For nearly two decades, Mary Jane B. Nolasco has been living and working in Kuwait. She is the person who tries to balance life between being the family’s breadwinner and living the best way she can by splurging on things and creating itineraries for travel.
Her overseas journey started in 2003 when she was hired directly from the Philippines to be a store manager of what used to be the second biggest Topshop store in the world. She rose through the ranks and became part of other leading brands in the country.
Mary Jane considers spending most of her energy reinventing herself, learning new things, and working the hardest as her key to success.
With this mantra in life, she was recently hired by the newest telecommunication service in Kuwait, FRiENDi, as their segment specialist. In the organization, she is responsible for executing branding, communications, and customer engagement activities, including partnerships, PR, events, and sponsorships targetting the Filipino community.
Her skills today were nurtured from her previous work as a broadcaster, wherein she had a KBP accreditation in 1997 and was immersed in the marketing, PR, advertising, and retail industries.
“What I enjoy the most is the challenge of being a part of a newly established organization like FRiENDi mobile. Getting its name out there for everyone to be recognized, creating impact in the community, and creating growth for others,” she said.
She also gets to establish a deep connection with the Filipino community.
Mary Jane also maintains a YouTube travel vlog where she features her trips abroad and a Facebook page that features her travel abroad, Kuwait restaurant, and cafes that are mostly not yet known to her fellow Filipinos.
Working in a very diverse environment allows Mary Jane to strive harder to level up her skills and learning capabilities.
“It also widens my perception of the different cultural influences, changes my viewpoints on a wide range of personal and professional experiences which result in a new perspective, and drives innovation and creativity that inspires me to see the workplace–and the world–differently,” she added.
Mary Jane developed her ‘people person’ attitude at an early age. She hosted and performed at several local shows during fiestas and political campaigns in the province of Bacolod. She was also a volleyball varsity player, which required her to maintain good grades to keep her scholarship.
While overseas, like many OFWs, she struggled to provide for her family. As someone who works abroad, she has to support her parents and provide her niece and nephews with tuition and personal expenses, who she sends to college.
“It seems too much to handle, but with hard work, focus, and perseverance to be able to do these hand-in-hand and determination to succeed, I can do it,” Mary Jane said.
Coming from a big family, she is the only member with a college degree and graduated Bachelor of Science in Mass Communication through a scholarship.
Outside of her work, Mary Jane is also excelling. She was one of the first Filipinos to form the Filipino choir in Salmiya Parish. She is also an active member of a couple of organizations in the country; one of them is FTS Productions which develops talents and supports each other to compete in international beauty pageants. She is also a member of AKO OFW which had an awarding ceremony for outstanding Filipino household service workers that have been with the same employer for the past 10 to 30 years.
“These are the organizations I like associating with, for they acknowledge talents, productivity, and successes for fellow OFWs,” she said.
Mary Jane advises her fellow Filipinos abroad to live a balanced life where they support their family and enjoy life.