hand me tasks; she trusted me with her brand. That kind of working relationship is rare, and it pushed me to show up as my best.
What Irene gave me wasn’t just a job. She gave me a real chance to transition from freelancing into something with structure, direction, and genuine growth. She believed in me at a point when I was still figuring out what I was even capable of. That’s not something you forget.
What’s on the Other Side of the Leap
Today, my work life feels like freedom.
Today, I wake up knowing what I’m doing and why. I work from home, from a cafe, on a schedule that’s mine. I work with people who trust me, on things I actually chose. I’ve grown financially while staying true to the kind of work that energizes me, and that balance, which once felt out of reach, is just my normal now.
If I could go back and say one thing to the version of me who was lost during the pandemic, it would be this: don’t lose confidence in yourself. And don’t be afraid to try something new. The comfort zone feels safe, but nothing that mattered to me was waiting inside it.
I wouldn’t change a single thing about the road I took. The rejections, the pivots, the roles that didn’t fit, the moments I felt out of place, every one of them taught me something I couldn’t have learned any other way. And the relationships I built along the way, mentors and clients and people I never expected to matter, I still carry them with me.
To anyone still on the fence, freedom might not look like what you imagined. For me, it looked like peace of mind. No Sunday dread, no second-guessing every move. Just showing up for work that I chose, with people who see my value, in a space that’s fully mine. That’s what was waiting on the other side. You just have to be willing to find out.
