The Woman Who Rewrote Her Story - And Is Helping Others Rise
From Poverty to Purpose: How a Cycle Breaker Learned That Your Beginning Does Not Determine Your Becoming
By Jovelyn Larson
I grew up believing that people like me—poor, unseen, and fighting for every inch of possibility—were meant to survive life, not shape it.
But somewhere between hunger, hardship, and quiet prayers whispered into the night, I learned a truth that would guide the rest of my life:
A person's beginning does not determine their becoming.
My story did not begin with influence, access, or opportunity. It began in the Philippines, with a young girl carrying more responsibility than any child should have to bear. I learned early that resilience is not always loud. Sometimes, resilience is silent. It is the decision to keep going when no one sees the weight you are carrying. It is showing up with discipline when circumstances offer no guarantee that anything will change.
I did not know then that those hidden seasons were preparing me for leadership.
I did not know that the hardship I wanted to escape would one day become the foundation of how I lead, mentor, build, and serve.
The Rise of a Cycle Breaker
When I walked to class after four days without food, I was not thinking about titles, degrees, or executive leadership. I was thinking about survival.
But survival has a way of teaching lessons that comfort cannot. It teaches focus. It teaches resourcefulness. It teaches humility, endurance, and the ability to keep moving when the path ahead is uncertain.
When I graduated from law school without owning a single book, I did not see that season as leadership preparation. I only knew I had to find a way. I studied from borrowed notes, photocopied pages, and whatever materials I could access. Looking back, I understand that the experience taught me one of the most important leadership principles of my life:
People do not rise because they have everything. They rise because they learn how to use everything they have.
Those years shaped my grit. They strengthened my faith. They taught me how to listen carefully, think critically, and remain steady under pressure. They also taught me that poverty may describe a condition, but it does not have the authority to define a calling.
From Survival to Strategic Leadership
Today, I sit at executive tables as a leader in strategic sourcing and procurement. I have led teams, developed talent, co-created enterprise strategies, negotiated complex supplier relationships, influenced key decisions, and helped organizations navigate business complexity. With a JD, an LLM, an MBA, a Lean Six Sigma Black Belt certification, and certification as a Neurodiversity Coach, I bring legal insight, operational discipline, strategic judgment, and a deeply human approach to leadership. I have spoken on respected industry stages and built a career that once felt far beyond reach.
But my leadership was not born in boardrooms. It was formed in adversity.
Hardship taught me how to stay calm in high-stakes moments. Scarcity taught me how to make thoughtful decisions with limited resources. Being overlooked taught me the importance of visibility, sponsorship, and creating access for others.
In my profession, I have learned that influence is not simply about having a seat at the table. Influence is about what you do with that seat. It is about asking better questions, making principled decisions, building trust, and creating outcomes that serve both the business and the people behind the work.
Leadership, to me, is not performance. It is stewardship.
Becoming the Woman My Younger Self Needed
Of all the titles I carry—executive, founder, speaker, mentor—one of the most meaningful is this:
I became the woman my younger self needed.
I became the woman who could look back at that hungry student, that uncertain dreamer, that young girl from the Philippines, and say, "You were not forgotten. You were being prepared."
My daughter now watches me lead—not because life was easy, but because I refused to allow hardship to define our lineage. She sees that strength can be graceful, that ambition can be anchored in purpose, and that success can be built with integrity.
I broke cycles not so I could stand alone, but so I could help build pathways for those coming after me.
That is the heart of my work.
Building a Voice That Helps Others Rise
One of the deepest callings of my life is to help create greater visibility, mentorship, and opportunity for women in sourcing and procurement—not simply as a professional passion, but as a commitment to helping others recognize their potential and step into leadership with confidence.
Sourcing and procurement is a field where influence, strategy, financial discipline, relationship-building, and enterprise impact intersect. It is also a space where many talented professionals are still finding their voices, building visibility, and stepping into leadership. Much of my mentoring and advocacy focuses on helping women recognize their value, strengthen their leadership voice, and pursue opportunities that may once have felt out of reach.
Throughout my career, I have found great purpose in mentoring professionals, providing guidance, sharing lessons learned, and encouraging emerging leaders as they navigate their own journeys. Through those conversations, I have seen how many talented individuals struggle with self-doubt, limited visibility, or the belief that their background somehow disqualifies them from leadership.
My vision is to help foster a community where women can find mentorship, visibility, opportunity, and practical guidance—a place where they can share their stories, sharpen their leadership voice, build executive presence, and access rooms that may have once felt beyond reach.
Because I know what it feels like to be unseen.
And I know what it feels like to rise anyway.
There are brilliant women carrying their gifts quietly. Some are waiting for permission. Some are waiting for the right opportunity. Some are wondering whether their background disqualifies them.
I want my life and leadership to tell them this:
Your background is not a disqualification. It may be the very thing that gives you the depth, empathy, and resilience to lead differently.
And while I am especially passionate about elevating women in procurement, the heart of my story is universal. Anyone who has ever felt unseen, underestimated, or limited by their circumstances can find encouragement in this truth: no one is confined to where they began. A difficult beginning can still become the foundation for a meaningful, purpose-filled life.
Faith, Purpose, and Professional Influence
My faith has always been central to my journey. It has done more than help me survive difficult seasons—it has shaped how I understand leadership, influence, and responsibility.
Faith taught me that I am not defined by scarcity, rejection, or the limitations others may have placed on me. Faith taught me that even when life felt like miry clay, God was still forming something solid beneath my feet.
But faith also taught me responsibility.
When God elevates a person, I believe He does not elevate them for themselves alone. He gives influence so it can be used with humility. He opens doors so those doors can be held open. He gives each of us a voice, a story, and a sphere of impact so we can create space for others.
That belief guides how I lead. It shapes how I mentor. It influences how I build businesses, lead teams, speak on stages, and show up in rooms where decisions are made.
I do not see success as something to simply achieve.
I see it as something to steward.
The Legacy I Am Building
If my story means anything, I hope it means this:
A person's rise is never just their own.
- It is a generational shift.
- It is the rewriting of a narrative.
- It is proof that what tried to bury you can become the soil where purpose grows.
- I rose from poverty, but my daughter will rise from possibility.
- I rose from scarcity, but those I mentor can rise from strength.
- I rose from the miry clay, but those who follow can stand on firmer ground.
That is the legacy I am building.
- Not just a career.
- Not just a title.
- Not just a seat at the table.
- But a voice that encourages others to rise.
- A pathway that helps create opportunity.
- A reminder that leadership is most powerful when it multiplies opportunity for others.
To the woman who feels unseen, unqualified, or behind: your story is not over. You are not disqualified by where you started. You are not limited by what you lacked. You are not forgotten in the waiting.
And to anyone standing in a difficult beginning, wondering whether life can still become something greater: start where you are. Use what you have. Lead with integrity. Build with courage.
When you rise, make room for someone else to rise with you.
Because your beginning does not determine your becoming.
And your rise may become the bridge someone else needs to believe they can rise, too.
