Role Model for Young Women--Make Time to Finish Schooling
by Peter Orfiano for REACH
Reach Knowledge magazine was fortunate to get enterprising and successful celebrity actress, Kathryn Bernardo to talk about making time to finish schooling for a young person still taking advantage of opportunities that only come once in a blue moon. Still her priorities are not lost on her and Kathryn still focuses on her studies.
YOUNG CELEBRITY
Kathryn Chandria Manuel Bernardo, better known as Kathryn Bernardo in showbiz, is one of ABS-CBN’s most promising young talents of this generation. She was a mainstay in the kiddie show, Goin’ Bulilit, yet her breakthrough role was Mara (originally portrayed by Judy Ann Santos) in the remake of Mara Clara with her co-star and real-life best friend, Julia Montes. Kathryn also starred in Princess and I as Mikay/Princess Areeyah, a royalty-themed romance/drama television series. It was also for this series that she was paired with one of today’s most sought-after heartthrobs, Daniel Padilla. Following up the success of the primetime series, they were again teamed up for Got to Believe.
PERFECTING THE CRAFT
Unlike other celebrities who live for the spotlight, Kathryn is never the one to take anything for granted. In fact, she lives for the famous saying, practice makes perfect. Aside from her continuous workshops and trainings supported by her talent management, she also works hard to personally improve her craft.
“Hard work talaga ang kailangan, hindi ka magsto-stop mag-aral. (Hard work is needed, you should never stop learning),” says Kathryn. “Sa acting kasi kailangan ka mag-experiment (In acting, you need to experiement),” she relates.
With that on her mind, she makes sure that she is exposed to different characters and tries different styles and methods of acting. She believes that when it comes to acting, it is advisable to leave one’s comfort zone. And truth be told, Kathryn’s dedication and perseverance towards her acting has proven to be quite effective as she is now one of the promising young stars of this generation.
TIME IS OF THE ESSENCE
Another unique characteristic that makes Kathryn a real role model is her ability to multitask. Unlike some celebrities who decided to delay or stop schooling, Kathryn makes sure she continues to study and educate herself. She considers education and having a degree, an important part of one’s life, not just for actresses such as herself. “Maiiba ka sa iba kapag may pinag-aralan ka (You will be different from the others if you continue schooling),” she says.
She knows that in time, having a degree and a diploma can be a confidence booster as well. The sense of accomplishment that it will bring will surely help her in the future especially with her chosen career. She knows for a fact that whatever she enjoys today is not permanent. And if that time comes, Kathryn is ready because she will be backed by a solid education that can help her adjust to another career option; like having her own business.
Even with her meticulous and busy showbiz schedule on top of her schooling, Kathryn has mastered time management. She points out, “Aware ka dapat na wala kang masasayang na oras (You should be aware that time is not wasted).” And because of that, she makes sure that she is responsible, disciplined and with a load of self-control to stick with her schedule.
But of course, just like any other young girl, Kathryn does not spends her spare time solely on school work. She believes that having other activities such as sports can be very helpful for her not to get burnt out easily. It is her way of balancing her life to keep her motivated to do more. When she was young, she enjoyed ballet, but today she plays badminton in her spare time. She is also very interested to learn how to play volleyball.
TECHNOLOGY HELPS
With the rise of mobile technology, Kathryn is never the last one to take advantage of its potential. In fact, she feels lucky to be in the era where access to information is easier with the use of a smart phone or a tablet. She even feels that having these gadgets really helps in making her busy life easier to manage since she cannot only utilize it for learning, but also for getting in touch with her friends through Instagram. Since she lives a busy life, she uses this powerful application to check out her friends, and maximize her time.
She is just saddened by the reality that not all teenagers like her can make use of these gadgets. Sometimes instead of using mobile tech for educational or more valuable time-saving purposes, those who have gadgets often use it for something else making it more of a distraction and waste of time rather than for being productive. But that only makes her more determined to show her generation that this should not be the case.
In fact, when it comes to her daily life, Kathryn makes the most of her gadgets, especially her tablet. She prefers carrying her tablet around since it’s lightweight, handy and very convenient to browse on because it has a good-sized screen. Mobile and wifi is where most of Kathryn’s learning, school research, and communication to her friends and loved ones take place.
Truthfully, Kathryn really never allows time to be wasted. She spends it wisely doing the things she loves, the things that will make her a better artist and person, and above all, to keep learning while preparing herself for the future
