Every once in a while, we get criticized and insulted for reasons we find hard to understand. While some of us get demotivated by criticisms, others take advantage of the negative comments in order to create better versions of themselves. This was what Dr. Nol Montalbo, owner of the Mont Albo Massage Hut, did when he was once insulted by a college classmate for his low exam score.
In a viral post on his Facebook page, Montalbo recounted his days as a freshman student at the University of the Philippines Los Baños in 1996. Montalbo, in his first two semesters at the university, wasn’t exactly the Iskolar ng Bayan you’d expect as he always came late for his class, failed to submit projects on time, copied assignments from his classmates, and failed in exams. His classmates abhorred being his groupmate in projects as they knew he wouldn’t contribute anything. Even his own blockmates were mad at Montalbo because he didn’t have the drive to study.
With his attitude towards school, Montalbo knew he was going to get kicked out of UP sooner or later.
But a rather interesting encounter with his blockmate he referred to as “Einstein” turned his life around.
After a laboratory class, Montalbo’s blockmates began comparing scores at an exam. Aware that he had the lowest score, Montalbo simply remained silent. For some reason, Einstein managed to see Montalbo’s score prompting him to say the hurtful words:
"Ang BOBO mo kasi!” (You’re stupid.)
Unfortunately, Einstein’s insult was overheard by their classmates. Needless to say, Montalbo was mortified by the incident.
“Napahiya ako ng sobra. Sa loob loob ko, pareho lang naman tayong pumasa sa UP. Pareho tayo ng course. Ang pinagkaiba lang, lagi syang top sa exam. Mas kilala ang high school nya kesa sa school ko sa probinsya,” Montalbo wrote in his post.
(I was deeply mortified. In my mind, I knew that we both passed UP. We have the same course. The only difference is that he always tops the exam. His high school was more popular than my high school in the province.)
Determined to prove Einstein wrong, Montalbo pushed himself further allowing him to get a flat 1.0 score at Chem 40 (Organic Chemistry), a subject with high mortality rate in UP. In addition, he became part of five student organizations, played the lead role in several theatre performances, and was awarded Best Thesis by five institutions on top of being a working student.
Montalbo, just like Einstein, graduated Cum Laude. However, Montalbo managed to graduate ahead of Einstein, earning his Bachelor of Science in Biology Major in Genetics after only 3.5 years in college.
“Insults can either hurt you or change you. In my case, wrong words brought me to the right places. Kapag may masasakit kang naririnig sa iba, just be quiet, baka nga totoo. Kung hindi totoo, prove them wrong.Let them break you for a while but heal fast and mend strong. Turn those piercing insults and criticisms into lasting compliments,” Montalbo said.
Montalbo was recently recognized as UPLB’s Most Distinguished Alumni in 2016.
Check out his inspiring story.
--Mini, The Summit Express
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| Do you often get criticized? Here’s how you can turn your life around using piercing insults and criticisms. |
In a viral post on his Facebook page, Montalbo recounted his days as a freshman student at the University of the Philippines Los Baños in 1996. Montalbo, in his first two semesters at the university, wasn’t exactly the Iskolar ng Bayan you’d expect as he always came late for his class, failed to submit projects on time, copied assignments from his classmates, and failed in exams. His classmates abhorred being his groupmate in projects as they knew he wouldn’t contribute anything. Even his own blockmates were mad at Montalbo because he didn’t have the drive to study.
With his attitude towards school, Montalbo knew he was going to get kicked out of UP sooner or later.
But a rather interesting encounter with his blockmate he referred to as “Einstein” turned his life around.
After a laboratory class, Montalbo’s blockmates began comparing scores at an exam. Aware that he had the lowest score, Montalbo simply remained silent. For some reason, Einstein managed to see Montalbo’s score prompting him to say the hurtful words:
"Ang BOBO mo kasi!” (You’re stupid.)
Unfortunately, Einstein’s insult was overheard by their classmates. Needless to say, Montalbo was mortified by the incident.
“Napahiya ako ng sobra. Sa loob loob ko, pareho lang naman tayong pumasa sa UP. Pareho tayo ng course. Ang pinagkaiba lang, lagi syang top sa exam. Mas kilala ang high school nya kesa sa school ko sa probinsya,” Montalbo wrote in his post.
(I was deeply mortified. In my mind, I knew that we both passed UP. We have the same course. The only difference is that he always tops the exam. His high school was more popular than my high school in the province.)
Determined to prove Einstein wrong, Montalbo pushed himself further allowing him to get a flat 1.0 score at Chem 40 (Organic Chemistry), a subject with high mortality rate in UP. In addition, he became part of five student organizations, played the lead role in several theatre performances, and was awarded Best Thesis by five institutions on top of being a working student.
Montalbo, just like Einstein, graduated Cum Laude. However, Montalbo managed to graduate ahead of Einstein, earning his Bachelor of Science in Biology Major in Genetics after only 3.5 years in college.
“Insults can either hurt you or change you. In my case, wrong words brought me to the right places. Kapag may masasakit kang naririnig sa iba, just be quiet, baka nga totoo. Kung hindi totoo, prove them wrong.Let them break you for a while but heal fast and mend strong. Turn those piercing insults and criticisms into lasting compliments,” Montalbo said.
Montalbo was recently recognized as UPLB’s Most Distinguished Alumni in 2016.
Check out his inspiring story.
#UPLB, maraming maraming salamat po! ❤️
University of the Philippines Los Baños
Distinguished Alumni Award 2016...
Posted by Nol Montalbo on Sunday, October 9, 2016
--Mini, The Summit Express
