Entrepreneurs in Abu Dhabi, UAE, were urged by experts to break their routine habits and embrace a sense of adventure in their business style, at a seminar organized by the Tamakkan entrepreneurship organization featuring thought leaders, entrepreneurs and poets.
The event, held at Mamoura, featured Julie Lewis, founder of Mountain High, thriller novelist Seumas Gallacher, entrepreneur Younis al Sulaimi, and a posse of local and international poets, led by award winning slam poet Paul D’ Rogers.
Inspirational speaker Lewis spoke about her recent expedition to Antarctica with women breast cancer survivors and the impact a journey of such magnitude can shape one’s perspective on life, courage and achievement.
“Climbing a mountain is much like business, you have to set your goals and open up your thinking to new experiences.”
She advised entrepreneurs to be more courageous and to continually readjust their mental markers to explore new ways of thinking. She also showed a short film of the women’s expedition aimed at raising awareness about breast cancer. Lewis, who is from England and lives in the UAE, travels across the world on vision-seeking expeditions.
Thriller novelist Seumas Gallacher, from Scotland and residing in the UAE, spoke about his meteoric success in self publishing, explaining how he wrote his books, distributed them and continues to market them through local bookstores and Amazon’s online bookstore. His two books received over 60,000 downloads on Kindle and his social media following is paving the way for the imminent launch of his third novel. Gallacher runs a business consultancy but sees writing becoming a possible full-time career.
“I believe in two kinds of days, good days and better days. As an entrepreneur you should try, make mistakes, and keep on trying. Giving up is not an option. For self publishers, writing is only the first part, then there is editing, publishing, distribution and then marketing. Don’t ignore the next wave in publishing: Kindle and E-books are the secret to success, and social media plays an integral role.”
Sana Bagersh, the founder of Tamakkan stressed the need for entrepreneurs to continue learning and growing, by exploring all sources of information and inspiration. ‘At Tamakkan we see the growth of the entrepreneurial spirit as something that extends well beyond business, and extending into the realms of spiritual enrichment and creative exploration.”
Younis al Sulaimi, an Emirati entrepreneur whose 3-D printing business is supported by the UAE’s Khalifa Fund, offered an insightful view into the challenges and opportunities associated with setting up a pioneering technological venture.
“It has been a rewarding experience and the entire team is very enthusiastic about the future of 3D printing. Being a forerunner in a new business area comes with a lot of difficulties, and the main one is that you can’t start marketing the usual way, you first have to educate people, and that is something that takes a lot of time.”
Tamakkan, which also promotes innovation and artistic creativity, included in the programme slam poetry sessions by three up and coming poets: Arab-American Sara Al Souqi, Canadian-Arab Haitham Haze and American Matthew “Cuban” Hernandez.
Al Souqi presented a touching poem that she dedicated to a former basketball coach in the US who advised her not to play the game because of her ‘hijab’.
She implored him through the words to see beyond her headdress to recognize her talent. Hernandez through his poem spoke about race relations and poverty, while Haze spoke about the power of words to unite people.
Tamakkan is a social initiative aimed at nurturing entrepreneurship, leadership and innovation. Established in June 2009 by BrandMoxie, a leading marketing firm in the UAE, and sponsored by Serco, it has steadily grown into a powerful knowledge sharing platform with free monthly seminars that offer opportunities for networking and business development.
