To the bosses turned friends, this heartfelt letter of thanks is for you.
We’ve heard countless stories of peers quarreling with their bosses, of complaints of unfair treatment, or of being unjustifiably overworked. We’ve heard of people feeling so distant from their management, some left to flounder about and left to their own devices and some to be micromanaged to the point of madness. And yet, despite these gruesome realities, life has been so kind to bless us with not just one but two bosses (each!) that we can genuinely say truly made us feel more than an employee.
We wanted to take this time to give thanks where thanks are due, especially to those that have impacted our lives in such unquantifiable magnitudes. With this, here is a love letter of sorts to the bosses we’re proud to call friends
Here’s to you, Millie-unnie, for starting our friendship through unabashed giggling and mutual fangirling over BTS comebacks, all while making sure to guide me patiently through digital jargon and campaign creation that left me slack-jawed in confusion before you came to save me. I still remember the moment you saw the Suga wallpaper on my phone from a distance and immediately came to me and started going off about shipping TaeKook, becase same. LOL! I will forever appreciate your kindness, your stories of both wisdom and kagaguhan that make us laugh so loud that they never fail to earn us stares from other departments (sorry, not sorry), and your immense detail-orientation that still sticks with me to this day (you will never see a campaign without UTM tags ever again, I promise).
Thanks for teaching me more than I ever realized I learned at the time, and thank you for being a friend that is always ready to hype us on (quick shoutout to Andy, because we’re all in this together, hoe), share the best love life advice (both PG and R-rated, but mostly R-rated), and lend an ear when we’re feeling down. Most of all, thank you for being genuine and understanding, even when we were at our lowest. Thank you for letting us confide in you without an ounce of judgement and for bringing some much needed light into the concealed dungeon that was the “social media room”.
I hope to one day to inherit the kind of fearless, fiercely independent boss b***h energy that you bring, as well as the kindness you’ve always shown us even when we make mistakes. I am beyond grateful that you were my first boss—most especially my real-life unnie! Plus, who could say that they went on a leisurely trip to Korea with their Senior Manager and actually enjoy the heck out of it without feeling awkward? Um, other departments could never.
Unnie with her Dongsaengs in Seoul
Caption from this story was: “Minsan, normal kami.” Mga siz, kung alam niyo lang….
Naver Report: New girl group spotted. Ansabe ng digital team mo? Charot!
And here’s to you, Gretchen, for putting your faith in me and making me kulit through emails to make sure I knew I still had a chance to work with WeaveWorks, hahaha! Thank you for your thoughtfulness, for your endless gifts of pastries every Monday, random cosmetics from your ~influencer life~, and for introducing us to your pets that I have now come to call my older siblings. You, Booboo, (*in my deeply modulated voice*) Bella, and Cayo have left an indelible mark on my soft soul and I will always be proud to have been your work baby. Thank you for our Breakout team building sessions that never fail to bring us closer together even if we lose (ESPECIALLY WHEN IT WASN’T OUR FAULT), and for your unfailingly calm demeanor that always reassures me that everything will be okay. I know I can get frazzled sometimes, but you’re always there to make sure I keep my head on straight and understand where I’m coming from, which honestly means so much to me being the anxious little hooman that I am.
Thank you for answering the bazillion questions I have every day (and not looking annoyed at me when I interrupt your train of thought), for deeply understanding the need of work-life balance, for cultivating such a positive sense of family in our workplace, for accepting me in both my silence and my craziness, for always sticking your neck out for your all of your office kids, and for going above and beyond in teaching all of us new and relevant skills that you weren’t even required to do just because you wanted to help us grow.
Your trust means the absolute world to me, as it helped me grow so much in confidence, creativity, and KNOWLEDGE (*fist pumps the air*), so please, please know how much I value the time I had with you. I look up to you so much, and I know your future child (biological, this time) will be in the greatest and gentlest of hands—even if I’m sure you’ll laugh at him/her when s/he falls down then upload the video to @KidsGettingHurt. My heart breaks a little bit every time I think of your chair being empty, but I promise that I, along with the rest of your Wenkwonkers, will do my best to make you proud in your absence!
All dressed up for our Gatsby-themed company party!
Partial flex that I also met Kylie Verzosa. Heheheh.
Momma alcoholizing with her children coz she’s a cool mom
I love you both to the deepest depths of my soul (even though my resting face and monotonous manner of speaking may not show it) and am beyond lucky to have started my corporate life with mentors like you. You both are the best examples that flexibility in the workplace and genuine human connections with your employees have SUCH a big impact. Thank you both for helping me get to where I am, and for setting me on my way to become an even greater version of who I can be. Ang drama ko ba? HAHA! Minsan lang naman.
