Yesterday, I talked about how you can get permission to legally work in the Philippines. Today, let’s talk about whether you would really want to work here.
For me, I can certainly say that I would not have any interest at all in being employed here in the Philippines. Of course, being self employed for many years now, I also wouldn’t care to work for anybody in any other country either, so your opinion of working here may be different.
First thing to consider – how much salary do you expect to earn? If you want to earn a salary similar to what you were making in the States, or in whatever country you come from, you probably better just stay home. It is a simple fact that you will probably not be able to find a job here that pays a substantial amount of money. Now, how much money is “substantial.” Well we all have our own answer to that question. I will say this – it is my opinion that if you were able to find a job that paid you P20,000 here in the Philippines you would be doing extremely well. That is a salary of a little more than $400 per month. For that salary, you would be expected to work for 40 or more hours per week (really, however many hours your boss tells you to work – no overtime!). Very few Filipinos make more money than that, and most make only a fraction of that amount. Among the best paying jobs in the Philippines are Call Center jobs, and here in Davao call center agents are being paid less than P10,000 per month. Salaries in Manila are higher for any kind of job, but not a multiple higher, though.
Are there jobs paying good salaries (by our standards)? Yes, indeed there are. But, your chances are landing such a job are very small. Certainly Executive Jobs are available, but there is not a lot of incentive to hire a foreigner over a local Citizen. The truth is that most Filipino companies would prefer to employ Filipinos. After all, foreigners bring lots of complications to the workplace. We are different than Filipinos. Culturally we are different. The employer will need to make sure that you are legally employable. There are just many more complications. Also, even what would be locally considered a very good salary will probably be taken by a foreigner only in desperation.
If you really want to have a job here, what are your options? Well, in my opinion your best option would be to stay home in your country, and start searching for a company that has facilities here in the Philippines. Inquire with the companies about employment opportunities in the Philippines. I feel that your best, possibly only chance of getting a good job in the Philippines would be by first getting the job in your home country and then being transferred to the Philippines. Still, I feel that the chances of doing this are remote, though, even if it is your best chance.
So, you’re stuck, right? You don’t have enough money in savings to contemplate such a move. You can’t find a good job here. What are your choices? Just forget about it? No, I don’t believe that. What I think is that you should start looking for way to earn money on the side. Keep your day job, and look for ways that you can earn money on your own. I particularly believe that the Internet is a perfect place to do this. If you can build up a decent business on the Net, you should be able to move that business to the Philippines when you come, and keep earning money when you are here! I know that in my case, I earn 100% of my income through the Internet, and you can too. Find a niche that you can make profitable. Blog for money. Sell things through e-Commerce. Honestly, the Internet is a place where you can produce huge amounts of Income, no matter where you reside.
Are you interested in using the Internet to make money? If so, follow my other blog, Virtual Earner.
For the entrepreneurs: Here's a link to "Doing Business and Investing in the Philippines" from Isla Lipana & Co. / PriceWaterhouseCoopers-Philippines. This .PDF publication provides quite a bit of info.
http://www.pwc.com/extweb/pwcpublications.nsf/doc…
Good luck!
Hi Paul – Thanks for that link. Looks like a good resource!
here's one tip:
take a web design class. build a client base and rep.
if everything goes as planned you get a steady income from it and can transfer to the philippineswithout your clients even realizing it. this is also one job where you have control of your sked.
i know some davao friends who do it this way and i'm not sure if they'd be happy that i'm mentioning it here. 😆
Hi macky – for an expat coming here, he can actually forget about the part of taking a class or learning web design! The key is to build up a list of clients, come to the Philippines and hire 3 or 4 designers and start to work! I do recommend learning a little bit to start out, that makes it easier to keep track of what your workers are doing. An ideal situation would be to come here for vacation, hire one or two people, then go home and get clients. Communicate with your employees here, and let them do the work. After you have a regular stable of clients, you can move here or wherever in the world you want. You will continue getting follow up business from your client base, and word of mouth will bring you new customers too.
Good point, Bob. I guess I sort of see the hiring and delegating part as the next step.
