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🌱 From Pre-Med to Farming Revolution
“I had no plan. Just a reason.”Michelle grew up checking all the boxes: ✔ Indian-American “The itch was always there—even back in college. I just didn’t know how.” She was deep into grad school when burnout hit. “I got assigned to help soy farmers in Ndola. That changed everything.” She saw how hundreds of millions of small-scale farmers—most of them women—were barely scraping by. “This isn’t just poverty. This is bad business.” So she flipped the model.Out went the white coat. She founded The Harvest Fund. Women were doing the farmwork. Michelle’s model changes that:
She even started processing excess harvest into value-added products like tomato paste, turning waste into wealth. How’d she pull it off?No fancy tech. “I’m a child of Indian immigrants. Resourcefulness is in my blood.” Here’s the real startup stack:
And when motivation tanked? “I’d do one thing. Write one sentence. Read one page. Just keep moving.” What about failure?“I used to study all the time and still get C’s in college.” She thought she wasn’t smart enough. “If I had crushed orgo, I’d probably be stuck in med school—miserable.” That failure rerouted her toward purpose. Ok but… why farming?Because farming is everything. “Painting makes houses look good. Farming feeds entire economies.” Fix farming, and you hit:
And the kicker? Michelle started with one co-op. Launching shelf-stable food lines. Her toolbox?Forget case studies. Try audiobooks:
Each book = a mindset shift. “I’m always leveling up.” What teen builders can steal:
What keeps her grounded?“Honestly? Some days, I don’t feel grounded.” “I lean on leadership coaches from the accelerator programs I’ve done. It’s like therapy—for your professional life.” What does impact look like now?“I want to see impoverished rural communities become flourishing spaces.” Real. Tangible. Long-term transformation. And when people told her, “You’re doing too much,” Michelle took that as fuel. TL;DR:You don’t need a perfect GPA. You need:
Michelle’s vision didn’t get applause. Your turn. Like what you read? Share with friends! Lena
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