Rosalinda Quijano

“There Is No Shortcut To Success But Patience”

“Just be patient.”

This line is a creed that Rosalinda lives by as she overcomes all of her life’s adversities.

Imagine raising six children with not enough money to support each one’s need. But, Rosalinda carried within her the determination to change her life and her family’s.

Rosalinda and the dried fish products she ships to Cebu, Manila, and many other cities.

She worked as a laundrywoman in their community. She traveled from city to city to sell dried fish and even work as a “kargador”— a term for those who carry products or items. This is on top of her role as a wife and a mother of six.

“I did all that so I could raise my children,” shared Rosalinda.

But even after doing all of these things, the hard life she and her family lived didn’t disappear just yet, and there were many challenges that came her way. Rosalinda and her family did not let these trials get the best of them. They worked together and managed to not only surpass but overcome these over time.

“My eldest child at one time went to Manila and worked as a household helper. Whatever she would earn, she would buy cows or pigs or put the money aside for her savings because she wanted to finish her education. And she knew we can’t support her because we were just as financially challenged,” Rosalinda said, adding that they “depend on a daily fish catch, and given that we’re a big family, it was hard.”

She recalled that her eldest stopped school for four years to earn money to continue her education later on.

“We have gone through so much. My son, who is now a seafarer, used to be my partner in selling our dried fish in cities like Canlaon, Bais, Toboso, and Calatrava,” recounted Rosalinda on how her children were as hardworking as her.

She added, “our children were very determined and hardworking. They help each other, and that is what I am so thankful for. But as a mother, it was definitely hard for me, not being able to give them a comfortable life myself.”

Everyone in their family knew that they needed to help each other out if they wanted to improve their lives. Rosalinda shares that despite each challenge life brings her, she is “grateful and blessed to have a family that understands the plight they are in.” 

But how did life finally turn in her favor? She remembers clearly that it was when her youngest child was four years old that she received a ray of chance at changing her life. She joined the Negros Women for Tomorrow Foundation’s (NWTF) flagship project: Project Dungganon.

Rosalinda knew that having a business was her and her family’s ticket to a changed life. She reminisced, “when I was just starting my dried fish business, most of my customers were from Project Dungganon, which convinced me to join the project. Then, I decided to take out a loan so I can have the capital to grow my business.”

Rosalinda’s dried fish products she buys from her neighbors and ships to her customers.

Rosalinda started her journey with Project Dungganon with an initial loan of just Php 3,000.  Grateful for the trust and confidence she was given, the capital she was provided with, she used to fund her business. 

This opportunity opened more doors for Rosalinda, and finally, she started to see that her life was slowly improving.

“I remember that my son used to just sleep in a chair at some point. All of us lived in a shabby home,” she said.

Now, Rosalinda has what many people would call a comfortable home, vehicles for her family and business. She and her family now enjoy a life they only imagined and dreamed of having. 

However, what Rosalinda has reached was not achieved through a simple walk in the park, nor was there a shortcut to how her business grew. She went through a step-by-step process that led her to a point in her life where she’s managed to overcome the hardest parts. This is something that she attributes to “patience.”

True to her life’s creed, Rosalinda was patient. She shares that she initially only focused on producing her own dried fish stocks or depended on consignment. She would consign stocks from her village’s people and patiently look for buyers in other cities. 

After successfully selling their products, she would pay for the stocks she consigned.

But as soon as she started her journey with Dungganon and with the capital she had, she bought the dried fish stocks from several families in her community and marketed them to areas as far as Cebu and Manila. Until now, she buys from several families in their neighborhood which in a way is beneficial for them as they don’t need to look for buyers for their products, and Rosalinda will not need to worry about insufficient stocks supply for her customers.

“I really focused on my business. And thankfully, it has grown. All thanks to Dungganon,” said Rosalinda, as she also joined NWTF’s business training which helped her in how she has successfully managed her business.

She shares another secret to her success, “I don’t borrow from many people or institutions, I only borrow from one institution, in my case— Dungganon. So I will only need to focus on paying one company.”

Rosalinda learned that capital is an integral part of doing business. She shared, “when I have bulk transactions for dried fish, I need enough capital to serve my client’s order.”

She continued, “even just the raw materials needed for the business operations would need a hefty sum of money. You need to have money for that.”

When she markets the dried fish products of her community to her buyers in Manila, she counts on the loan she gets from Project Dungganon.

But Rosalinda shared that venturing into other businesses also helped her manage the operational costs of doing business.

Apart from selling dried fish, Rosalinda also ventures into hog raising for added income.

“I started hog raising or fattening pigs. In three months, you can already make money. A portion of my profit gets re-invested in buying new piglets or buying dried fish stocks, shared Rosalinda noting that “when you are doing business, there is no room for laziness.”

“It’s difficult to earn money,” she admits, which is why she makes sure she uses her loans wisely.

“I will have to invest more money as my business grows. So when I borrow money, I use it to re-invest in my business. I don’t waste my money on other unimportant things because I know I’ll be having a hard time with my credit obligations if I do so,” she added.

Rosalinda feels relieved that although they have already achieved the comfortable life they were dreaming of, her children remain focused on their studies. 

“I am thankful that my children are focused on their studies. It seemed like all of us knew what we needed to do. My husband and I focus on our business while my children focus on their education,” she said.

“Our sacrifices and perseverance were all worth it. Now I have a seafarer, a Hotel and Restaurant Management graduate, and two more of my children will graduate from college in a few more years,” Rosalinda proudly shared.

She appreciates how her children have always been there to emotionally and even financially support them, given that some of her children already have stable jobs.

“They would always tell us that if not for I and my husband’s help, they would not also reach the life they have now,” she said as her children “out of their volition, would work so hard to reciprocate their love and sacrifices.”

Rosalinda shared that people would wonder how she could achieve this much in life. “Before, who would even imagine that life would turn out better for me. And she revealed that it was mainly “because of patience and hard work.”

But ultimately, she is convinced that she isn’t alone. She had her husband and her children. And most importantly, “God never left me. He was helping me overcome all of my problems,” she added.

Her years of sacrifice is truly something that is extraordinary, so is love her love for her family, and here is one message she would want to give every woman out there who, like her, wants to win in life:

“Patience…Just be patient, and you will also reach a point where you will succeed.”