A career built on hard work often starts with one bold decision, and for many overseas Filipinos, that moment comes earlier than expected. At just 21, Liezl Aldarmaki learned this firsthand when she stepped into a life far from home and far from certainty.
Liezl, now 40, is a property owner manager with Al Emirati Suite and a devoted housewife in Abu Dhabi. Nineteen years into her life abroad, she reflects on a journey that shaped not only her career but her character. “My first job here shapes me a lot on how to be strong in life,” she shared, recalling the early days at Abu Dhabi International Airport, where she worked in the VVIP lounge as ground service staff. Serving high-profile guests taught her confidence, adaptability, and the discipline needed to stand on her own.
Choosing a better future
Before she arrived in the UAE, Liezl had already learned responsibility early. As a working student in Chowking during her college years, she saw firsthand how difficult it was for her parents to provide a better life. That experience stayed with her. So when a relative in the UAE offered to help her find work, she took the chance without hesitation.
She had personal reasons, too. “I choose to stay out of our country to find a job because I knew there’s a better future and better salary to sustain the needs of my first child,” she said. More than financial motivation, she wanted to rewrite her own story after becoming a mother at 17. “I’d like to prove to my family also that after disappointing them… still I can stand and change my bad image,” she explained. Her move abroad was not only for survival but for redemption—a promise she made to herself and those she loves.
Working overseas, she says, is demanding and humbling. “It will test you how to be strong, how to face the struggles in life, and learn how to stand alone far from your family.” But those hardships built her resilience. Being a mother added another layer of challenge. “Even when you are sick but then you still have to stand and take care of your kids… it’s a 24/7 duty,” she shared. Yet each day, she chooses to keep going, describing herself as “a strong woman standing and fighting for.”
A heart for women and wellness
Today, Liezl finds joy in a setup that allows her to balance motherhood and entrepreneurship. “What I love about managing my own business is I can do both—taking care of my kids while working with my online business,” she said. This work-life blend has also inspired her future plans. When the time comes to return home, she hopes to focus on an advocacy close to her heart: health and wellness for women. Living abroad, she says, revealed “how important it is for women to prioritize their physical and emotional well-being.”
To her fellow Filipinos overseas, she offers grounded advice: “Remember that being abroad doesn’t define you—how you rise, how you learn, and how you take care of yourself does.”
Her final insight is simple but powerful: “Being abroad has taught me the true meaning of resilience with grace. Never forget to give time for yourself because health and wellness is very important for us.”
