I was reading a book recently that referenced Abraham Maslow’s theory of self-actualization. He spent years studying the characteristics of extraordinarily successful people, including Abraham Lincoln, Thomas Jefferson, and Albert Einstein. He found they shared common traits: creativity, purpose, deep moral conviction, a drive to contribute beyond themselves. He called these people self-actualizers.
But Maslow also recognized something else. When people are trapped in survival mode, self-actualization isn't even on the radar. The capacity is there. The conditions aren't.
Over the years, I’ve asked hundreds of Filipinos of all ages what their dream is. Often the answer is some version of “security.” Nothing wrong with that. But what would it take to move beyond it?
This issue explores that question.
— Christeen
A PROBLEM WORTH SOLVING
How might we create a culture in which Filipinos dream bigger than survival?
For millions of Filipino families, the dream is not luxury. It's stability. Not getting wiped out by a medical emergency. Not falling back into poverty after one setback.
BCG's research, The Filipino Dream, found that 58% of Filipinos prioritize financial security for health emergencies above all other aspirations. At the household level, that number climbs to 7 in 10 families.
The top dream in the Philippines is not a dream at all. It's the absence of catastrophe.
When survival becomes the dominant operating system of a society, it changes how people think. Long-term planning shrinks. Risk tolerance collapses. Entrepreneurship becomes more about earning basic income than long term asset-building. Hope becomes fragile.
But here's what I've learned from working alongside Filipino founders and families: a person who is free of poverty mindset has the capacity to change the trajectory of their family’s life. When someone breaks through the belief that survival is all there is, they don't just improve their own life. They start building for others.
So the individual work matters. Deeply. But we can't stop there.
The same BCG study found that 68% of Filipinos remain optimistic about the coming year. 56% aspire to start their own business. That optimism is real. And it's being held back by systems that weren't designed for them.
The numbers that strike me:
50–55% of Filipino families self-identify as poor (SWS, 2025)
~30% of families are economically vulnerable, at risk of falling back into poverty after shocks like illness, inflation, or job loss (pia.gov.ph)
The bottom 50% of Filipinos share only 14% of national income (worldbank.org)
64% of families could not cover a ₱10,000 hospital bill without borrowing (BCG, The Filipino Family, 2025)
The work is twofold. Invest in the individual: their mindset, their skills, their belief that something more is possible. And build systems, companies, and platforms that make that "something more" actually accessible.
How might we do both?
AN EXPERIMENT WORTH TESTING
Can hope be engineered at scale?
International Care Ministries (ICM) works with ultra-poor Filipino families, often living on less than US$0.50 per day. What makes their approach interesting is that it's not purely financial.
Their flagship Transform program is a four-month, community-based training delivered through over 10,000 local pastors across the Visayas, Mindanao, and Palawan. Participants learn financial management, small business skills, group savings, nutrition, hygiene, safe parenthood, and values formation.
ICM's core belief: progress out of poverty begins with believing change is possible. They frame their approach around HOPE: Heart, Opportunity, Physical, Education.
And they measure outcomes. With over 500 million data points collected, ICM reports that Transform participants have experienced:
107% increase in household income
39% decrease in depression
88% of malnourished children cured
36% reduction in serious illness
To date, ICM has graduated over 2 million family members from Transform, with 4,573 active savings groups.
One of the most fascinating implications: economic mobility may begin as a psychological intervention before it becomes a financial one.
What if one of the highest-leverage things we can scale is not merely capital, but hope?
Learn more at caremin.com
A BUILDER WORTH KNOWING
ER Rollan is building infrastructure for the grassroots Filipino economy
There are over 1.3 million sari-sari stores in the Philippines. They provide daily essentials for 94% of Filipinos. And most of them are stuck.
The problem isn't the store owners. It's the supply chain around them. Small, family-run operations can't access the same suppliers as large retail chains. They buy from middlemen at razor-thin margins. Many barely break even.
ER Rollan built GrowSari to close that gap. The B2B platform lets sari-sari store owners order consumer goods directly, get next-day delivery, and access distributor-level pricing, turning micro-retailers into digitally connected service hubs for grassroots communities.
ER left a corporate career at Unilever in Singapore to co-found GrowSari in 2016. The company has raised over US$110 million from KKR, IFC, JG Summit, Robinsons Retail, and Tencent. It was the subject of a Harvard Business School case study and serves over one million stores nationwide.
What I admire most about ER is his heart to serve the next generation of entrepreneurs. We’re grateful to have him as part of the Dream Bigger Philippines Mentor network.
“You are not successful accidentally or because you are magaling (good). You are successful because someone gave you a chance you did not deserve. Someone gave you a chance you did not earn. And I want you to remember that time when someone gave you that chance. I want you to remember it the next time someone calls you up and asks for your advice, but you have five other meetings in your calendar. And it feels impossible to set up a coffee chat with that person.”
Learn more at growsari.com
More on ER: Inquirer | Tatler Asia | IFC
A PRACTICE WORTH CONSIDERING
Why, how, and what you build
At Dream Bigger, we use a simple framework to help entrepreneurs and leaders get clear on what they're building and why. Five concepts, each asking a different question:
Most people start with "what," the product, the pitch, the business model. This framework invites you to start from the inside out.
An invitation: Pick one (or more). Write a single sentence for it. Not a paragraph. Not a manifesto. One sentence. Start wherever you feel the most pull.
Reply and share it with me. I read every response.
How Might We? is published every other Friday. To share this with someone building, hiring, investing in, or dreaming bigger for the Philippines — forward this email.