FINDING ONE'S PASSION TAKES TIME

RJ  David and  his wife Arianne happily stand behind OLX Philippines.

RJ David goes to an elegantly furnished office high up in one of the tall buildings in Ortigas Business Center.  Every day, he has a commanding view of cities and towns east of Manila including the chain of hills northwest of Rizal Province. The affinity to those hills could be traced to his youth spent in a rustic part of Angono, where he was raised by his  frugal parents.

Growing up, his flair for new and useful ideas began to show. RJ realized that he loved math and he saw himself as an inventor of equipment and machines that could be of great help to many people. He graduated valedictorian at Angono Private School and was admitted to the BS Mechanical Engineering program at the  University of the Philippines-Diliman. Upon graduation, RJ served for a year as part-time instructor at the College of Engineering of UP-Diliman. During his free time then, he found himself drawn to programming and website creation.

RJ gained full-time employment in a bio-mechanical engineering firm that designed parts for hip replacement. His task was to design those mechanical parts, but even then, he would devote more of his time at work to web development.

Eventually, he found his passion.

He wanted to become a programmer.  RJ shifted jobs. He was hired as a software engineer for a company that served the back office requirements of no less than an agency of the Hong Kong government. At night, he would take on the role of a freelance programmer, which became so lucrative that after a few years, he was ready to give up his day job. His freelancing stint turned out to be a blessing in several ways. It gave him the opportunity to hone his skills in marketing, negotiations and time management. And it changed his perception of himself, from an introvert that he was, he realized that he could be outgoing as needed after all.

In 2006, RJ decided to go on his own. He and his wife Arianne, who interestingly wanted to become an interior designer but became a programmer instead, founded Sulit–which is the Filipino word for the phrase “worth it."

Sulit-–which evolved from a husband and wife team to workforce of 130 personnel—became  the undisputed leader in free online classified ads in the Philippines. It  underwent  a number of transitions in recent years. Naspers, the biggest media company in South Africa, acquired majority share of Sulit in 2009. Consequently, Sulit was renamed to OLX, the global online classifieds brand of Naspers. And in 2013, OLX absorbed Ayosdito, the industry’s challenger brand.

These days, when RJ looks though the glass panels enclosing his office, he is reminded of how far he has literally moved up and away from his ancestral home in Angono. From his vantage point, he can also see the clear sky and the bright clouds billowing above the hills of his youth.  He may not have invented exciting new machines and equipment that he dreamed of as a boy—but on hindsight, his journey so far as an entrepreneur has been just as fascinating.

In "Pointers for New College Graduates,"  RJ shares some pieces of advice:

• Make yourself “hirable.” I am certain that many other employers like me would like to hire candidates that can readily solve problems and can easily adapt to their work environment. I want to hire candidates that are coachable, those who are willing and able to learn quickly new concepts and ways of doing things, and can unlearn those that are no longer relevant. 

• Demonstrate independence. We train our people but we also want them to take responsibility for their own professional development. 

• Do not be afraid to fail. Growing up, a number of us are thought that failure is painful and therefore should be avoided. We are conditioned to avoid risks. In reality, some things just do not turn out the way we expect. Accept that failure will be part of our individual journeys. It is there to teach us lessons we missed along the way. 

Read more about RJ's pointers for new college graduates, specifically for those aspiring to become entrepreneurs.

"Pointers for New College  Graduates, by Gerry P. Siquijor,  available at Fully Booked, St. Pauls and Paulines Bookstores, and branches of Catholic Book Center.