Local StoriesMay 30, 2023

Meet Michelle Sabado

Local Stories

Today, we’d like to introduce you to Michelle Sabado. Michelle was introduced to us by the brilliant and talented Irete Hamdani.

Michelle, thank you so much for joining us today. We’d love for you to bring our readers up to speed – can you introduce yourself and share your story?
My journey has been amazing and completely unpredictable! I have been passionate about saving the Earth since I was a young girl. I learned about pollution and recycling in elementary school. I thought it was as simple as that until I read an article in college about Lauren Singer, who saved her trash for an entire year, and it only filled a mason jar. How revolutionary! It changed my mindset completely towards sustainable living.
In college, I tried to cut down my trash production like Lauren, but it was very difficult for me. I thought I had to buy plastic-free supplies to be sustainable and I really couldn’t afford it at the time. Now, I realize being sustainable means using what you have until it cannot be used anymore.

When I was 23, I started my Instagram account @zerowastesunflower to share my sustainability journey. I never imagined how many connections and true friendships I would make! I never imagined my blog would include mental health and wellness as a topic as well. I am so proud of the community I have built. We support each other in sustainability, but also in the everyday challenges we face such as grief, heartbreak, disappointment, rejection, and stress. Initially, I was worried about being bullied on social media, but it has become a safe place to express myself and confide in others.

I also never imagined I would become such a strong advocate for small businesses. I have connected with so many sustainable small businesses through social media. I have learned a lot about running about a business as well. It is not easy, and I have much respect for the small businesses made of 1 or 2 employees. I am honored to bring momentum to their businesses by speaking about their products and their journeys.

Let’s talk about your work and career – what else should we know?
My account has grown so much in the past year. I have a lot of campaigns I am working on, and I hope one day to be a full-time creator. Right now, I work as a full-time nurse and as a full-time student earning my master’s degree. I teach tennis lessons 4 days a week as well. It’s difficult to balance, but they all bring me joy in different ways. In all my jobs and activities, the common factor is that I get to help people. As a nurse, I help my patients heal or help them pass away with dignity. I work on a Progressive Care Unit, so my patients are very sick. I have been a nurse for 7 years and every day is a different experience. I have learned so much about myself while working as a nurse. I have met so many people, patients, and coworkers, and I think each person has taught me something about life. I am a perfectionist. I have a big heart. I don’t like disappointing people, so I try to do my very best in whatever I am doing. I can get frustrated or anxious when I feel like I am not putting my best effort forward. I put a lot of pressure on myself to be productive all the time. I’m learning to balance work and rest so that I can productive, but also have good mental health. When I create content and post on social media, I am very diligent. I take numerous pictures or videos to make sure I get the right shot. I have a strong rapport with my audience, so I must be very authentic in my posts. They trust my opinion, so I am very conscious of what I say or promote. However, I am very honest on social media. If I am having a bad day, I talk about it. If I am facing a particular challenge, I share some of my worries with my audience. I try to end it on a positive note to encourage others to do the same. I like to say “better days ahead” to people and in my posts. Not every day will be fantastic or spectacular, but there are amazing experiences waiting for you in the future. Just stay patient. Working with a lot of businesses and brands can get very overwhelming. There are usually deadlines I must meet and guidelines I must follow. I am not the most organized, but I do have a talent for making content that is authentic, fun, and true to myself. I study what viral creators do to improve my content creation process, but I always keep my content true to my personality and beliefs. I only promote products and businesses that match my values and that is why my followers trust me. I love creating content. There are days I need a break from it, and then days where I will create for hours. It allows me to express my creativity, let go in front of the camera, and build relationships with businesses, brands, and real people. Creating content is such a fun way to learn about what is going on in the world. I get to try out many products and services I never thought I would use! I have done collaborations I never expected to do! Working with the Google Chrome extension askBelynda was a surprise and it has been a delight! I know it’s bad for the Earth, but I enjoy shopping from Amazon and askBelynda makes it more sustainable for me.

So, as we mentioned to our audience earlier, you were introduced to us by Irete Hamdani and askBelynda and we really admire them and what they’ve built. For folks who might not be as familiar, can you tell them a bit about your experience with askBelynda.
askBelynda is a complete gamechanger in the world of commerce. I am aware that Amazon is terrible for the environment. Humanity consumes so much by shopping on Amazon. Being able to receive items the next day or the same day is so hard on the environment. Although shopping online creates less carbon emissions than shopping in person, the rate at which humanity shops online is mindblowing.
By using the Google Chrome extension, askBelynda, I can support businesses that make ecofriendly products with ethical practices. askBelynda is so convenient for consumers. It does all the research and presents consumers with the most ecofriendly products on Amazon which appears on a pop-up window. askBelynda has recommendations for household essentials like toilet paper, facial cleanser, and laundry detergent. askBelynda even has recommendations for ecofriendly clothing, underwear, and shoes! The number of categories askBelynda covers is growing every day. I highly recommend you read the askBelynda blog posts to learn about new categories you can shop for.

In order for a brand to qualify for askBelynda, it must go through a 4-step vetting process. askBelynda audits the company, its certifications, its values, and the quality of the product itself. askBelynda prides itself on choosing the most sustainable products with the best value and transparent practices. This is why I trust its recommendations every time.

Irete Hamdani is the creator and CEO of askBelynda. I really admire her work because she does most of the coding for askBelynda herself! She is so passionate about using askBelynda to do good and to improve consumer culture. Irete created askBelynda to encourage others to adopt sustainable shopping practices and I am incredibly honored to assist her in this endeavor. Irete is also a mother and wife, so I admire her even more for balancing work life with family life!

To sum it all up, I love using and teaching others about askBelynda because it is an easy addition to any lifestyle for sustainable living. Learning to choose the most ecofriendly product can be stressful, whether you are a sustainability novice or expert. askBelynda presents a comprehensive list of the most sustainable products when you search for a certain product, such as sunscreen or soap. askBelynda also lists why each product is sustainable and lists certifications the product or business has achieved. You can find this list under a red “i” beside each item listed. askBelynda tells me which products have compostable packaging, are nontoxic, cruelty-free, plastic-free, vegan, organic, or biodegradable. You can filter your results to show which items are made in the U.S., are plastic-free, or cruelty-free!

askBelynda is the only tool I have seen that encourages sustainable shopping by providing a list of ecofriendly products in real time. It only works on the desktop version of Amazon in the United States, but Irete’s goal is to make it accessible worldwide! I have made several reels and stories about askBelynda and my followers from all over the world are excited to use it one day!

To download the askBelynda Google Chrome extension, visit askBelynda.com and follow the steps on the homepage. It is truly a life changing tool. If you could leave a review for askBelynda on the Chrome Web Store and tell all your friends to download it, Irete and I would be so honored! You can also watch my askBelynda reels on my Instagram page @zerowastesunflower and download the extension through my link in bio!