Everybody has endless chances to outgrew the hardships in life. They just need to see that difficulties are natural part of the paths of success. This has been the life lesson of one Zenaida Corcuera, the famous “Mani Queen” of Laguna. Being able to survive those hardships, she shared about how she rose from being a peanut retailer to the businesswoman she is now.
Zenaida, or more known as Zeny is a great example of very dedicated young child who overcome her poverty. As a child, she grew up along the train stations in Calamba, Laguna. She and her twelve other siblings would sleep, eat and bathe themselves in the train station, because they have no official residence. Their parents only earn a little amount that was not sufficient for their whole family. Because of this, they are encouraged to also find ways on how they can earn money. The young Zeny resorted to selling peanuts, water and sampaguita to the train passengers.
Being this cute kid who holds peanuts in her hands, her products are always sold out. At that age, she learned that earning money is a very difficult task. One time, she said, that she had to wait for the last trip of the train so she still can sell her sampaguita. She was sleepy and tired, but she pushed to stay awake until the last train arrived. From then on, she said to herself that she will work really hard so she outgrew her poverty.
True enough, Zeny is now a very financially stable businesswoman. She said that this started when she decided to cook and prepare her own peanut products. With a little amount of capital, she prepare her own products and encourages retailers to sell this. Little by little, her business grew. Now, she does not sell peanuts alone, but also Skinless mani, adobong mani, banana chips, kamote chips, garlic chips, shing-a-ling, mikeron and yema. She also has a small factory and several staff to help her.
Looking back, Zeny did not imagine that she would reach this far. But she said that she is proud of her past and of she have become. She also encourages everyone to not give up on their aspirations in life. It just takes equal amount of dedication and patience. Never give up!
