About Me

They say breakthrough moments are rooted in discomfort and are powerful motivators for change. Over the years, I've faced many, each one paving the path to where I stand now.

None of these moments define me, but each provided me with a commitment to develop and understand humans and the diverse communities that make up our world.

Telling you who I am is only one part of the story. In fact, I find this part quite confronting, as we’ve never truly been taught how to share our lives with strangers. However, I think it’s important for you to get to know me deeply because sharing even the smallest parts allows you to take a breath and know that you are not alone, and that there is, in fact, a bright light at the end of the tunnel. Our ineffable experiences of hardship, resilience, confusion, and despair are, in fact, more common than we believe, illustrating how interconnected we indeed are.

From founding the first startup to be regulated by the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DIFC) in 2019, to pacing for Nike Running, to receiving news of a chronic health condition that had been with me since birth while working in South Africa in 2005, to running from tear gas in 2012 while working for Google during anti-Google and YouTube protests. Each of these experiences tested my resilience and adaptability.

In South Africa, the life-altering news of my health condition led me to a transformative journey exploring the powers of will, environment, meditation, spirituality, and plant medicine. This personal recovery ignited my passion for epigenetics and the incredible potential of the human body and mind to heal itself.

During my time at Google, I dedicated my '20% time' to teaching web design and development in Palestine, working with local universities and incubators such as Gaza Sky Geeks. My commitment was tested during the 2014 bombardment when I had to be evacuated and faced arrest during my departure—a stark reminder of the complexities and dangers of global geopolitical conflicts.

I never shied away from a challenge; in fact, the concept of challenge is what spurred me on. From climbing Kilimanjaro on a whim mere days before my Acumen Global Fellowship interview, representing myself with an outgrown beard and frostbite, bewildering to me at the time I passed my interview.

Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms–to choose one's attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one's own way.”—Viktor Frankl

As a volunteer, I was placed in the remote Cholistan Desert. There, I grappled with the realities of a vastly different culture, language, apathy, and humble living conditions. My breakthrough came from the pages of Viktor Frankl’s 'Man’s Search for Meaning,' which transformed my mindset to embrace the challenges of my environment. This period of growth included cultivating my own food, engaging in local startups, and running a half-marathon under the desert sky—lit only by the headlights of a security guard’s car in the middle of nowhere, as a way to celebrate the 2015 new year alone, marking the year's end with an unforgettable experience.

Whilst these are to only name a few, my unique blend of personal trials, professional achievements, and the desire for authentic human interactions and connections supports my holistic and empathetic approach to coaching for those seeking transformative change.

I understand that this world is moving at a pace many of us find tiring to keep up with—a constant strain to be better, do better, create more, have more, be at the top of your game 24/7/365. Ultimately leading to burnout, a lack of desire in life, and a weight that we carry around hoping one day it’ll ease.

I’ve been there, I’ve faced it. Merely surviving and no longer truly living, deprived of its meaning and purpose.

It’s now why I dedicate my craft to those ready to get out of their own way, those who seek clarity, confidence, strategic yet purposeful direction, and are willing to take immediate action. Those at the tipping point of transformation but just can’t find those next steps to make significant change, the aspiring leaders, entrepreneurs, and executives. Those willing to let go of societal structures and allow an intentional integration of practices, unique for every person, to guide them in their new direction.

My studies in Stoicism through Marcus Aurelius’s 'Meditations' and over ten years of practicing medicine ceremonies—among them with the Huni Kuin from the Jordão region of the Amazon Rainforest in Brazil, as well as medicine used by the Babongo Pygmies of the Gabon Bantu people to Vipassana meditations at Nepal's Kopan Monastery—a center for Tibetan Gelug Buddhism tradition—and teachings by S.N. Goenka—in the tradition of Sayagyi U Ba Khin Buddhism—have provided me with a deep sense of interconnectedness and a commitment to inner work.

The power to change your life lies in each moment you choose to face challenges with an open heart. What will you choose? If you are driven by a desire for adaptability, malleability, and continuous growth and are ready to get out of your own way, then you’ve found yourself in the right place.