Who doesn’t want to be successful? It would be nice to live our dreams, wouldn’t it? To have everything that we aspire to come true? But, do you wonder sometimes why some things happen for certain people, and not for others? How come some people are able to achieve their dreams while others don’t?
One of my relatives is a super talented videographer. She has a keen eye for detail, and a sharp mind. She’s been meaning to start her production company for years. It is all what she ever talks about at gatherings. I have been waiting to hear the good news from her, inviting us to a soft opening of her company, but years have passed and I have yet to hear what I want to hear from her.
I finally caught up with her to have a chat and find out how far away is she from materialising her dreams. We met over coffee, and I asked if I could look at her plans and feasibility studies. She laughed as she sipped on her cappuccino and said she doesn’t have one.
“What do you mean?” I asked. She said that she never sat down to draw a vision or draft a plan, and that things always seemed to come in the way.
I knew then that she was creating hurdles in her own success without even knowing, and that she wasn’t the only one doing so. Many out there keep talking about their dreams, and they have all the means to achieve them, but but virtually nothing is done.
You might argue and say, well, not everyone has enough finances. A valid argument, but if your dreams are really important to you and you really want to pursue them, wouldn’t you at least have a vision or a plan, and try to find ways to finance them?
I think you would.
But before you do that, there a few habits you need to kick and you’d be on the right track:
Don’t procrastinate
What I know for sure is that the best way to kill any project or dream is to procrastinate, thinking that its not the right time to do something. Here’s news for you: there is never a perfect time. There’s always a risk involved and if you don’t make and effort, take the time out to chalk out a plan, you will run the risk of coming in the way of your own success.
To be successful at what you do, it would require commitment and dedication, meaning that you will leave no room for excuses, whatsoever. This means that sometimes you will have to cancel plans with friends and attend to that phone calls or WhatsApp message late.
Break down your project into tasks, set a deadline, and go for it.
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Read more:
How to unblock a mental block
Step out of your comfort zone: it's the best thing for your business
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Talk is cheap
Talk is really cheap. We could talk all day saying that we will do this and that, but what good will that do us if we don’t go and do something about it? The bad thing about talking is that when we talk so much about something, sometimes, we feel too lazy to do anything about it. Dedicate the passion that you put into explaining your dreams, to actually going and doing something about it!
It'll get tough, don’t quit
We read about the successful stories of entrepreneur X and Y, and we love where they are right now, but what we may not know are the struggles that they had to endure for them to reach where they are right now. Depending on what your dream business is, starting it may not be a piece of cake. Financing it and finding the right place to sell your products or services may be an even bigger challenge. You need to set your mind to expect that hardships will come and things may get really, really bad. So, if you’re not up for this, and don’t want to go through it, then maybe entrepreneurship isn’t for you.
Comparing yourself to others
The worst thing you can do to yourself is to compare yourself and where your business is at with in relation to someone else's. Just because one person believes they are successful, because they have reached a certain stage, doesn’t mean that should be the yardstick for your as well. What you would mark as a success has nothing to do with someone else. This is something personal to you.
Not improving yourself
You may be great at doing a certain thing, but no matter how good you are, you have weaknesses, and if you don’t work on them you will fall behind. Videography for instance was my weakness, but in my field I needed to know more about it to be able to work with my team, and I did. By working on my weakness, I was able to elevate my business more.
Following successful people's good habits is important , but it’s also important to avoid the bad habits that they have avoided to become successful.
Manar Al Hinai is an award-winning Emirati writer who manages her branding and marketing consultancy in Abu Dhabi
Titanium Escrow profile
Started: December 2016
Founder: Ibrahim Kamalmaz
Based: UAE
Sector: Finance / legal
Size: 3 employees, pre-revenue
Stage: Early stage
Investors: Founder's friends and Family
THE LIGHT
Director: Tom Tykwer
Starring: Tala Al Deen, Nicolette Krebitz, Lars Eidinger
Rating: 3/5
David Haye record
Total fights: 32
Wins: 28
Wins by KO: 26
Losses: 4
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
'The Predator'
Dir: Shane Black
Starring: Olivia Munn, Boyd Holbrook, Keegan-Michael Key
Two and a half stars
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%3Cp%3E-%20Congress%20is%20one%20of%20three%20branches%20of%20the%20US%20government%2C%20and%20the%20one%20that%20creates%20the%20nation's%20federal%20laws%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E-%20Congress%20is%20divided%20into%20two%20chambers%3A%20The%20House%20of%20Representatives%20and%20the%20Senate%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E-%C2%A0The%20House%20is%20made%20up%20of%20435%20members%20based%20on%20a%20state's%20population.%20House%20members%20are%20up%20for%20election%20every%20two%20years%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E-%20A%20bill%20must%20be%20approved%20by%20both%20the%20House%20and%20Senate%20before%20it%20goes%20to%20the%20president's%20desk%20for%20signature%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E-%20A%20political%20party%20needs%20218%20seats%20to%20be%20in%20control%20of%20the%20House%20of%20Representatives%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E-%20The%20Senate%20is%20comprised%20of%20100%20members%2C%20with%20each%20state%20receiving%20two%20senators.%20Senate%20members%20serve%20six-year%20terms%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E-%20A%20political%20party%20needs%2051%20seats%20to%20control%20the%20Senate.%20In%20the%20case%20of%20a%2050-50%20tie%2C%20the%20party%20of%20the%20president%20controls%20the%20Senate%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
