Meet Maria Camila Jaramillo

Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Maria Camila Jaramillo. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Hi Maria Camila , great to have you with us today and excited to have you share your wisdom with our readers. Over the years, after speaking with countless do-ers, makers, builders, entrepreneurs, artists and more we’ve noticed that the ability to take risks is central to almost all stories of triumph and so we’re really interested in hearing about your journey with risk and how you developed your risk-taking ability.

By being true to myself. I can say I have taken several blind leaps of faith throughout my life. Over and over again I keep proving myself I am capable of overcoming every obstacle. That everything works out in the end. Yet, I can’t deny I keep getting afraid every time a new challenge presents itself that requires to take a blind risk. However, I have the full, complete, and total confidence that, if that leap of faith is in line with myself, my beliefs, and what I truly want and desire, there is no way in the universe that it won’t work out. Life rewards bravery, and that is a lesson I never want to stop learning.

Looking in retrospective of where I come from and how I grew, I am extremely proud of what I have achieved. From growing up in a small town in the middle of the Colombian Andes mountains to (modesty aside) a NASA researcher, jeweler, and consultant in New York. Without a doubt, more than my discipline and resilience, I owe all of this to my bravery and ability to take risks.

Without question, my first biggest leap of faith and the unknown was to decide what to study for undergrad. Growing up being very isolated between a farm and a suburban house, I developed a very deep love for nature. Literally, out of boredom and because I had no neighbors other than cows, I developed the habit of spending hours and hours observing. Observing nature. Observing the ant and the patterns it made as it walked. Smelling the particular aroma of different plants and how specific types of plants had specific types of smells. Watching how, at a particular time of dawn, something in the atmosphere seemed to change, and all birds flew back to their nests. What a deep form of meditation this was. I realize now as an adult.

I am diverting, but all this to say, I developed a deep understanding of the patterns and ways of nature. This was reflected in my academics, where I got a perfect score year after year in the biology courses. Although I realized I had some kind of talent for this, I had a very limiting thought fueled by the fear of being judged or different. I thought, “Biology isn’t a real career. I can’t study Biology. I won’t have a job once I graduate.” But that wasn’t me speaking. That was my fear speaking. For context, Biology isn’t a pre-requisite career for med school or other careers in Colombia like it is in the US. You usually only study one career, so this was a pretty big deal. I was going to be a biologist. Period. Not a doctor. Not a vet. A biologist. One of the worst-earning professions in Colombia.

Despite the fear, something very deep inside me knew it was going to be alright. I can’t explain how, but I just felt this was the right path. I listened to my intuition, which I think is the #1 tool to be able to take risks. Sometimes you have to shut your brain off. Take away any logic or reasoning when facing a risk, and ask yourself, how does it feel when I think about this decision? Do I feel excited? Do I feel cringe (it really happens sometimes)? Do I feel love? Do I feel a drive? Then you take the leap.

This was, for certain, one of the wisest yet boldest decisions I’ve made in my life. And although I had doubts and impostor syndrome many times throughout my career, I had the comforting feeling that I was being true to myself and that if I was going to starve, I was going to do it on my own terms.

This was the first of many, but it definitely gave me the courage and understanding of how to have the balls to take a risk and how to discern between two blurry feelings: the natural fear you feel when taking a risk vs. doing something that somehow feels wrong. These two feelings can get very easily mixed up and lead to very different outcomes.

Things I’ve learned. Risks may not make sense. In fact, most of the time they don’t make any sense at all. At least to the rational mind. I’ve felt, many times in my life, that I don’t know why I am doing something. But I just feel I have to do it. Society has been drilling in our heads that we have to be ‘purpose-driven.’ But I’ve found my biggest success comes when I act “feeling driven”. I’ve encountered myself in this situation countless times throughout my life and continuously receive reassurance. “Why should I move from my perfectly good and comfortable life in Colombia to a small town in the middle of Indiana?” I didn’t understand the purpose of this or how it fitted into my broader goals, I just felt I had to do it when the opportunity presented itself. Years later, that got me into Columbia University. “Why should I turn down the amazingly well-paying job at the med school even if I had no other job and I desperately needed the money?” I felt that job was not in line with myself, what I wanted, and somehow felt like I was diverting myself from my path. Two days later, I unexpectedly got a job interview invitation from NASA. Yes, the real NASA! “Why should I take a two-day trip to an emerald mine in one of the most remote and somewhat dangerous locations in Colombia?” I listened to a deep, deep drive I had inside me. There was no logic to it. Nobody understood (not even me) what I would get from this. That led to my emerald jewelry brand nowadays and having the most amazing business relationships with the most passionate miners, jewelers, and human beings I’ve ever met.

