Whoever came up with the idea of: “if you are handed a lemon,  make some lemonade out of it” is brilliant! I know most of us have been in a situation where you feel like getting out of it instead of figuring out what to do with it.

With most Filipinos coming to the United States (or to a more to work, start a new life, study or to have a better life, there have been themes that seem to penetrate among them, including my own. One of the themes I have seen constantly resurfaced is the “lemon out of lemonade”. Some Filipinos do not certainly know what to expect in a new and strange country. Some do not exactly know what really lies ahead of them. Some keep the only-in-da-Philippines concept of bahala-na (come what may) and go with the flow. These things keep the fighting spirit of aspiring dreamer, worker, doer in a country they are unfamiliar with. But Filipinos in general easily transition to their new homeland; thanks to the many ethnic culture and races who colonized the islands for many years, Filipinos have developed chameleon-like skills to live.

Our Saturday Success Story of the week has been in that situation many times over. Yet, just like a lot of Filipinos living away from their motherland, she has gone through many different ebbs and flows of her American life but still remains strong and happy. What has kept her going in the pursuit of American dream and her own personal ambition is her ability to come up with something worthy of her time in compensation for the loss of the time away from her loved ones.

At 29, she is running a marathon of her own: dreams and happiness. At daytime, she works as an accounts payable supervisor at a well-established company in Hollywood, Florida. On her free time, she manages to put on her cleaning suit and be the cleaning “diva” around town! People call her to clean their houses and they love her – not just because of her approachable personality but also because they see in her the inner drive that most successful people posse. She is proud to put on her cleaning gloves, scrub the kitchen floor and vacuum the dirtiest rugs and carpets in exchange for the glamour of her day job. She is proud of what she does because she knows she delivers honest service and also a clean house at the end of her business transaction. We know she puts in her 100% effort in her own cleaning business because of all the praises and referrals that she gets from her customers. As her cleaning company grows, and so is she.

But her growth in her regular routine does not stop from being in the accounting office and to various houses – mind you, she has two more itineraries! At home, she is the woman behind the all-natural body deodorant line, Eco Body Life where she distributes and retails personal body products. When permitted, she also works for a local Filipino Store as a cashier.

As you can tell, she knows exactly that only way to be productive is to use her time wisely – and this is why she keeps on going with all of these paths. She is young, passionate, ambitious and conquers life with whatever come her way.

True, she has probably experienced a dent in her romantic life when she was younger – but then again, she made something out of it! She started these two thriving businesses on her own and dreams of making them even bigger to prove that really “life is what you make out of it!”. And the reality is – it is how you make something out of anything that really matters.

MS. NYMPHA MACAS, single, beautiful, business owner, Accounts Payable Supervisor and most of all a believer that you can make things happen!

This is her story:

AMS: Tell us about yourself. What do you do for a living and where is your current location?

NM:  I work as an Accounts Payable Supervisor and a small business owner- www.eco-bodylife.com and www.eco-homelife.com. I live in sunny Florida!

AMS: What is your wildest dreams. I know that you currently own a retail small business company and also a cleaning company, can you please tell us how you started them?
a. Eco Body Life
b. Top Notch Housekeeping Diva

NM: Ever since, I wanted to be a lawyer! My dream of becoming a lawyer from childhood never changed since I reached college. Now, I am working hard to be an entrepreneur.
a. Eco-Bodylife - I have been using “natural tawas crystal deodorant” back home and it’s hard to find here in the US. I scout for a manufacturer who produces the way I wanted it and started my own label.
b. Top Notch Housekeeping Diva - I realized that home cleaning is very in demand because people here are always on the run and can’t get a chance to clean their homes.

AMS: What are your future plans for both of your companies?

NM: I really wanted them to grow but it is so hard in this downtime. I don’t want to put money into it because the demand is not too high as expected. I am the economy will get better soon.

AMS:  What is your proudest moment with each of your company?

NM: People praise the job I performed as a Top Notch Housekeeping Diva and my customers recommend me to their friends. All my Filipino customers thought the modern packaging of Natural Tawas Crystal Deodorant is genius. They have never seen one like mine.

AMS: When I heard that you started your cleaning company way before, I smiled – because the name is really interesting. My question then is: What is the best compliment you’ve ever gotten from your Cleaning Diva company?

NM: I am really proud of myself for naming it as “Top Notch Housekeeping Diva”. The name itself gives people a good impression. My customers often tell me that I really deserve to be called a DIVA not only on housekeeping but I have a great personality.
AMS: If you were to give advice to Filipino who would to start their own company, what would be your three advice?

NM: Confidence, Focus and Determination are essentials in business! I am a confident person in every decision I make. No if’s and but’s! When I started something, I am always focus and determined to hit the mark.

AMS: What do you think is the future of Cleaning Diva and EcoBody Life?

NM: I don’t expect a lot but I know in a matter of time, both will be a success.

AMS: What would be your next goal?

NM: I love being in the spotlight in terms of my career. I am working to be a Certified Accounts Payable Manager.

AMS: What brought you to where you are now? Who are your inspirations in life? What motivated you to become who you are today?

NM: My goals in life are my greatest inspiration.

AMS: Did you have a mentor or a teacher or somebody in your family who has given you some words of wisdom? Can you tell us about this person and how he/she impacted you?

NM: I don’t have a mentor/ teacher in life. I am very focus to my goals which I don’t need anybody. I believe that at the end of the day, I am the only person who can make who I am.

AMS: When you were trying to achieve where you are right now, did you experience some disappointments and failures? What are they? Can you explain how you overcome these circumstances?

NM: I never experienced some disappointments because I never expect too much in life. I live in reality – life is full of twists and turns!

AMS: If you were to do something all over again in your life, what would it be? Why?

NM: I never lived my life when I was really young. I used to be very sheltered. I should have loosen up a little bit. I now realized that we can’t have everything at a time.

AMS:  Has anyone of your friends, relatives ever told you what qualities they admire about you? What are they?

NM: My love for my mom. She is my hero!

AMS: Can you share to us your philosophy in life and how this affected your success.

NM: Be compassionate! My mom used to remind me that having a good heart is the best thing in the world!

AMS:  Do you have any advice to get better and be more successful in whatever we are doing?

NM: Focus! Whatever your heart desires; put yourself 100% to it!

AMS:  Do you believe that all people can succeed?

NM: Yes! Focus is the key!

AMS: Finally, what is your definition of success.

NM: Success is an accomplishment that satisfies the heart!

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