A Strong Woman Learning and Living for Joy

Marivic Lualhati on Dreams, Family, and Joy

Ms. Marivic Lualhati, president of Citicore Power Inc. Foundation– her latest career highlight on her long list of achievements – eagerly greets us like a tita you would meet on weekends for brunch. She was both amiable and welcoming– adjectives you would not normally use to describe a woman of her calibre. It was refreshing.

We came for a meeting for a different project but here she was, accepting our ambush interview nonetheless to find out what inspires this woman to keep pushing on. No fear or panic visible in her eyes, only confidence and honesty in sharing the joys of her life.  

A little further into the conversation, she opens the notebook in front of her. No, it’s not a meeting prop, she assures us with a laugh. Her small journal reveals a jumble of notes and bullet points about the meeting’s agenda. She actually came prepared; her guns loaded and ready to fire. No wonder she’s on top of her game.

Marivic is best known as a fiercely dedicated career woman often leading big, competitive companies. She has a number of leadership roles on her belt: president and CEO of the Nueva Ecija Good Samaritan Health System, Inc. (NEGSHSI), president and CEO of Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital, and project director of Megawide Construction Corporation. She is also an inspirational speaker and management consultant with an expertise in organizational development, strategic planning, and management.

Right now, she’s focused on her foundation work, traveling from one community to another. With nothing in her bag but a willingness to help, a developmental framework, and sometimes a bunch of coloring books, she leads a team that aims to drive improvements on the livelihood, mindset, and learning of these communities. She wants to re-establish and strengthen the bayanihan concept. We are a good neighbor, she says, the kind that stays and takes care of a fellow neighbor, not a visitor who comes and goes.

All these, and yet her most important role by far is still being a family woman– a daughter, sister, and an aunt. And, of course, the pursuit of finding the joy in her life.

There’s always a tinge of passion and intensity with the way Marivic answers every question, and a heartfelt willingness to share her life’s stories.

A daughter’s dream coming true

It was an energetic afternoon filled with anecdotes, life lessons, and laughter. There was no dull moment. It was clear to see Marivic’s life was a colorful one with no visible signs of graying anytime soon. She has had dreams (and still has!) and has worked steadfastly to reach them.

Perhaps the game-changing moment in her career was when she openly claimed she wanted to become president of a company too one day. “It was during the ceremony and presidency turnover on my previous company,” she recalls. “It would be nice to become president too. And I declared that I wanted to become president. But they told me, ‘Gutom lang yan, ma’am, order tayong merienda.’” She brushed off the remark as a typical jest. Ten minutes later, she received a call from a high ranking executive of Metro Pacific Investments Corp asking her for an interview. And the rest, as they say, was history.

Marivic is a smart woman. Crediting her life’s achievements purely to her intellect, though, would be an understatement. She is smart, yes, but she is also goal-oriented, passionate, and fearless. These and her family’s unwavering support keeps her going.

From a young age, she believed all dreams come true, it’s just up to us to push it. You cannot just dream and sleep over it. “No. You wake up from your dream and do something about it.” You dream. You visualize. You do something about it.

She studied, did well in school, and worked tirelessly and wholeheartedly to shine on her own until she saw her vision come to fruition. “I had a vision,” Marivic shares, “I said I won’t just be there sitting on an office table encoding.” There’s nothing wrong with that, but her vision for herself has always been big.

Growing up with a father with five MAs and three PhDs, she developed her own curiosity of the world and the people around her. Every afternoon after school, she would excitedly go home and hang out with her dad. “It was always an interesting conversation whenever I was with him,” Marivic says, “and you must have something to lay on the table too.” No wonder she’s smart and fearless– she got it at home.

Whether talking to her father or listening to him converse with other people, Marivic learned to dream big. It was during these afternoons that her curiosity was piqued, her perspective widened to optimism, and her heart wanted to achieve more in life.

She dreamed big and was used to saying, Lord, bahala Ka na. Behind that seemingly carefree attitude is a deeply ingrained mindset from the values she developed at home, years of learning and honing her skills, and an anchor that keeps her grounded and joyful despite her frantic life.

Marivic is also an inspirational speaker and workshop facilitator of Inspire Leadership Consultancy for topics like leadership that matters, stress management, and managing millennials. For more details about Marivic’s programs in Inspire Leadership, visit their website at https://inspireleaders.com.ph. 

An aunt’s love

There’s no question her anchor is her family as you see her face light up when she starts sharing stories about them. She is single, pulling you away from the default picture of a family in our minds– a father, mother, and children. Instead, think of a bigger family picture: her mother, and three younger brothers, all married with children. A family with a bond as strong as any, they rank second, next only to God, in her priority list. This is her family. This is her home.

Marivic is the oldest and only girl of four siblings, and claims to be her pamangkins’ favorite tita. She takes on the role of a second mother and a friend to them– balancing support, encouragement, and practical advice. She has learned early on from her father that no matter what endeavor you pursue, at the end of the day, you must always be happy. This is what she also wants to impart to her nieces and nephews.

When asked what she wants to be most remembered for, she pauses, laughs, then answers, “Cool. I’m the aunt who is also their friend. They can tell me their secrets with ease. I can hang out with them in my office. I can sleep in a king-sized bed with seven more people – all my nieces – after a night of kwentuhan. I’m the cool tita.”

She got her “coolness” and charm from her parents. “Walang pangit kapag charming,” she imparts a life lesson from her mom. You should always be comfortable with who you are. Accepting yourself, including your strengths and weaknesses, is one step closer to your dreams. Otherwise, you’d feel like there’s something always lacking.

There’s nothing lacking in this family of hers though. Despite her successful career, she has always been asked if she’s lonely not having a life partner. She gets sad too, of course. She’s human and has the complex emotional spectrum most people have. There’s a fine line between being sad once in a while and getting depressive over being single. There’s no point in the latter because her family has always filled whatever hole that may have been in her heart. She has always been loved.

And her love for her family goes beyond what is expected in a typical family structure. She shared a story of when she was dating a man years before. This man called one afternoon asking where she was and what she was doing. “I’m in my office with my nieces,” she answered. “Why are you taking care of them?” he inquired. There was a seeming unpleasantry in the way he uttered “taking care,” like her nieces was a burden to her afternoon. “I’m not taking care of them,” Marivic answered, “I’m with them.” 

To Marivic, seeing her family weekly has never been a burden. Taking them to the mall, learning her nephews and nieces’ youthful language, or simply spending time with them even in her office has never been a chore. In fact, she always chooses to spend her holidays with them whether in the country or abroad. “Well why not?”, she says. “They’re my family and it’s a joy spending time with each other.”

With optimism innate with her, Marivic says she always tries to see the glass half full. It’s all a matter of perspectives.

An answered question

She seems like a picture of success personified. Her life is not perfect though; “Far from it,” she clarifies. Marivic has won over challenges both in her career and family several times. Perspective is what sets her apart: how she sees challenges as opportunities, failures as learning curves, and storms as prelude to rainbows.

Marivic grew up in a home where happiness was greatly valued. She was taught and shown the balance of working smart and being happy with whatever she was doing. She has grown to the love of family and passion for the work she was doing.

Whenever she made a sudden and arduous decision, her father would always ask her a question that has stayed in her heart since her grade school years– a question she has also asked the people closest in her life; one that she would still ask herself once in a while.

“So, are you happy?”

Yes, yes she is.