Today I am going to share with you what has been inspiring me each and every day since I started my professional career almost 15 years ago. It’s a brief insight into my own personal journey and it uncovers what has led me to where I am today, what motivates me and why I have ultimately met the conclusion that it is the people in my journey that have made such a difference to the way I view life. This is why I love people…..
Starting the Journey
Very shortly after my graduation I decided to grab the very first opportunity that came my way rather than just waiting for the elusive dream job to come along. I was young, enthusiastic and ambitious (I still am!) and I obviously wanted to take on the world!
My first job was working for a private organisation in a bustling city of 9.3 million people -Karachi, Pakistan. I was appointed as an Operations Manager and a part of my remit was to manage a team of approximately 100 field working individuals. Their job, on a daily basis, in the sizzling heat of the city, was to go from house to house, mainly on foot or using public transport, distributing monthly energy bills, manually recording energy meters, and reading and reporting any suspicious cases of energy theft.
Most of them had come to the city from various parts of the country in search of greener pastures and to make a better life for themselves and for their families. It was an exciting experience managing and leading all of those individuals because of their diverse social, economic and cultural backgrounds. Each individual needed different types of interaction, attention and level of engagement. But one thing they had in common and that was their determination to change their life and their families’ life for the better.
Hopes, Dreams and Aspirations
Despite the hard nature of the job I could see hope, dreams and aspirations in their eyes every morning when I use to meet them. I always used to feel as if it was my job to ensure that their hopes were fulfilled and dreams turned into reality. The look in their eyes motivated me to go to work every morning and do more for them so that they could achieve what they wanted for themselves and their families. It was a close and emotional connection which charged my batteries and pushed me to work even harder.
Going the extra mile
The next phase of my professional life took me to some very remote and isolated areas of Pakistan; away from the very convenient lifestyle of the city of Karachi. For almost three years I worked on two different educational development projects in different areas of Pakistan. The purpose of both the projects was to develop and promote the importance of primary education for both boys and girls through working in partnership with the local communities, teachers, parents and local government bodies.
Many of the communities and schools were located in areas which were difficult to access and both students and teachers had to travel or walk incredibly long distances to reach their schools. I myself used to travel hundreds of kilometres each month to visit the schools to monitor their performance, the level of parents and community involvement and the teachers’ levels of engagement with the school children, their parents and community members.
Pushing the Limits
I covered almost 1000 schools in the same number of villages travelling the length and breadth of the southern and northern parts of the country. Over this time I met thousands of students, hundreds of teachers and thousands of community members who had one thing in common and that was the determination to change their future for the better through educating their children.
The sparkling eyes of the children, the teachers’ enthusiastic attitude and community members’ excitement were the elements which helped me in pushing my limits and performing my role with the utmost sense of responsibility, commitment and dedication. It was an inspiring time and one that I will never forget.
Building a Brighter Future
Almost 10 years ago I moved the furthest away from my home to the beautiful city of Birmingham in the UK; which has now become my second home.
I joined a law firm and over a period of nine years met with some very interesting and talented people. When I joined the firm the team of lawyers mainly consisted of young individuals who joined the company either to gain experience and secure a training contract or as a trainee to qualify as a solicitor. All of them were ambitious and hardworking individuals who had dreams and hopes of becoming solicitors, associates and partners in the coming years. Their passion and determination to be successful in their lives drove me to work even harder to make the firm bigger, better and more successful so that the company could continue to provide them with all the opportunities to make their future brighter.
A New Challenge
Last year, I setup my own business, Anseris Mons Limited, in partnership with my former CEO, my mentor and my very good friend, Rob Bhol.
One of the many reasons we wanted to set up our own business, a very strong and compelling reason, which we both have always felt very passionate about, was our common desire to build something where we could provide plenty of opportunities to people and help them in fulfilling their dreams. We hope that we will be able to fulfil that purpose through growing our company and making a real and positive difference in people’s lives.
A Rainbow of Experiences
In my professional career I have worked with, managed and lead hundreds of people. They were all like a rainbow, from different cultures, different races, different backgrounds, different qualifications and different geographical locations but one thing shone like a beacon in all of them and that was their desire, commitment and hopes to make their future better for themselves and for their families.
They were all remarkable and each one of them inspired me to continue to explore my own capabilities and keep pushing my boundaries for the better. That, my friends, is why I love people!
Zeeshan Masood, Anseris Mons Limited