In summary, take a risk when you feel passion. I swear to you, if you put the work in and stay true to yourself, you won’t fail.

Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?

I am many things. I love that I can’t be confined to just one label. I have multiple passions, and no one should tell you that you can only be one thing.

I am a biologist by education. A consultant by profession. A rancher by upbringing. A jeweler by passion.

A little more about my background: As a biologist, most of my career has been focused on agriculture. I did research on molecular biology and plant pathology on the world’s most pathogenic bacteria for a little more than two years. Part of this in Colombia, part of this in Purdue University. I was about to start my Ph.D., when (blessing in disguise), the faculty panel retired the offer I was counting on. That gave me some time to work on some of my personal projects, including my sustainable livestock ranch business in Colombia and my jewelry business.

As I mentioned, I grew up on a farm, accompanying my father who is a cattle rancher, to farms, auctions, and some of the most beautiful mountains in Colombia. This is a very male-dominated space in Colombia, and a dangerous business depending on the region. temperament. It’s interesting because, although I am can be perceived as a ‘sweet’ and sensitive person, there’s also this strong personality inside of me. I believe this has helped me succeed in other male-dominated industries, such as the emerald mining industry. To this day, I still work part-time with my father and manage part of the cattle sales on the farm. I am diverting again. The emerald business is my main business.

Four years ago, I founded a jewelry business that has evolved over the years into what is now a fine jewelry brand. While a jewelry brand may not seem like an innovative endeavor, I take great pride in knowing that my business, supply chain, and operations span from an emerald mine in Colombia all the way to the final customer in Manhattan. I have built strong operations, business relationships, and partnerships that give me direct access to my partner emerald mine in Colombia and prime selection of the first discovered stones. I collaborate with incredible, passionate gold craftsmen and have the privilege of personally delivering a piece of jewelry in Manhattan, witnessing the moment a customer connects with the gemstone. And I mention the connection because there is really such a strong energy coming from emeralds. It’s a subtle but strong feeling customers get, yet it is a known fact within the industry.

People often ask me how I manage to do so many things at once. Because, aside from this, I have a full-time consulting job. I won’t brag and say it’s passion and discipline because the truth is, I struggle every day with keeping up. But having a purpose that is bigger than yourself and your ambitions is the biggest force of success. Yes, I love jewelry. Yes, I love emeralds and feel such a special connection with these rocks. Yes, I enjoy creating something (a business) out of scratch. All of these things fill me with joy and gratitude. But the motivation, especially in times of difficulty or fatigue can easily go away. What really motivates me is the thought that I am helping my country. I am helping to do things right in an industry that historically has done things VERY wrong. I know the faces of these miners. Their stories. Even their parents. I know how passionate they feel about their profession. How proud they are of what they do. With complete conviction, they know that, without a doubt, the best emeralds in the world are Colombian emeralds, and they have the honor of bringing them to the world. Miners who work with the understanding that it is not they who find the emerald, because the emerald is to be respected. It is the emerald that decides to reveal itself to them. To know that somehow, I am helping to sustain these livelihoods. This passion. The joy that this profession means to these people. That is beyond all passion, discipline, and talent. That is a purpose that is greater than myself, and that, if God allows, I will keep striving to fulfill.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

1. When in fear, trust your gut more than logic.

2. Find a purpose.

3. Stay true to yourself.

Thanks so much for sharing all these insights with us today. Before we go, is there a book that’s played in important role in your development?

Many Lives, Many Masters by Brian Weiss. This book taught me everything happens for a reason. We are always where we have to be when we need to be.

Not to put things in the hands of destiny, lay down on your couch and trust that your life is written and everything that needs to happen will happen. It’s not in that way. This book helped me transform my belief system. The message I get is, when you act in line with yourself, when you put in the work, when you do things from love and not from a place of fear, life inevitably ‘flows’ you to the place you have to be. Even if it is an uncomfortable place.

Knowing this gives you such peace of mind during the difficult moments. Knowing that for some reason you need to face this challenge. That there is a lesson you have not learned yet that you need to take out of this. That this situation will keep repeating itself until you face and learn from it.

Brian Weiss, the author of this book who is still alive and attending patients, used to be a Yale doctor specializing in therapy through hypnosis. He noticed one of his patients started saying or ‘remembering’ things as if she was another person. She also started speaking to him as if it was someone else (not in a creepy way). He recorded every session and found great wisdom through this patient. However, he hid the recordings for many years because he was an academic and was afraid of what the scientific community would think. Years later, his wife encouraged him to share these recordings, and the book was published. I won’t spoil the book with too much detail. but it definitely changed my life.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.mardelunafinejewelry.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mardeluna.finejewelry/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/maria-camila-jaramillo-arroyave/