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I was fortunate enough to be the guest speaker on career day at one of the top private universities in �������� recently. I shared with the newly graduating students some of the lessons learned from my life and career.
When I was a child growing up in Washington, DC, I brought home some elementary school report cards that contained lots of Cs and some Bs. My mother said to me: “Why can’t you be like your friend Reem?” Reem was a straight-A student. I remember that I said to my mother, in the most respectful way I could, “I can’t be Reem because I am Taghreed. I am different.”
As I grew up, I became the first in my class all the way from middle school to high school, and I ended up receiving a partial scholarship from the University of Miami to do my undergraduate and master’s degree, as there were no Saudi scholarships available back then. I finally managed to graduate summa cum laude, which is the highest honor you can graduate with at university level in the US. Now, I can’t say that my mom’s words or comparison did not have an impact on me, but I do know that I did it my way and in my own time. The moral of this lesson is: Study what you want, do it on your own time, and excel in it. You are always different from the rest.
When I was doing my Ph.D. in the UK, I found out that anxiety and motivation not only affects education, but can also easily affect our daily lives. I have seen how anxiety can negatively change people’s life path or career just because they are overwhelmed or demotivated to continue, and so tend to drop out of school or university. It doesn’t matter if you graduate at age 21 with a bachelor’s degree or at 55 with a masters, what is important is to find what motivates you.
So, if you think you are done with university, I am sorry to break this news to you: Life is a never-ending university. We keep learning lessons at all ages and stages of our lives. The smart people are the ones who never say they are done with learning.
A recent study by New York University showed that 65 percent of students entering elementary school now will end up in jobs that have not yet been created. Another study by Singularity University showed 45 percent of today’s jobs won’t exist 10 years from now. So, after hearing that, do you think it is still valid to ask our children “what do you want to be when you grow up?” The world as we know it now will not be the same in five to 10 years, as artificial intelligence and robotics are taking us by storm. We need to adapt to the changes around us.
Between 2014 and 2016, I was working at the University of California, Berkeley, as a researcher and I became inspired by Silicon Valley and what it offers its entrepreneurs. I started asking my professor colleagues in the Haas School of Business if I could sit in on their MBA classes. I simply loved the new knowledge I picked up — it was an eye-opener for someone coming from a different field.
After a year at Berkeley, I became vice chair of the Berkeley Postdoctoral Entrepreneurship Program, as well as being a researcher there, making me the first Saudi to hold these two positions. So focusing on what attracts you pays off. If you know you have a gap in knowledge or expertise, fix it. Focus on what you have, and gain what you don’t have. This is the key to determining how happy you will be in your career.
Finally, I recommend keeping the following questions in mind throughout your career: Are you a lifelong learner or do you simply want a certificate to put up on your wall? Are you willing to quickly adapt to new changes or are you more into doing it “your way or the highway?” Are you different than the rest or just another student or employee doing what you do without trying to innovate? Are you passionate and motivated about what you are doing or studying now?
Try to answer these questions honestly and ask yourself why you are doing what you are doing. This is a great exercise that you should do once in a while. Good luck reflecting on your life, career or studies.

Dr. Taghreed Al-Saraj is a best-selling Saudi author, international public speaker and entrepreneurship mentor.