about kevin olega

Here's a photo of Kevin

Hello there!

Welcome to my about page.

I use this page to share my background, history, projects, interests, and some of the things I’ve done over the years.

Please visit my Now Page to see what I’m doing now.

SUMMARY

I’m a digital project manager, writer, online creator, and father.

I’ve worked in customer service, sales, writing, marketing, web development, operations, and project management.

I run several personal websites and online projects. I enjoy writing, making things on the web, and building systems that make work and daily life easier.

Outside work, I spend most of my time with my family and rescue dogs. I also enjoy Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, wrestling, strength training, cycling, drawing, anime, manga, and other personal projects.

I do my best to live simply and keep my commitments limited so I can focus on the things that matter to me.

WORK AND FREELANCE HISTORY

I work as a digital project manager and operations manager.

I help entrepreneurs and small teams turn ideas into working websites, marketing campaigns, systems, and projects.

My work has included web development, digital marketing, content, operations, client work, project management systems, templates, SOPs, and quality control.

Before project management, I worked as a virtual assistant.

I also spent several years as a freelance ghostwriter.

I wrote articles about fitness, health, personal development, education, finance, creativity, sports, outdoor activities, travel, and other topics.

Professional Website

PAST WORK

Before and during my freelance career, I worked in several different jobs.

I became a top performer while working in the call center industry.

I eventually left call center work to become a freelance ghostwriter. That later led to communications work, project management, and operations.

ONLINE WRITING

I’ve enjoyed writing and making things on the web since 2005.

Minimal Changes

In 2010, I launched Minimal Changes.

I originally used the website to document my personal experiments with minimalism, productivity, money, health, and lifestyle design.

A lot of the ideas came from things I tested on myself while trying to create more free time, spare cash, a clear head, and effortless productivity.

I still use the site to share personal ideas and lessons.

Philippine Island Living

I created Philippine Island Living because I enjoy traveling, trying new foods, cycling, photography, and documenting life in the Philippines.

The website started as a place for travel stories, photos, reviews, and personal experiences.

In 2020, I started moving the site toward promoting local businesses and service providers.

You can visit it at philippineislandliving.com.

Other Writing

Over the years, I also wrote for:

By 2026, I also started spending more time writing for my email newsletter.

CALL CENTER TRAINING TIPS

I started Call Center Training Tips because friends kept asking me how to get hired in a call center.

I started working in the BPO industry in 2007.

I was an introvert and had to work on my own communication skills. Friends noticed the improvement and started asking me for help.

I enjoyed teaching people, especially people who struggled with shyness, interviews, and communication.

Eventually, I spent so much time explaining the same lessons in person that I decided to put them online.

Call Center Training Tips grew into a collection of lessons, videos, reviewers, training sessions, and other resources about communication, customer service, interviews, and call center work.

A large part of the project has always been free.

I also provide group training and more direct support for people who want additional help.

PERSONAL PROJECTS AND WEBSITES

I like building things for myself on the web.

I use Minimal Changes to share ideas, lessons, and personal experiments.

I also started learning how to draw. I’ve shared some of my progress on Instagram.

For years, I’ve worked on digitizing papers, simplifying my files, automating repetitive work, and outsourcing time-consuming tasks so I can focus on things I care about.

That interest eventually grew into a larger goal of having more control over my own technology and digital information.

I learned Jekyll and built websites from base templates. I modified the code to add Google Analytics, Disqus comments, advertisements, and other features.

More recently, I started moving some of my websites back to plain HTML and building small tools for myself.

DOGS AND RESCUE

Dogs became a much bigger part of my life than I originally expected.

What started with a few dogs eventually became a small private rescue-dog household.

At one point, I lived with four rescue dogs.

The number kept growing.

I rescued and adopted Bella and Fidel.

Bella later gave birth to Haru, Rie, and Tomori.

She also gave birth to Toru, Syrup, Yui, Jiho, and Chomper.

Bella later gave birth to Caramel.

I rescued Kaori.

Missy passed away in 2023.

Over time, the rescue household grew to eighteen dogs and later reached 21 after Kuromi got Syrup and Kaori pregnant.