I defintely agree with you. An uncle once adviced me to "think lazy" or find ways to makes life easier. i'd even hire an assistant just to deal with lining up in banks, like what you do. 🙂
I was looking it in terms of "outsourcing". Why not just outsource yourself?
With the familiarity of your own country and having the right connections, all a person needs is the right learned skills. web designing is only just one of them. The same can be done in other industries.
That person can compete by charging lower rates because of the lower cost of living in the Philippines. That really is just "outsourcing yourself".
Some people complain about their country losing jobs to the international market because of the competitive wages offered. Well, take those jobs back and do it by the beach if you it suits you. I bet those clients would appreciate dealing with a person who is familiar with their culture and idioms… and at a bargain too.
Believe me, I've thought about this. Some have adviced me to hire staff to do my work. But aside from violating my contracts, that logic does not apply in the creative/arts field.
A very portable & profitable job that doesn't care where you live is being a copywriter. You can live in the Philippines but don't have to be employed by a company in the Philippines. Not only that, you can write a piece once and it can be a source of recurring revenue stream. If it's used again and again because it's that good, then your money will just keep coming in off the same material.
It's just like writing a book, you write it once and if it becomes a hot seller, then you can make lots of money off that one book.
The big names in the copywriting world are all very wealthy. And I heard that after a while, some of them employ ghost writers to do the actual work.
Hi Macky – People like you or I have a real advantage in doing business here or in the USA, when dealing with the other country. For example, in my case, for me living in the Philippines, when I want to do business with people in the States, I have an advantage over local people, because I know what Americans want. I understand the American mind. I also have lived here long enough that I can understand the Filipino mind fairly well too. You are in the same situation, only the opposite of me. This makes for a huge advantage in doing business between the two countries.
Hi angie – Excellent idea! I had not thought about a copywriter. However, it fits right in with the other things that I would consider almost a "sure thing."
Hi Bob,
Currently I'm enrolled in a copywriting course, though it's home-based and most of it is done interactively thru the internet. That's why I am almost always online. With that and my current mode of living in technology, I live on the internet 😆
Why I got drawn to copywriting is it's a nice insurance (for me) if I decide to jump ship (from Silicon Valley). I'm looking for portable skills, portable business, etc.
I'd love to leverage off my writing skills and still dovetail off my technology experience as I can be a copywriter for tech businesses which many copywriters don't want to get into… It's complicated, for some it's not too much fun trying to understand, etc. etc. A lot of copywriters like to focus on travel. Understandably… But there's much $$ in technology so it's lucrative and since I have the natural experience for it, it just makes sense.
So my next "retirement" period is starting to gel, I envision clearly what it would be like. 😉 Am just waiting for a few more eggs to hatch in Silicon Valley before I do it.
The beauty of it is, I can be a copywriter by myself or I can turn it into a business by turning it into a home-study course or spin a consultancy service around it. These are options I'm exploring. There are many possibilities.
This of course started because I'd like to experience living on "Residensea" which is my ultimate dream. That way, I'm doing business while I'm on a permanent cruise visiting the different ports of the world. I'm in one "address" while my body moves thru many locations. It's the best lifestyle I can think of.
Well, that doesn't mean I cannot leave the ship to fly to the Philippines at any time. I can do that also. What a dream and very doable. A couple, friends of mine, did that. Except that they did not buy a unit at Residensea, they bought their own big, big boat to live off the seas and travel around the world for about 4 years. They are now settled back for a more normal living in a coastal resort town in Florida.
My reason for post #8, BTW, is to underscore the point that living in the Philippines *need not be tied* into being employed in the Philippines. For most of you, you want to live in the Philippines but are wondering where your source of revenue would be from. I think to most the question is, "but what kind of work would I do there and how much would I get paid… Philippine wages are low…"
Post #8 illustrates that "living in a chosen locale" and "working to support that choice" need not be sourced from the same geographical location.
Hi angie – I think that you have a very good plan there, and more people should think along these terms. Portability of your profession is really a good thing and offers a great deal of freedom!
