Rarely is a person given a chance to give back to the community for the opportunities that they themselves were given in the past. And it is even rarer for such a chance to materialize soon after someone sees the benefits of the opportunity they are given. What am I talking about? Let me start from the beginning.
It has not been that long since I entered the world of digital marketing, less than a decade, to be exact. I got my feet wet in the digital marketing world by learning how to handle social media accounts, which then led to capturing leads for companies I worked with, which then progressed to other digital marketing aspects such as SEO and PPC. I then found my calling in the latter, with my main focus being Facebook Ads.
I learned more about PPC and digital marketing from my current business partner and mentor, Jun Baranggan, and it was also through him that I learned about DICT and their advocacy.
What is DICT and What Do They Do?
The Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) is a government entity that is tasked with the planning and development of our country’s information and communications technology, with the aim to increase knowledge, opportunities, and employment in the fields of both information and communication.
If you are to look at the Facebook Page of this government organization, you will find this list outlining their mission:
This executive branch of government also aspires to have the country flourish and develop with the help of innovation and development via information and communication technology. Since they are in charge of policy making, planning, coordinating, and implementing initiatives that will achieve these goals, getting in on the ground to help with projects that are geared at such lofty aims can be somewhat difficult.
What is RISTTP and How I Was Able to Help
Rural Impact Sourcing Technical Training is a program by the DICT which aims to equip individuals with skills that can help get them employment online, with the primary target being those who are in far-flung areas that are considered underserved or even unserved in terms of education and training. This opportunity gives people the right training and skills to help them get jobs that can sustain them and their families without the need for them to leave their provinces to either get trained or to get employed.
The program basically aims to create freelancers in the fields of virtual assistance, e-commerce, data entry, internet research, and many more. Those who successfully finish these courses end up with freelancer profiles on some of the more popular freelancing sites online, with certifications backing their skills up to help make them highly employable. This helps create a workforce that can be employed by outside sources via remote access without these workers needing to travel far from hearth and home.
How was I able to get in on all this action, so to speak? Well, long story short, there was a call for applicants for instructors to facilitate the training modules that the DICT wanted to introduce to their scholars, I applied, and lo and behold, I was accepted! I was assigned to Soccoro in Surigao Del Norte, which is one of the 65 locations all around the country, and I was assigned 25 scholars. I was to teach them how to become VAs (virtual assistants), which is a very in-demand online position these days.
The modules I taught included the basics of online work, which included internet research, audio and video transcribing, email management, calendar management and scheduling, live chat support, and data entry. All of these skills are used by virtual assistants, and after the training which lasted a week or so, each of the 25 DICT scholars ended up with a VA freelancer profile that they can use to find employment with.
Why do I consider myself lucky to be able to do this? Well, for starters, I was assigned to Surigao, which has one of the best beaches in the country. I was also given the chance to share what I knew with people I realized can make a good living out of what they learn. I was also one of a handful of digital marketing professionals chosen out of thousands who applied, which basically means that I know my digital marketing stuff and I am indeed lucky.
What is the take-away from all this? Sharing what you know and giving others the chance at a good living by teaching them new skills is indeed a worthwhile endeavor. It is not about keeping what you know to yourself to get ahead of the pack but what you share that will give people a way to earn a living that is truly fulfilling and uplifting. It was an experience I will forever be proud of being a part of and one that I can consider a good deed on my part.
