Teacher’s Insights: 1st Apprentice Asia Jonathan Yabut Graces The #LiveBrighterSessions of Sun Life Financial

What does it take to be successful in life? Fame and fortune are the common things in mind. The “Millennials” don’t just want to dream it but to own in, and that’s what some of us do. We worked hard to earn that diploma and get that awesome job to fulfill your #LifeGoals. But what if you’re not fortunate enough to achieve your goals? What if our hard work is not enough? I’d seen most millennials like me who give up to their dreams and live a life of complacency because they don’t have the right ways and right people to help them reach their #LifeGoals. And no wondered why many of us don’t live the right life.

That’s why Sun Life Financial is always in the loop to help us millennials live a brighter life. And they made it happen by launching the “Live Brighter Sessions” with “The Apprentice Asia” first winner Jonathan Yabut, gracing the event with bloggers like me and aspiring financial advisors. Jonathan shared tons of principles and stories on how he rose from humble beginnings to become a successful businessman and becoming the first contestant who won “The Apprentice Asia.”

On the personal note, I realized how much helpful the session has been for us. Most of us are not as smart nor eloquent as Jonathan, but I learned tons of principles that he shared that makes him win “The Apprentice Asia.”

As a millennial, I realized what Jonathan said about time:

“THE ONLY ENEMY OF THE AMBITION IS TIME.”

To be honest, I’m not as ambitious as the other people who are in the corporate ladder of success. All I know is to make sure that I’m living a life easily. But easy living means easy failure, boring and complacent. And that’s how millennial today. We just want to have an easy, comfortable and free life. But if you want to be successful, Jonathan shared these principles He formulates to make all of his goals possible.

1. Success is when preparation meets opportunity.

Jonathan shared the culinary concept of what you called “Mise en Place” that means getting things done first before you execute. Planning is essential for every goal. You have to visualize what results you want to achieve your goal. And Jonathan shared how he obsessively watched all “The Apprentice Asia” before joining and persisting to join.

2. You don’t need to say “YES” to every opportunity of success.

It means not saying yes all the time. Yes taking risks is brave but you need to consider what your priority “first” and finishing what’s on your plate first before jumping to another set. Jonathan established the “Power of Focus” to the audience and I learned that no matter how tempting the offers are, we should learn how to finish what we have started. He also shared how we tend to keep unnecessary “Lettuce” in our lives and learned to learn to just “let it go.”

3. In order to stand out, you also need to “stand back”

Jonathan shares another facet of leadership to the audience. He spoke about how to work with people makes a leader more successful than others. More than just being another boss they don’t want to have, focus on raising potentials and leading people to be at their best makes a leader more effective.

4. It’s not about working hard, but working SMART.

Jonathan knew that more than just working hard, he needs to strategize and work smarter than his competitors to win. That there will be such time that you should not contend at one-time victory if you want to be successful in the field you want.

5. The secret of success is out there: GRIT

GRIT is known as “passion and perseverance for a very long term goals.” Beauty, brains, and wealth will never get us there if we know how to handle ourselves out there. GRIT also refers to “traffic different egos and personality (emotional maturity),” how to execute plans and how to respond to failures and shortcomings. Surprise thought about GRIT is it doesn’t happen overnight. We have a responsibility and duty to play to get that GRIT in us. And we millennial should learn how to mold these characters.

Apart from Yabut, Sun Life Financial advisor JP Cruz shared his experiences and journey on how he win over failures and shortcomings. Now as a Sun Life advisor, he shared inspirational thoughts about how to live a brighter life by living your purpose and having a financial freedom.

“We hope that this session will open to them opportunities that they can enjoy if they become a financial advisor. It’s a career that definitely meaningful, and at the same time financially rewarding,” Sun Life Financial Advisor Recruitment Manager Fin Bernardo said.

As a millennial, better find your GRIT now and break free from your complacency and wrong mindsets. Be the person that you want to be and achieve full potential while being financially secure and free. “Live Brighter Sessions” are set to hold in Cebu and Davao. For more details, follow @sunlifeph on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. Interested to become a Sun Life Advisor and to have your GRIT to success moment? Visit bitly.com/sunlifeadvisor to learn more.