Erica Yuson, 26, left office work for online jobs through Upwork, earning good money as a beginner doing data entry. She's traveled through Palawan, Bohol, and Hong Kong while working, and says the flexibility lets her support her parents and live on her own terms.
Questions this video answers
26 years old
A data-entry job found via Odesk (an early freelancing platform)
Palawan (including El Nido), Bohol, and Hong Kong
Chapters
Okay, this is our Testimonial interview with Ms. Erica Yuson from Dubaguete. So good afternoon, Erica. Okay, Erica, can you tell us a bit about yourself?
My name is Erika. I'm 26 years old, and I am. I consider myself a virtual professional slash digital nomad because I enjoy traveling, going on adventures, spending time with my loved ones, and that is why I chose this career. So basically, I enjoy this because I get to work at my own pace. I can work, the hours are very flexible and I can work anywhere I want. So when I'm traveling, I still get to work. And it's. It's such a fun thing to do. Some people say that stressful, like you're still working while you're traveling. I would say no, because you know, you're enjoying, you have views, you have places to go, like new coffee shops to work in. So it's some kind of an exciting thing rather than having an office job. So, yeah, my name's Erica.
So how did you get started working online?
I started working online because when I graduated, I always thought to myself that I was never going to do anything very conventional in life. So I thought, you know, if I was going to work at an office or for a particular company or call centers or the like, I would feel so suffocated and I wouldn't be able to do what I really want. I tried it. This wasn't achieved right away. I had to do office jobs, I had to work at the airport, I had to do call center jobs. So basically I had to experience everything else before I heard about online work from a friend looking for jobs in Odesk at the time and jobs done. So then I saw your website, and then that was when I landed my first data entry job, which paid more than enough. Like, more than enough for a newbie like me. I never looked back.
Where were you able to travel and work at the same time?
My favorite place, I usually go to Palawan. I go there most of the time. I have friends there. I have some family there. So usually during summer I go there and I work there and I get to go to El Nido. And then like, the beach is just in the front and then I'm working here on my laptop, you know, before we go to tours and stuff like that. I work during early in the morning and then I just see the sunset. It's just beautiful. Like, you get to experience these kind of things. And aside from that, I was able to go abroad. The latest one is when I was in Hong Kong and I was able to work and travel at the same time and other places like Bohol and where else? Sticky Horn and those kind of places where, you know, you get the chance to relax while earn money at the same time.
Why is it important for you to be able to travel as an individual?
Why is it important? Oh, yeah, I guess I got that from my parents. I wanted to remember how it feels like to travel and, you know, to see the places that they saw when I was a baby. So it was kind of my goal to like, be like them.
How is it helping your parents, having the income to help your parents?
Personally, it feels really good to be able to help my parents. So being able to help them with groceries and aside from that, being able to spend time with them here at home, because that's very important.
If you weren't working online, where would you have imagined yourself?
I guess I would still be freelancing offline. I guess I would be making clients for designing jobs.
Where do you imagine yourself five years from now?
I'd probably settle and have my own family. I wish I hope to have my own business online or offline and then probably settle and have my own kids.
