Gunning for the Millennial dream

MANILA, Philippines – Millenials are driven and passionate individuals who will do anything to succeed. They are hungry and go beyond what is expected of them by those who are older.

There are those who have their head above the clouds thinking they are invincible, while there are others who stay grounded and are willing to learn more.

Who are the Millenials? They’re not just defined by their youth. They are the ones who work twice as hard, who want to achieve and go beyond expectations, and whose goal is to help build a better society. They endure sleepless nights, work-related stress and sacrifice to benefit not just themselves but the people around them. Someday, they hope to impact the world.

Going against the odds 

“My colleagues call me Triple A and my friends say I’m intense,” said Camille Ang when asked about what other people say about her achievements. She is a Project Development Officer under the Office of the Undersecretary for Planning and Project Development in the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC). She graduated cum laude from the Ateneo de Manila University with a degree in BS Management Engineering. 

Her day starts very early in the morning. “In DOTC, roughly, when the sun is still up, I’m mostly either presenting or jumping from one meeting to another to talk to people from the department, other government agencies, development agencies like World Bank or ADB, law firms, transaction advisory firms, private companies, banks, embassies, cooperatives, or NGOs. When the sun sets and the aircon in the office stops, that’s when I can sit down to work, plan and strategize,” she added.

However, Camille’s family and friends were not expecting her to work for the government, when there were other more lucrative options available.

Unlike many of us, Camille saw the good in working in the government, particularly DOTC. Despite the fact that traffic is a growing problem that everyone loves to hate, she firmly believes that the government, with the help of society, can improve our infrastructure to benefit every town, city and province in the country.

Camille says that the government has so much potential to improve society yet is still considered weak compared to other countries like Singapore or compared to the private sector. “Admittedly, the government or DOTC is not perfect. That is precisely why I chose it. But I am confident that the Philippines is gaining traction to become a more progressive nation.”

A young achiever

Beyond the grades and projects achieved, Camille also takes pride in pioneering Corporate Sustainability and Social Entrepreneurship projects among the youth. 

When Camille was in her senior year, she was the Externals VP of the Management Engineering Association (MEA) in Ateneo. She said that with the help of her team, they were able to turn around the organization and change their core advocacy to Corporate Sustainability. She pioneered a program called ACCESS, which exposed freshman business students to corporate sustainability through dialogues with business leaders, immersion in model corporations, and finished off by a sustainable business plan competition. 

Through her organization, she met inspiring student leaders who were passionate about their advocacies and through them,she learned more about leadership.

“In this pursuit of development, it was extremely important to keep an open mind in entertaining beliefs that challenged and even changed my own.”

Camille also assisted in the creation of Center for Social Innovation and GK Enchanted Farm, social business camps in line with the vision of Tony Meloto, founder of Gawad Kalinga. She say, “It was inspiring to see the paradigm shift that people experienced, especially when participants of the social business camps started setting up their own social enterprises and when the empowered community members started talking about the impact of these social enterprises in their lives.”

In her career, Camille has been leading projects to make improvements in our cities. She managed and structured the development of the Mactan-Cebu International Airport PPP Project, which has been awarded to the private sector  this year.

She also spearheaded the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) proof-of-concept and crafted the analyses/presentations that helped secure the Philippine President’s approval of BRTs as an innovative solution to urban access/transport development. Of course, working in government and being responsible for big projects are very challenging, but that won’t stop her from making things happen.

How does she do it?

Camille says she values three things: pushing yourself out of your comfort zone, learning how to take risks and passing the torch.

“To get the most out of Management Engineering, which was notorious for its difficulty, I had to discipline myself to sacrifice some leisure time and to have the stamina to study for more than 10 hours straight. To get a more holistic understanding of my major, I joined competitions and took several internships, including one in Shanghai where I had to practice my Chinese and learn how to do business in China,” she said.

Camille also credits conferences abroad and elective masteral and bachelor courses in France, for creating a better worldview for her. She lived in a leper community in Southern Spain and an Aeta community in Maporac, Zambales to gain a better understanding of the pain points of communities outside of her own.

When it comes to taking risks, she recalls the project for Gawad Kalinga, when Tony Meloto invited her to create and handle the business camps.

“At that time, social entrepreneurship was almost unheard of and my peers were very skeptical of the idea. The vision seemed audacious, but I believed it and I never regretted that experience.”

She takes great pride in mentoring project heads under her department and sees herself passing on the torch to future leaders.

“I still have a lot to learn”

Camille is the youngest child and the only girl in her family. Growing up, she says she had to exert more effort to be able to keep up with her older cousins and brothers in bicycle races, games and even wrestling matches. “I think I’ve developed a natural propensity to aim higher and to work harder than status quo as a result of my upbringing. I learned to be competitive and resilient. Less also seemed to be expected of girls so I wanted to prove myself as well.”

“To be honest, I wasn’t used to being complimented, probably because I grew up receiving lectures on being grounded instead of receiving praise every time I presented an award or medal to my parents. I cringed at compliments before, but now I try to just be thankful when I am told good things,” she added. “I still have a lot to learn.” 

Every person’s journey to success has a different pace, timing and, of course, direction. It’s not always easy even if others make it look like it is and there’s no secret to reaching your dreams. You simply have to give your best and fight until the end.

We can all learn a thing or two from the 22-year-old as she shares her definition of success. “Success can mean different things to different people at different points in our lives. For me, success is breaching limitations to achieve things not only for yourself but also for a greater society you are part of. More than professional credentials, success is measured by the relationships you nurtured, the respect you gained, and the lives of people you improved. These are the intangibles that prove how the greatest successes need not demand attention.”

But more than that, she also talks about living a complete life. It is about the journey to stick to your passion, what you love, what you’re good at and what you believe the world needs. 

“Passion, unlike interest, involves the determination to heal the deepest pains of this world.”

Camille leaves us with this advice for those who, like herself, dream big and work hard to reach their goals: “Be hungry and fearless. Consciously go out of your way to understand the needs around you and don’t be afraid to be disturbed. When you are disturbed, you are called to inspire.”

Do you aim to #BeComplete? Tell us your story or share with us your thoughts in the comments section below. – Rappler.com