Most of Yui’s puppies were adopted.

Syrup’s pups:

Kaori’s pups:

I later had Yuki, Kuromi, Fidel, and Toru neutered.

By November 2025, the shelter population was 12.

By April 2026, the shelter population was 13.

I keep more of the dog history on my dog shelter page.

FITNESS, MARTIAL ARTS, AND CYCLING

Fitness has been a major hobby for me for many years.

My training has included CrossFit, strength training, kettlebells, bodyweight exercises, cycling, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, wrestling, boxing, and kickboxing.

For a long time, walking my dogs for about an hour a day was also one of my main forms of daily exercise.

Here's a photo of Kevin after CrossFit

Strength and CrossFit

I spent several years doing CrossFit and continue to use strength training as part of my regular routine.

I still use a 5x5 strength approach for squats, presses, and deadlifts.

I also regularly use kettlebell swings, Turkish getups, and other kettlebell exercises.

Bodyweight movements such as burpees, air squats, pull-ups, and toes-to-bar have also been part of my training over the years.

I competed in two inter-box CrossFit competitions.

Those experiences helped me gain more confidence in my physical ability and taught me to think more carefully about strategy during competition.

I also competed in two CrossFit Total events.

Weightlifting PRs

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu eventually became one of my main martial arts.

Here's a photo of Kevin performing a headlock

At my first Asian Jiu-Jitsu Federation competition, I earned two silver medals in the Masters 2 middle-heavy and open weight divisions.

At my second Asian Jiu-Jitsu Federation competition, I earned one gold medal and one silver medal.

Across those two events, I earned one gold and three silver medals.

Here's a photo of Kevin with a medal

I later transferred to Badger MMA under Carpe Diem.

In February 2025, I competed at the Relentless Asia SuperFight.

I signed up under 83 kg but ended up in an absolute match against a larger, stronger, and more experienced opponent who weighed around 90 kg.

I accepted the match on about a week’s notice after coming off bed rest.

I lost on points.

It was the first time my usual counter sequence failed during a competition.

I blocked every submission attempt, including a fully locked kimura that I’m still particularly proud of surviving.

A loss is a loss, but I consider it part of the journey as a casual competitive grappler.

Wrestling and Striking

I later started spending more time working on wrestling.

I also started joining boxing and kickboxing sessions.

These became another way for me to study movement, timing, balance, and combat sports outside Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.

Cycling

Cycling has come and gone from my life several times, but I always seem to return to it.

I’ve owned and ridden folding bikes, mountain bikes, and a fixed-gear bike that I assembled myself.

I’ve also used my folding bike for riding around the city.

I completed a long-distance cycling event in Subic that covered more than 100 km.

I later completed another 100+ km cycling event in Batangas.

I still enjoy modifying bikes, trying different setups, and using cycling as both exercise and transportation.

PERSONAL PREFERENCES AND PHILOSOPHY

I try to approach difficult things with a gameful mindset.

A lot of my wins happened when I treated the problem like something I could experiment with instead of something I had to take too seriously.

Anything I take too seriously tends to go badly.

I do my best to live like a minimalist.

I focus on owning less and making sure the things I own fit the life I want.

Health also became a much bigger priority for me over the years.

I try to protect my sleep, drink enough water, exercise, and pay attention to what I eat.

Over the years, I experimented with Slow-Carb, Ketogenic, Paleo, Carnivore, Atkins, and intermittent fasting.

I documented some of those experiments online.

I generally prefer simple meals and cook my own food whenever I can.

SELECTED MILESTONES

Some smaller milestones also became important parts of my personal history.

I also went through a period of depression and spent a lot of time studying ways to improve my physical and mental state.

Some of the things I explored included body mechanics, breathing techniques, cold exposure, Stoic philosophy, and the work of Tim Ferriss, Derek Sivers, Tony Robbins, Jordan Peterson, and Alan Watts.

That period had a large influence on how I think about habits, health, work, and personal responsibility.

WANT MORE?

Some trivia.

Instagram photos.

Here’s what I’m doing now.

LAST UPDATE: Friday, October 2, 2026, Metro Manila, Philippines.