Anchalee Pagsanjan: photography

8/26/2016

What It's Really Like: They Didn't Want Girls Like Me

A couple weeks ago, About.Me asked me to write an article for their "What It's Really Like" series. I was super excited to get this notification because it was my chance to get my word out there. This issue is so important to me. I really want to be able to help all the young women who went through or are going through the same struggles I did.

Women have infinite skills and abilities to offer. I think it's about time for companies to notice that and start investing in our young women. It's time to foster the leaders within them.

Here is the link to the article: https://campus.about.me/2016/01/11/female-student-entrepreneur

This is the original version of the article without About.Me's edits and word limit.

"WHAT IT’S REALLY LIKE: When the world doesn’t want to see you to succeed.

They didn’t encourage girls like me. They wanted programmers, coders, and designers. They didn’t make us feel important or needed. We don’t get chances to be mentored, inspired, and guided to a successful career. We needed to do things on our own or share it with the boys. They didn’t want young women entrepreneurs and leaders.

I’ve always known I wanted to be an entrepreneur. I wanted to be the boss. I wanted to create and innovate. I wanted to explore every industry possible. I was never made to be a follower. As I entered my freshman year of college, I jump-started my career. I got an executive board position in my club and an internship spring semester. Leaving freshman year with one internship under my belt and two more lined up for me, I was feeling pretty accomplished. But I still felt like something was missing. I felt like there was more that could’ve been done.

I searched endlessly for programs and opportunities that helped young women, exclusively, become entrepreneurs. Everything I found were for girls interested in STEM. The leadership and business summits and programs that I did find were offered both to boys and girls, unlike certain STEM programs that were developed specifically to advance girls in that field. I searched every day and I couldn’t find any mentorship program that catered to girls like me.

I was starting to feel hopeless and a little bit jealous. It’s hard to see all these awesome opportunities open up for girls my age because they got to participate in a program that fostered their interests and abilities. I started to question if entrepreneurs were actually that important. Do people really not want to see women leading businesses and making a change in the world? I had to assume it as true. All these programs and none of them helped young women become entrepreneurs.

There are so many young women trying to become executive leaders and entrepreneurs, but society doesn’t support it. Women with strong leadership qualities are ridiculed and overlooked. Women get less pay and, even worse, less recognition. All of our positive leadership traits get turned into negative ones.

There was nothing out there to reassure young women that they can be powerful, assertive, strong and confident. There was nothing out there that taught young women to embrace their leadership skills and go forward with their interest and abilities. There was nothing out there that showed young women the in’s and out’s of entrepreneurship and guided them on their journey.

It was so hard for me to accept the fact that I had the short end of the stick. Because of my career choice, I got less opportunities and experiences that would facilitate my growth and improvement. It also didn’t make any sense to me because I knew entrepreneurs are important. They make the future. I also know women are brilliant. We are better leaders than men. So why aren’t young women entrepreneurs given the chance to foster the leaders within them?

I decided to take initiative – exactly what a good entrepreneur would do. I contacted the CEO of my internship and told her about this very big problem I observed. I pitched her my solution to fix this problem. Since my story resonated with her, she decided that my idea for a mentorship program designed for young women interested in entrepreneurship and executive leadership was excellent. With her help, I am creating a program for girls just like me.

Soon, there will be no more girls searching endlessly only to find that there are no programs that wants them to succeed in what they like to do. Girls don’t have to feel hopeless, jealous, or insignificant because they don’t get amazing opportunities even though they are equally as important. Young women entrepreneurs deserve those opportunities and experiences. Young women entrepreneurs should be supports, encouraged, and guided to success. Young women entrepreneurs are important and they should have a program that lets them know that.

Take your frustrations and short-comings and make them into something innovate and visionary. Create something that can help others who go through what you go through. Make a change. Don’t let the world stop you. Become an entrepreneur. Because entrepreneurs will stop at nothing."

Note To Self: Keep killing it!

1/07/2016

Finally.

By Jonathan Cato

Seven months in the making. The road leading to the 5th of January was bumpy and had curves just like the girl who I took along the ride with me. The curves were smooth, like hers, but still gave me a feeling of exhilaration with each turn of the wheel. We never ran out of gas. We never needed it. All we had was the driving force of our love, which takes us to that day. January 5th, 2016.

It was a beautiful, sunny, but surprisingly chilly day. Surprising, only because this winter was the only winter that we had a 70 degree Christmas here in the NY/NJ area. Anyways, I got dressed and later boarded a train to New Brunswick where I’d meet my passenger, my right hand, my soon to be girlfriend. As I sat in the train, many thoughts raced in my mind. “What kind of flowers should I buy? Do I smell good? I hope my outfit isn’t too bad. I’m pretty hungry.” I sat there, worrying about all the minor details, but I never lost sight of what truly mattered. We were turning onto a new road in our relationship.

“Next stop, New Brunswick!” The train conductor said, over the loudspeaker. I was finally back at school, which felt weird, being that I was on winter break. Anchalee, my girlfriend, was still on her way to the train station, so I decided to keep warm at our local Barnes and Nobles (I purchased a copy of Aziz Ansari’s Modern Romance. Great book, haven’t finished, but definitely recommend reading it) So she arrived, and we headed for my apartment because she was supposed to have a meeting at noon with her supervisor that day. Originally, I wanted to bring her to Belmar Beach and ask her there, but due to time constraints, I wasn’t allowed to. I didn’t even have time to buy her flowers but I didn’t fret!I had to think quickly and I thought of a pretty good substitution.

We dropped a couple things off at my apartment, and I quickly got dressed into a somewhat better outfit for the occasion. I wanted to keep things a surprise, so I decided that I was going to blindfold her. The drive to the spot was relatively close to Rutgers, which was great because I wanted to spend the most time with her before returning home that night. After about 10 minutes of driving, we finally arrived at Rutgers Gardens, a place I had suggested to visit as a date during the summer before our Fall semester. I parked the car and looked at the map of the Garden’s grounds and I saw what I thought was gonna be a good spot to ask her, the bamboo forest. Still blindfolded, I helped Anchalee out the car and we walked towards the forest. From outside, it seemed pretty mysterious. I could barely tell what paths they had inside.

As we entered, I realized that it was a bit lackluster. It was shady, and all I could see was a small creek that had barely frozen over from the cold. I felt pretty bad, I didn’t think this place was worthy enough for her and the occasion. After walking a couple more feet into the forest, I found an opening. There was plenty of sunlight to keep us warm and a bench where I could sit her down. I began to record on my phone what was going to be a very special moment for the two of us. I took off her blindfold and to my surprise, she actually liked it!

Now, down to business. I got on one knee...just kidding! We’re not quite there yet! Anyways, armed with a silver Casio watch that she’d been wanting for quite some time now, I asked her to be my girlfriend. I have to give credit to her big, Aleyssi, who had given me the idea to do that. It was quite “punny”, I must say. “Finally, after seven months...it’s about TIME! (I brought out the watch when I said this) that I ask you to be my girlfriend.” It was great, she said yes, and I’ve never seen her crack a smile bigger than at that moment. She was mine, finally mine.