Humility and the role of Family

We are born from nothing, we are born without clothes or jewelry, and depending on the circumstances of our deaths, we end up being nothing. A souvenir.

However, what the others remember from us is our legacy… Sometimes beauty and wealth as well, because the human being is naturally attracted to everything tangible, but mainly for kindness and humility.

We do forgive a person’s mistake if their kindness and devotion outshine their mistake. It’s a cute yet logical equation that no one can deny.

The smartest among us are the ones who treat people equally. They do not make the difference between a Chairman and a Doorman. Because this Doorman who a lot are looking down to may be happier in his life than the Chairman. The Doorman is content, and if the Doorman’s karma is strong, he may one day be more powerful than the Chairman.

But beyond this, the Doorman is serving the community, in a small way, but still serving and making a small impact.

I was extremely lucky to grow up in a family where ethics and good manners were taught more than the love of life’s material side.  (The Lord of people is their servant) is one of the first Arabic idioms I have ever learned being child.

There is no shame in doing the smallest tasks that we sometimes see as humiliating. Nothing in the journey of life is humiliating. Because from humiliation we learn to become stronger.

We are not all lucky to travel the world and to wear designer gowns. But thanks to technology, everything is possible. Knowledge is becoming more and more accessible. Some of us go to Lake Como and enjoy the beauty of every single Italian street, while some others only see pictures on social media and dream. One can be impressed by how well this person who did not travel as much as them, knows better than them. Through pictures and through the mind. The courage of Nadya Murad, Malala and many inspirational young women is the proof one is never educated enough, smart enough or humble enough.

On the path to one’s success, there are two main types of circumstances where one’s humility is tested: the first is when you have already worked until you don’t have to introduce yourself anymore and must remind yourself on a daily basis that life should not be taken for granted and that in order to be more successful, it is mandatory that you stay grounded. I am personally not there yet at all.

The second is when the society tries to remind you of your past personal or professional mistakes in order to pull you down or intimidate you, those mistakes that are insignificant today and that don’t change anything to what you have built.

The first is more manageable than the second, because if you are a successful person today, you already know what it takes to stay humble. The second, which is sometimes frustrating and disappointing, has a simple explanation: any person who is trying to insult someone else’s success is basically insulting herself first because it is relevant of how insecure she unfortunately is. Warren Buffett himself confirmed that there is no way you become a successful investor without making mistakes. Mistakes that you notice and correct.

I learned from wise smart women I met the past few years that the best answer would be not answering back at all. Because you know that when you are pulling off the weight and when those who really matter to you believe in that as well, then you do not have the time or the energy to reply. And this is what we call a “Rolls-Royce mindset”.

I am still on a learning process of humility and I will always be, but if I can give a humble advice to the youngest minds among us, it would be: Welcome people to underestimate you.♥️