“Omigod, how did I get here?!” was the opening line of Ruth Yu-Owen, Connected Women’s co-founder, during her commencement speech at Ateneo de Zamboanga. Her excited opening exclamation was just proof of her candid and humorous personality.

A proud Atenean, Ruth recalled her happy days at the school, where she confirmed the famous adage: “Ateneo—I spent many happy years here.” She told of some memories, like her first kiss which she had at the back of Ateneo de Zamboanga campus. “I have other stories that I can’t say because Fr. Karel says [this speech] is formal,” she then continued, as students laughed.

Below are lessons we learned from her inspiring and powerful commencement speech:

1. Have a plan B.

Ruth told of her background at first—how she is part Tausug and part Chinese (this can be a lethal combination); how her family wasn’t well-off and money was tight. So tight in fact that her dad told her she couldn’t go to college.

Moms always have Plan Bs according to Ruth, and this was how she went to college. Her mom asked her sister, who is a widow, if she could help send Ruth to school, and she agreed. “It changed my life forever,” said Ruth.

2. Work doubly hard to make things happen.

Ruth said that after enrolling in school, she worked hard by being a working student. “I was a working student; I taught at St. Joseph School where there was a nursery school,” she narrated. “I’d go there in the morning. In the afternoon I’d go to school. And during my break, instead of going out with friends, I’d do tutoring so I could earn my pocket money.” Eventually, she finished school and graduated with a degree in BS in Accountancy, 32 years ago.

3. Embrace failure.

Ruth admitted that when she took her first board exam for CPA, she didn’t make it. She admitted that instead of studying, she was more interested in running around with her boyfriend. “I failed my family, my mom especially, and I failed myself,” she said during her speech.

4. Suck it up, even in difficult jobs.

Since she couldn’t practice accountancy, Ruth also shared about the time she took a job filing and doing administrative tasks, just so she could survive.  “From day one, I wanted to get out of there. I thought I didn’t belong here,” she said. “Because I needed to survive, I found myself doing that.” Ruth’s job also entailed doing humbling tasks like selling encyclopedias door to door.

5. Be patient.

She went on to have 20 years working in international shipping. This changed overnight in 2007, when she was fired. She said she did the most sensible thing after, and put up her own company. “You get fired, you put up your own company. Easy, right? No, it’s not easy. It’s very, very hard.. I’m sure most of you know that when you’re starting a company, your income is low. You worry about salaries, rent, bills, and you’re the last one to get paid,” she explained.  Ruth said this experience taught her a lot about patience. “There were days I didn’t want to go out of bed and if I did, I felt that I needed to go back to bed and stay there,” she admitted.

With Father Louis Catalan, VP for Higher Education and Father President, Karel San Juan, Ateneo de Zamboanga University.

6. All the trials shape the person you become.

When Ruth was asked by the media what she wanted to change in her life, she said nothing. “Nothing at all because whatever happened to me, makes me the person who I am now,” she said. “I can show you all the scars. It’s not all fun.”

7. Go with what you love.

Ruth started a renewable energy company (e.g. solar roofs) after she was fired. It’s something she said she loves. “I’m not an engineer. I’m an accountant, never practiced, but I own a company that builds [renewable energy projects]. Now how did that happen? Don’t ask me, I don’t know. What I know for sure is I love what I do, I’m passionate about it, I wake up everyday and say to myself, ‘I love my job,’” she said. Ruth currently has two hydropower projects in Zamboanga as well as rooftop solar projects. She finds fulfillment in helping the city. She’s a member of an organization called La Hermandad Zamboanguena that help send 50 scholars to school. This is also something for Ruth’s sister who passed away in a vehicular accident, and was also a graduate of ADZU.

8. Give back and be generous.

A suggestion was made to Ruth such as the Daily Bread in Davao where intelligent students drop out because their parents cannot fund their schooling. Ruth decided to do the same thing in Zamboanga, in memory of her sister.

That’s how the Siu Hua Yu Pan Cada Dia started in the same location, in memory of her sister who was also an Atenean and a Mass Com graduate, Class 1984. “She died in a vehicular accident but I thought to make her life worth something, do something for the better good,” she said. “So we picked that up. I provided the seed money, asked my friends to give some money so we can kick start it, so we can start feeding students.

9. Reinvent yourself.

“I have reinvented myself,” said Ruth. “I’m 53 years old, and I am [now] in tech! Isn’t that cool?” Ruth then told of her experience co-founding Connected Women, a tech startup for women aimed to match 30,000 women with jobs in five years, working from home. “Isn’t that an ambitious objective?” said Ruth.

Ruth said that it’s hard for her to be a bystander, seeing someone suffer and not doing anything about it. “That’s why I get myself into trouble!”

10. No one should apologize for being poor. Through education, you can uplift yourselves and change your lives.

Ruth was talking about how Jesuit education is really about transforming society to serve the poor. “Because of the quality of education of Ateneo, we have a lot of rich people here,” she said. “But 35% are scholars. No one should apologize for being poor. No one. Nobody. It’s not a curse. You can change it. This is why you graduate, you have that education, you use it to change your lives.”

11. Volunteer.

Ruth goes to Sulu as a peace volunteer to read to kids. The province of Sulu is a place where volunteers go to help indigenous people like the Tausugs. According to The Spark Project, “As the national government and peace advocates work toward a solution to the peace-and-order situation in Sulu, the work toward improving economic conditions in the region also continues.”

“If you see the conditions of how people live; they have one doctor for tens and thousands of people—I cannot change that overnight but I felt that I needed to go back because I felt that it was never enough,” Ruth said. Going to the province to help is one of her passion projects and a way for her to give back.

12. Don’t be afraid to ask for help—there are those who will be more than happy to help out.

One also doesn’t have to be wealthy to help out. Ruth clarified that she is actually a connector and is the one who asks her friends (who donate) understand the situation.  “I talk about Sulu, I talk about the conflict and make sure they understand what they can do for others,” she said. Ruth also said that one doesn’t need to be afraid to ask for help. When disasters strike, many also message her offering aid.

13. Have a life.

After doing all these things, Ruth still has a life outside of work and her other passions. She is happily married to a British man, and has a 26-year-old son who lives and works in London. “I love playing golf, I love to dance, I work out,” she said. “Believe it or not, I love to sit down for 30 minutes everyday and meditate. It keeps my sanity.”

14. You have been equipped—go and be relevant in transforming our society.

“You are millennials; you live and breathe social media,” said Ruth in her address. “Use technology to make a difference in people’s lives. Change lives. Be of help. Always help when you can. Help one person, one day at a time. Before you know it, you’re helping so many people. It’s a ripple effect; you follow your heart and intuition. Don’t wait to be invited to make a difference in the world. Spread your wings, Eagles. Come back to your nest to help your city and your school.”

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