My parents told me to take the bus to my Harvard graduation because they were too busy buying my sister a brand-new Tesla, but when they finally showed up expecting to watch me quietly walk across the stage and go back to celebrating her, the dean took the mic, said my name, and my father dropped his program as the whole crowd learned what I had built while they were busy acting like I was never the child worth showing up for. – Reading Times

I then spent my entire weekends working as a retail associate at a high end clothing store in the downtown district. Sleep quickly became a luxury that I could rarely afford as I spent my nights studying until the sun began to rise.

Despite coming from a family with immense wealth, I was receiving zero financial support from my parents. My partial scholarship covered the majority of my tuition, but everything else including my housing and my meals had to come directly out of my own pocket.

I lived in the smallest and most cramped dorm room on the entire campus. I ate cheap instant noodles far more often than I would ever care to admit to anyone.

During those early and difficult struggles, I met Maya Torres, who was a fellow business student who quickly became my closest confidante. Maya came from a hardworking single parent household in Arizona and was also working multiple jobs to keep her head above water.