Wow I guess I should consider myself lucky, so many people want o move to the philippines and I have been given that opportunity while stil remaining employed at my Canadian Salary. I have been here for over a week now, came her mainly based on bob's website and am very glad that I had. Seeing the number of people who want to live here I consider myself very lucky
Hi Mike – Yes, it's not easy to get a situation like you were able to land! Count your blessings!
Haven't been able to participate here for a while … but Bob knows I can't pass this one up *smile*. I really want to strongly second everything Bob's said on thisd issue and then some.
Looking for a "job" in the Philippines is. in my opinion of course, a losing proposition. Jobs, in general are a losing proposition …trading hours for pay … the world is changing and trading hours for pay is less and less attractive every day. Also, if I had to work for wages I'd insist on substantially more than my US salary if the job were in the Philippines … working conditions and especially commuting here in the Philippines are much more difficult to cope with than in the US. I love living in the Philippines as a retieee/entrepreneur but if I had to take a salaried job I would be back in the USA so fast you'd see nothing but my dust … and my dual-citizen wife would be running on ahead od me. Those who question my view might like to read Steve Pavlina's views on this subject: http://www.stevepavlina.com/blog/2006/07/10-reaso…
If you don't agree, hey great, that's what makes the world go 'round, but you should read his well-reasoned thoughts anyway … there's no get rich quick scheme or any investment advice involved … except investment in yourself.
There are thousands and thousands of ways to put you knowledge and abilities to work to enrich yourself rather than enriching someone else in return for a doled-out wage. Explore real alternatives before you make up your mind.
Hi Dave Starr – Thanks for your good advice there. I am in full agreement with you!
Some young creative friends of mine (in their late 20 to mid 30's) are already on a very globalized/alternative lifestyle. One relocates to a country of choice every 2 years to enjoy the culture on his weekends and spare time, while continuing to work.
Another "moved" to live off his new boat and he goes sailing while working. Appropriately, he named his boat "The OFFICE."
Another migrated from the US, bought several acres in Australia to devote her time to nature, writing, NLP and homeopathy. She continues to write technical books on the side because that's her forte but is levelling off in this area while exploring her new loves. (Cultivating the land, raising animals, expanding her NLP practice, etc.)
Another moved to the boonies somewhere in North Carolina, escaping the SF rat race. It was a geographical move only with a few changes needed to accommodate that move, but her source of income is not much impacted. True, she flies in quarterly for major meetings in the area; otherwise, most folks don't even know she's no longer local as her phone number has stayed the same. (Except she has to put up with a few errant odd-hours phone calls because the caller might think she's still in the same timezone.)
My own circle believes in having fun *now* and not waiting for the classic retirement phase. So exploring how it can be done during one's prime years has led to new discoveries as I've illustrated above.
Thus, I don't think a Philippine employment has to be a deterrent to living in the Philippines. Setup your house/office there. Source your income elsewhere.
Me, personally, I take many mini-breaks, even though I'm still based here. And like Dave Starr said, I continue to invest in my own development, both for professional & personal growth. I spend thousands of dollars for fun & training but the yield has been rewarding and phenomenal, not only for myself but for many others also. I've incorporated a "pay-it-forward" philosophy to my own lifestyle… (within reason, of course).
Hope some of these tips are helpful to my fellow explorers on this blog.
Hi angie – I like the idea of the guy who moves to a different country every 2 years or so! Now, that would be an educational way to live!
I am one of the lucky ones… I was offered with the chance to move here for work with a healthy U.S. salary – and wouldn't you know it – in a call center… although I don't do the call center gig… I handle the professional services department – programming/development/data processing etc… Bob is right – 20t is a good salary here in the phils. The highest paid filipino in my company makes 50t and he is high rolling!!! we actually do employee a couple foreigners here in the call center as well – and guess how much they are making?? 13t/mo… can you live off $260 a month? I sure couldn't –
Bob is also correct on the best way to find a job out here… start in the U.S. there are so many U.S. call centers here in the PI – it is saturated and will continue to grow…
Hi Ben – Indeed you are quite lucky to have landed that job! Better than that P13k per month!