Big hugs and kisses from me! Please know that wherever you are in life, your lowly subordinate is cheering you on with both hands in the air while screaming her lungs out.
💋 With love and a never-ending well of terrible jokes, Julia
Cheers to you, Marla, for seeing me and choosing to hear the rumblings of my stomach during my interview as a sign of hunger to prove myself (even if I was actually, really hungry) and seeing the steely-eyed determination in my eyes to get things done.
Thank you for taking a chance on me with production and rooting for me always. For being a chill but very attentive boss, I know B somewhat gets it from you—honestly, I am more than thankful for you. You’ve let me grow and guided me to bloom, even sticking up for me when I felt lost. You are thoughtful and kind, qualities that peek through in snacks and gifts and small conversations that mean so much to me—I’m still in love with the SPF mist you gifted me for Christmas 2019, I was torn between using it sparingly and using more than I should.
You’ve convinced me to take up Pilates and Yoga with a little help from ClassPass, guessing spot on that I would enjoy despite all the sore muscles the next day. Stairs at the warehouse were never the same post-Physique 57! Thank you for encouraging fitness is lit!
You’ve also put up and accepted how weird this Aquarian is, encouraging my ways and humour—all the many inside jokes, most of which were R-rated, and stories 😉 (of sweaty baguettes and cousins). You are an amazing supportive member of Terrace House Energy, being a voice of reason in a crazy arena. Content and messages from it saves me many-a-time.
I look up to you, both professionally and personally because you are a beautiful human being. The way your creativity and mind works still astounds me, which I can only hope to have at least a fingernail of and learn from.
BeautyMNL Pop Up 2019
Prod Team 💖
Fitness is Litness
And cheers to you, Bianca, for being my forever mom as you have been such a guiding hand in many things. Literally guiding my head away from staring at yet another boy, and making sure I do not walk into an accident but also basically mind-linking with me when faced with beautiful creatures (ehem, boys) and just mentally shutting down.
You took me under your wing during the day and still partied with me like it’s 2012 at night (the videos exist, my gosh, Kuya Grab was horrified but supportive). You made work never have to feel like work, and one of the reasons is because I had you as a boss—being there to make sure that everything made sense, at the same time sending memes and crazy photos. You’ve drilled into me that there are efficient ways to get things done and showed me the ropes to make processes and products look flawless.
You’ve always seen the big picture when I am too focused on the smaller things, and you catch the devil in the details when I am too focused on the bigger picture. You’ve made sure (without fail) that I knew I am valuable to you and that me and my opinions matter but you also call me out on my b*llshit in a gentle fashion so that this edgy cry baby doesn’t break down or retreat into her shell.
You got me in so many aspects, from the way I speak, to the way I think, and to the way I do things, that I honestly think you’re a mind reader. We have been through so many things and I have a phone full of crazy memories to prove it—from never-quiet car rides, tinto de veranos and burrata pizzas, juice and coffee runs, to the cookies and froyo breaks, and the fire escape photoshoots, all of which I am grateful for.
Thank you for letting me and Iya (shout out to my sis) create your dating app account and profile—they were somewhat successful, but not as successful as our little walks and heart-to-hearts and encouraging me to take a break when I didn’t even know I needed to—they were never little to me. One of my favorite lessons that you’ve imparted is pushing me to let myself be young and to accept that it’s okay, to enjoy it for now. Your affirmations and confidence in me surpasses my own self-confidence sometimes, and they are part of the gifts that I treasure more than the red lipstick or baked goods. You amaze me in many ways, from your ingenuity in making the most sense to your pabebe-ness.
Fashion Production NIght Out
I inherited weird from you, obviously
You taught me all the production tricks
Some people leave footprints in our lives, and we are never the same again. You’re not only mentors to me, but most especially you are friends I am more than glad to keep. You have both taught me many things, and I will never know how to repay them—especially the little things.
As your subordinate once-upon-a-time, I hope that I was able to make you proud. I miss you both always but a little extra every time. You’ve shown me that work relationships can be more than just the outputs produced, that investing in human relationships in the workplace is more than worthwhile. I could not have had more ideal bosses than you both as some of my first mentors. There are so many things I can say and am thankful about during the small amount of time that I’ve been able to spend with both of you professionally, but surmise to say that I am eternally grateful to you for just getting me to my core and taking care of this Aquarius / Pomeranian / crybaby.
You are definitely the coolest of cool and are without-a-doubt above and beyond. You have my love and my utmost appreciation, always.
✨ From the bottom of my heart to the length of my mermaid tail, Jazz
This is for all the bosses who are much more than their title and management position.
To all the bosses in the world that care deeply, we thank you.
talk t á• y o! 