Twin passions

Armed with her little sister, Kara Gozali enters the coffee shop to meet me at noon on a balmy Saturday. Her sister is about three-fourths her 5’11” frame, immediately softening her ate’s image as the fire-eyed Filipino-Indonesian model we’ve seen blazing trails both on the ramp and in print.

But it wasn’t always fireworks for this 21-year-old. “I was always a tall person so growing up wasn’t exactly a piece of cake,” starts Gozali. “I have odd ears that poke out of my hair, too, so that didn’t make me feel my prettiest. I realized that I had to love myself and appreciate what I have.”

The breakthrough

It was Randy Ortiz who first discovered her during a gown hunt for her 18th birthday. “I’m grateful that he took interest in me and put me in one of his biggest fashion shows at the Metropolitan Café in Manila,” remembers Gozali, who went on to become one of Ortiz’ muses at the age of 18. As part of the Professional Models Association of the Philippines (PMAP), she has walked for Penshoppe and designers like Joel Escober and Ortiz himself, as well as appeared in many brand look books, dailies, and magazines.

Model student

A closer look at Kara would reveal her other passion besides modeling: medicine. “I’ve always wanted to be a doctor,” says a beaming Gozali, whose parents are both doctors. “There was no pressure from them and yet I can’t imagine being anything else. I want to be a pediatrician because I love kids, or a dermatologist to cater to my own market, which is the fashion industry. I’ll be like, ‘Girl, you have a wrinkle, so you better come to me.’”

Having graduated last month with a bachelor’s degree in psychology from UST, she plans to take up medicine in the same school. “I know this sounds cheesy,” smiles Gozali, “but the world needs more people who genuinely take interest in the welfare of others. I feel the need to bring back what doctors are really about.”

Real talk

Her life is now a balancing act, juggled expertly, thanks to Globe. Shifting from prepaid to postpaid in December 2012 when she acquired her iPhone 5 under a Globe postpaid plan opened doors she didn’t know even existed.

Let’s talk real talk, though: Changing your years-old prepaid number to a new one might be a concern for first-timers. “I thought it was quite the hassle,” recalls Kara, “but I got to do it much faster and much more easily with the social networks provided by the unlimited mobile Internet access of my new plan — which came with a free phone. I simply used Facebook to inbox everyone my number.”

Globe Telecom’s postpaid subscribers are like walking Internet cafés with this modern power, in which everything is suddenly within reach. “The Internet is very important for me, not only for Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, but also for when I save PowerPoint presentations, which I can conveniently download again in school,” adds Kara. “Studying never stops in medicine, and the Globe 4G LTE network makes it much faster for me to research on the spot.”

With her fully-customizable Globe My Super Plan, Kara says worrying is a thing of the past. “I designed my plan freebies to cater more to my mobile surfing needs, while keeping my monthly consumable amount for my daily dose of calls and texts.” she details. Unlike maintaining a prepaid account, Kara can always rely on her Globe postpaid plan without having to load credits every so often whenever she needs to text, call, or surf on her mobile phone.

In fact, let’s add “anywhere” to the list as well. “I was in my school retreat for four days and everyone was back in the city,” recalls Kara. “I missed talking and texting all the time but credit goes to Globe for having the best signal even up in Tagaytay ‘cause it did not fail me. I got my texts and stayed in a conversation with no call dropped. It made me feel less homesick and paved way to stay in communication with those I love.”

Bill concerns are also taken care of, wherever she is. “Globe has always catered to what I needed,” shares Kara, who also realized that Talk2Globe is not only 24/7 on Facebook and Twitter, but also friendly and fast to respond.

Voice for the right choice

For Kara and others like her, a Globe postpaid plan suits her lifestyle, where on-time communication is key. Casting relies on models agreeing to shoots right away and reviewing the editorial’s concept as early as possible — sometimes all via text. “Modeling is actually a healthy competition since it’s ‘first come, first serve,’” explains Kara. “So if you get text messages late, you won’t get casted.”

In postpaid, she feels all set and free of worry, even when out of the country, thanks to stronger roaming. “I can focus on work rather than stressing over late text messages or dropped phone calls.”

It’s in choices like Kara’s where we find a strength that inspires, a strength that is able to meet the demands of a modern, fast-paced dual life, that of a model and medicine student. Shifting from prepaid to Globe My Super Plan was the bridge she decided to cross to this new, exciting life of hers, where her two passions remain ablaze. At the end of the day, it’s about finding the voice to make the right choice.

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To know more about Globe My Super Plan, visit www.globe.com.ph or call (02) 730-1010.