BBVA Ambassadors: Every opportunity is a responsibility

Raymundo Fragoso, a team member in BBVA Mexico, excitedly remembers when he joined the bank in 1985, more than thirty years ago. "At 17, when I started as an office boy, I would not have believed that I would get to where I am today." Despite his drive and desire to grow, he remembers that he wanted to be a department manager. "I remember that when I moved to the Audit department, I saw that the assistant director had his own office, and I said to myself: I hope I can get one of those jobs one day," says Raymundo.
That move to the Audit department took place after he completed his education. "When I started at the bank, I joined an area that functioned like a branch. We worked from 7 in the morning to 3 in the afternoon, so I had the afternoon free to go to school and then to college. I studied Accounting, and that gave me the opportunity to work in auditing and build a career in the bank.”

He says that you set your own goals at BBVA. "The bank gives you the opportunity to improve yourself. It always supports you when you make an effort to learn. And at some point, it ends up rewarding you," he says.

A change for the better

He hasn’t only found success at work. Up until just five years ago, Raymundo split his time between the bank and his passion for basketball. However, playing hoops hurt his ankles. And not only that, "but as you take on more responsibilities, not only at work, but also in your family”—he has a 4-year-old son—“you don’t have as much time as before. So I tried to find a sport that would fit my schedule.

That was when he chose athletics. Of course, he did not achieve success overnight. "For me, the race lasts about 13 seconds. But there is a lot of work, a lot of training that goes into finishing the race in that time. And a lot of suffering and sacrifice, because you have to have discipline. Even with what you eat! You can’t devour three burgers in one sitting no matter how hard you train.”

Raymundo competes in relays (4x100 and 4x400) and individual races (the 400, 200, and 110 hurdles), in addition to the long jump. In 2018, in the National Games of Mexico, he won six medals: three gold and three silver. The secret, according to him, is to "plan, prepare, work, and keep doing it every day." Every success is an incentive to set a new goal. "The satisfaction of being on the podium keeps you moving forward, improving and setting more ambitious goals for yourself."

"Each one of us is capable of making opportunities come true"

He also likes long distance races. "But you have to specialize in something. You either train for speed or for distance. You can’t train for everything, because you wouldn’t be good at anything."

Responsibility

For Raymundo, athletics also means "responsibility, a commitment to your team, to yourself and your family, because you have to manage your time. But everyone benefits, because you share your successes with your family and co-workers.”

"The race last around 13 seconds. But it takes a lot of work achieve that time"

He is already thinking about the next challenge: "Next year, the Central American Games are going to change their format because before countries like Canada, the United States, and Mexico participated as guests. But the next edition will be held in Toronto (Canada), and the participation of all these teams will be official. That is going to be a qualitative leap, because there are athletes who are very good. Last year I competed against an American who finished almost a second and a half ahead of me, which is a big difference."

He continues, "Each of us has the ability to work hard, to commit ourselves to doing what needs to be done to achieve our goals. You have to do everything in your power to make your opportunities come true." Because, more than three decades later, Raymundo feels that he still has some goals he would like to reach.