FOLLOW YOUR PASSION, AND YOU WILL NEVER REGRET
BY DR. NIMROD
| Are you satisfied with your life achievements?When you retire, will you be able to say to yourself, “I have wisely invested my best years/time in the best way I could? I am somebody, had I left a mark, which I am proud of!”I don’t know what about you, but I figured out a long time ago that if we lived once, I better not regret wasting my time on stupid little things or being shay.It seems that when you take your last breaths, what matters the most are those life opportunities to do something meaningful, which you decided to “skip.” On the brink of death, people regret what they DIDN’T DO!Do you work only to secure your pension and then wait for death to knock on your door?If not, then why wait for death? Say it out-load, and live by it;“This world is far from perfect. I will do my best to leave it better than I found it!”If you bear with me for the next five minutes, I would like to share how I think and act to leave our children a better world.I hope you find my story inspiring for your work in whatever direction you choose to go.Don’t miss the “bonus video” at the end! ARE YOU WHAT YOU DO?People ask me, “What are you doing?”This is a good question that I also ask myself.Seriously, what am I doing, and who am I?Am I a farmer? Also. A scientist? Also. An inventor? Also. An Investor? Also. A researcher? Also. An industrialist? Also. A businessman? Also. Manager? Also. Environmentalist? Also. A humanist? Also. An Educator? Also. A…(Think about your activities list.)The list of my activities and who I am is long. I am doing many things, but none of those define me.Every few years, I define my scope of work and activity slightly differently.So who/what am I?As if that is not confusing enough, my self-perception is constantly changing.Is it my “shell” or “inner core” that changes when I change activities or titles?Try and ask yourself, “What am I doing? How do I define myself? What is my inner core?” ENTITLEMENTSIf you are not what you do, then what defines you, what defines me? This is what I asked myself.I believe that our thoughts, intentions, and above all, how we perceive ourselves define us.Titles and occupations reflect how others define you and me.But, how do you define and perceive yourself is far more critical?I perceive myself as “A CHANGE AGENT.”What is “A Change Agent”?In my eyes, “A Change Agent” is someone who wishes to serve as the catalyzer of events.In my case, I strive to bring Change to agriculture, especially in areas of crop protection, farmer livelihood (poverty), health and environment (the use of chemicals in agriculture), equality, international cooperation, and more.When you view the world and your activity in terms of “results,” then titles are not your focus anymore. I do what I need to do to make things done. I measure myself by the results I achieve on the path to Change.Green Valley’s Vision and Mission reflect the Change that I wish to see and bring into practice. |
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| Do you agree with this vision? WHERE SHOULD I PUT MY FOCUS?It has never been clear to me how I should use my abilities and focus on making the most substantial Change.At first, I thought I could best use my abilities and bring “the change” by being a leading farmer. My orchards were the first significant orchards to apply IPM (Integrated Pest Management) in Israel (1989).Then I thought that I could bring a more significant change by helping many Israeli farmers grow better, i.e., spraying less. Academic study and research (1991-2004).Then I thought that developing a non-spraying crop protection technology for all the world’s farmers could bring a more remarkable change, so I founded Biofeed (2004), which later brought to the world the Freedome technology.Then I thought that by developing a non-spraying solution for the fruit flies problem that has no answer, I could bring a tremendous change, so I founded The Fruit Fly Research Institute (2010).Then I thought that developing a fruit fly management/eradication protocol could bring an even more significant change. I created and designed the Fruit Fly Certified Trade Zone 365 (FFCTZ-365) protocol (2018).Then I thought that developing a business model that would help smallholders living in poverty transit to prosperity could bring a greater change. I initiated and developed the Green Valley business model, short for Green Valley National Export Project (GVNEP). (2019)As you can see above, the circle of my activity was constantly expanding while I was busy bringing more CHANGE.It was and still is about “Change” to make this world a better place.From working with several hundred professional and financially resilient Israeli farmers without planning, I found myself working and helping shape the future of the largest and poorest population group – smallholders.A Change, any Change, begins when you Change yourself. If you are lucky, you manage to Change a few more people around you. On some rare occasions, you may even Change economies and nations. |
 A WhatsApp from Dr. Faye, Green Valley’s manager in Senegal, earlier this week. Seeing it, I couldn’t be more proud. |
| Funny, looking back, I see that Green Valley couldn’t exist if I had skipped one or more of the stations along my life journey.So maybe there is a reason why things, sometimes, take longer than expected!?You see, when you (not others) define yourself according to your passion and life vision, then nothing is awkward when you find yourself changing titles, professions, areas of practice, work environment, and many other things.By following your passion and the desire for CHANGE, you become more resilient to the many difficulties you are sure to encounter along the way. BE “A CHANGE AGENT”I feel “connected” with agriculture, farmers, technology, poverty, health, education, and the environment.Many fields I care about, seemingly remote and unconnected.So, I asked myself, “Is it possible to link and connect all the issues I care about under a single umbrella in a way I can bring the Change faster and improve several topics simultaneously?”Then I said to myself, “There could be such a link if I will create it.”As you may already know, the result was the Green Valley National Export Project (GVNEP), or in short, the Green Valley business model.Green Valley’s business model and program, with its holistic approach, already encompass and relates to most of these topics.But that is not enough. How can we get the message to many other countries, companies, organizations, and business people within a short period? How can we recruit them to bring the Change!?Earlier this year, I was fortunate to be approached by the President of the Africa Organization of Technology in Agriculture Conference and Expo 2022 (AOTA), asking me to serve as the Director of the Conference, being in charge of the Conference’s concept, scientific aspects, and content.After considering the request, I said that I am willing to carry the task if they are ready to make it an outstanding conference.We agreed that choosing the topic of Business Models as the leading topic of the Conference, along with technologies dedicated to smallholders, is the perfect way to achieve the uniqueness we search for and provide the highest added value to African farmers.The AOTA is probably the first-ever Conference (not only in Africa), which focuses on Business Models to create a swift transition of farmers from Agriculture to agro-industry, from poverty to prosperity. See the Conference concept.Now we draft the titles and topics of the Conference’s sessions. This is your time to IMPACT by suggesting Topics and Titles for the Conference sessions.I value your knowledge, ideas, and experience, and I want you to be part of building the New Africa Agro Sector Arena.Please, take 5 minutes to send me 5 Titles for topics you suggest we discuss during the Conference.When you send me those titles, please add a few words of how each is related to the Conference theme, which is Business Models in agriculture (+972-542523425 WhatsApp, nisraely@biofeed.co.il). |
| TAKEAWAYS» YOU ONLY live once.» FOLLOW YOUR heart and passion, not that of others.» NO ONE OWE you anything. If you fail or succeed, it’s all you. Blame no one!» YOU WILL surely die. Make sure you live a worthy life before.» WHEN YOU DIE, nobody will remember your bank account. Everybody will remember what you did for others. Don’t be shay doing for others. |
