For most, childhood is the most innocent stage in life. My childhood was anything but normal. For me, this innocence stopped at the age of 11 when I was gang-raped for the first time.
The rapes continued to happen to me until the age of 13, making them the worst 3 years of my life.
Between being humiliated and bullied, I was in immense pain, physically and mentally. I was confused, lost, and insecure with a belief that I was half a man.
I didn’t know who I was!
In an effort to escape my reality and seek security and protection, I withdrew from my childhood and immersed myself in my father’s furniture business.
After finishing high school, I went to the American University in Cairo.
During my first year there, with the help of my father, I started my first business: a toy shop.
This only lasted for two years until it went bust. I was devastated. It felt like my world was collapsing AGAIN because entrepreneurship was all I knew! Not only did I have to deal with this failure, but also, I had to meet other people’s expectations. That was way too much pressure for a young college kid to handle!
Life in university had its own set of challenges – a severely judgmental environment, where people were evaluated based on their GPA, clothing, cars, social status, and accessibility to power. Once again, I found myself starting to feel that “I don’t belong”. I knew I had to switch schools and move to the US to make a new beginning for myself.
That ended up being one of the best decisions I made.
Being in a totally new environment where nobody knew anything of my past or my baggage, I decided to allow my soul to seek freedom. I had to liberate myself from all my past social conditioning and self-limiting beliefs.
I saw hope. I was up for any challenge at this point.
Ever since I made this call, my life turned around. It was full of adventures, failures, and achievements. I travelled the world, visiting amazing cities such as Paris and interacted with incredible and influential people such as the president of Cyprus.
My life opened up in ways I couldn’t have imagined as a young child.
I celebrated one success after another, with each new experience and win fanning the flames of my motivation to meet more people, do more, and be an achiever. With all the lessons I gathered over this time, I was able to unleash my soul and give it permission to lead my life. That’s how I have managed to become the free soul that I am today.
Liberating my soul allowed me to honour and become the entrepreneur that I always knew I was inside. I had come a long way from my toy shop.
Today, I own and manage multiple businesses, including being the co-founder and CEO of 3mushrooms Telecom, a company that provides high-speed satellite internet to vessels and ships in the oil and gas industry.
When I decided I wouldn’t allow my past to control my future, it made way for me to further follow exciting and interesting things. While I’m not on the ground or out on the water, my heart belongs in the sky: I acquired my Private Pilot License (PPL) from a flight school in Cyprus in 2014 and today I am also a recreational pilot who loves flying for fun. Flying is probably my favourite hobby because the very act reflects who I am – free, and climbing without limits.
My second love and “happy place” is the kitchen. Not only do I enjoy cooking, but I also appreciate the art of plating. Wherever I go, I’m on the lookout for cooking classes I can take. I’m a strong advocate for experiencing different cultures by exploring their cuisines. I believe every plate is a story, a statement…an edible idea that deserves attention.
I was able to do all this and be all this because of a single decision, as proof that no matter how difficult your past might have been, there is no limit to what you can achieve. I want to show you how to do the same.
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