#UAEReads: Emirati entrepreneur Omar Al Busaidy ‘The more knowledge you have, the more power you have’

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  Courtesy HarperCollins

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  Courtesy Phaidon

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  Courtesy Simon & Schuster

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  Courtesy Farrar, Straus and Giroux

Omar Al Busaidy, 30, is such a believer in the power of books that last year he published one of his own – a collection of his entrepreneurial musings designed to inspire personal and professional development – and called it Just Read It.

“I always say that a reader today is a leader tomorrow,” says the Emirati, who was one of the 26 Abu Dhabi Global Shapers at the recent World Economic Forum. “The more knowledge you have, the more power you have – and the more interesting you are, the more entertaining you are.”

In addition to being an entrepreneur, Al Busaidy is Abu Dhabi Tourism’s sponsorship manager for Manchester City, and also section manager of investment promotion.

“The economies that will be successful in the 21st century will be knowledge-based economies – look at Singapore and Japan at the moment,” he says. “You need a well-educated workforce, which means it is vital that people in the UAE read.”

Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap … and Others Don’t

By Jim C Collins

This is the first book that had a profound effect on me when I was an 18-year-old university student. It is an absolute page-turner. The author talks about having the right people on board if you want to be successful. Organisations that invest a lot in people-development and give people recognition for their work ensure more loyalty from their employees, and more productivity.

It’s Not How Good You Are, It’s How Good You Want To Be

By Paul Arden

This book is cool because it is not just words in the book but images, too. The author is funny – it is like he is having a conversation with you. My own book is in that style too, because I get bored reading something in the third person, I like books that are written in the style of a conversation between you and the author.

The Secret

By Rhonda Byrne

A good friend of mine gave this book to me when I was bedridden for months in hospital. I had tuberculosis in my spine and I had a massive back surgery. I now have metal plates holding my back in place. I was mentally exhausted and distraught and this book, about how positive thinking can create life-changing results, helped to lift my spirits. It made me realise that there are people in a worse condition than I was, and that changing your mental state helps you to recover faster.

Who Really Runs the World? The War Between Globalisation and Democracy

By Thom Burnett and Alex Games

This book is about the influence of business on politics. You read about the Rothschilds and the Roosevelts and other powerful families, and how they are the ones who really control the world. Some people would say it’s a conspiracy theory but I say it is very true. There are just a few people in the world who control what’s happening.

The Israel Lobby and US Foreign Policy

By John J Mearsheimer and Stephen M Walt

This book talks about how Israel is literally sinking the US economy with everything it is doing. I like this book for the same reasons as I like the last one – because I want to know what is going on in the world. The authors were invited to Dubai to speak about their book by the Dubai School of Government because it is an influential book.