Dana Trujillo

I've been married for almost 38 years, and I think just having a supportive family has been crucial to my success. I also believe I was at the right place at the right time, and maintaining a positive attitude helped me along the way. Being a team player has really contributed to my success throughout my career. I've never worried too much about the letters behind my title or my name - it could be to my fault, but I think it's more about being focused on the task at hand. Having honesty and integrity as core values, along with continuous self-learning through reading, has allowed me to hold my own even when working alongside people with PhDs in genetics and molecular biology.

The best career advice I have ever received is to always think positive and help others. I think I've been a strong mentor to some of the ladies that are much younger than me and are still learning this complicated, nuanced business. The advice also includes not worrying, because there's always new opportunities if something should go awry. This perspective has been especially important when working with people in their 20s who experience panic when opportunities evaporate, because they have bills to pay and real financial pressures.

Back when I first started in the late 90s, I was one of the few women in this whole space of agriculture. I feel like women have really come a long way since then. My advice would be to just stick with it and get a niche for yourself. It's also not a bad idea to go with a startup, because you end up learning a lot more than just the narrow focus space that you're going to learn if you work in corporate America, where you have that one job, that one title. In a small startup, you have to figure things out, and you get exposure to the whole ways of working - the plan, do, check, act cycle, all the different departments, all the functions that have to interact with each other, the sequence of interaction processes. Whereas if you're just in one big corporate job, you're just learning that small space, whether it's understanding contracts or being in a field all day doing plant breeding. You get a broader scope in a smaller organization.

The values that are most important to me are honesty and integrity. I've never really worried too much about the letters behind my title or my name - it could be to my fault, but I think it's more about being focused on the task at hand. Even though I work with so many people that have PhDs and formal education, I've always tried to keep learning through reading and self-education. I'm a strong advocate of healthy food and naturally eating foods that are nutritious, which is what drove me toward agriculture and the farm-to-fork aspect. I believe in helping and mentoring others, especially younger women who are still learning this complicated business.