Thoughts

Change is inevitable. For me, the million dollar question is, what are we going to do to make this change beneficial to us. Yes, we demand a truly decentralized government and we want to be able to fully dictate on how we want to shape our city, how we build the economic vitality we all aspire, have full autonomy to decide what kind of humanity we want our children and the future generations of our people to inherit. The President-Elect has often assured the people that one of his first official act as the President of Maldives will be to empower the elected councils. I am hoping he will deliver on that promise shortly after taking the presidential oath. The promises are big and bold , but the current civil service legislation and structure is not conducive to delivering such mega-promises in such a short a time frame. One of the ideas floating around among the thought leaders in the community is to form "Addu Development Corporation", something similar to Hu...

Conversation: A City on the Move Overview "Conversation: A City on the Move" is a public engagement initiative designed for Addu City Council to foster meaningful dialogue around the Jazeera Addu Manifesto and ensure transparency, ownership, and strategic follow-through on regional development goals. The initiative includes a 12-part video series, feedback loops, public consultations, and biannual updates to drive informed, community-led progress. Objectives Simplify and communicate the vision of the Jazeera Addu Manifesto to the general public. Stimulate community engagement and constructive public discourse. Build a transparent action plan based on feedback and expert discussions. Promote accountability and continuous improvement. Proposed Topics for the 12-Part Series Each episode will focus on one of the major themes from the Jazeera Addu Manifesto: Economic Diversification Youth Employment & Skills Development Sustainable Tourism Development Public Health and Well-...

Future-Proofing Addu City: Rethinking Governance in the Age of Disruption As we prepare for the 2020 local elections, the talk in Addu City centers around familiar promises—delivering the ruling party’s presidential manifesto, creating jobs, attracting investment, building "geydhoshu mas" factories, pushing for greater autonomy through decentralization reforms, and expanding community-based tourism. But as I listen to what’s being said, and what isn’t, I’m increasingly convinced that  we’re still trying to solve tomorrow’s problems with yesterday’s tools . While the pledges are important, the political thinking behind them still feels trapped in a past that no longer exists. We live in a deeply interconnected world. And whether we like it or not,  Addu is fully exposed to global challenges —economic shocks, health crises, cybersecurity threats, and climate change. Yet our local governance model remains fragmented, reactive, and painfully slow. A New Kind of Threat Needs a N...

The No. 1 classic mistake almost every manager makes upon first being promoted? They persist in doing their old job rather than the new one. They hang onto every little task themselves. And the end result: They eventually burn out. While this burnout is underway, the people who report to them fail to grow and eventually burn out and feel unmotivated, too. How to solve the problem? Delegate! Not only is it more efficient, it also motivates the staff and allows them to grow and reach their full potential. That, in turn, boosts the overall performance of the team. And makes the new manager look good. One of the misunderstandings managers have about delegating is that by giving away authority to others, he or she is giving up control. Quite the opposite occurs. In delegating, a manager must make certain that employees apply the same criteria or reasoning that manager would use to solve a problem and gain a solution. In that sense, the manager actually spreads his or her own co...

Even the most truly high performing work places are not pure meritocracies where everyone is perfectly rewarded based on the quality of their work. This is more true as you climb up the ladder and in to the leadership ranks. Unlike in schools, the continued success in a job depends of your achievements, general likability, friends at work and how politically savvy you are to navigate the complex bureaucratic corridors of the work place. In schools, you pass exams based on your general cognitive ability and IQ; ie: based on your merit. Political skills are often neglected and considered taboo when you first join a team. Even during recruitment, we always look for the most bright, most educated, most likable candidate and his/her past accomplishments.  Don't get me wrong here. Your ability matters the most. Along with your ability and likability, there are other variables that add or take away from the potential that affords you. I know that you wish to work in a pure meritocra...

Earlier in my career as a manager, I have made the mistake of doing too many things on my own and getting involved in every aspect of the operations. That has backfired on me and the operations in two very distinct ways: People thought I did not trust them & that had a profound impact on engagement levels among individuals and cross-functional teams. People were hesitant to come up with their own ideas on achieving a goal and looked up me to instruct them every step along the way. As I became wiser and acquired more experience & knowledge, I have come to realize that being a manager does not mean that I have to dip my hand in everything. Over the years, I have come to realize that my strength lies in identifying who is best suited to do what and empowering them to achieve our common goals. Delegating does not only get things off my plate and lighten my workload. It prepares people around me to take on the challenges faced by the business, it develops new skill ...

More often than not, the title “Manager” is doled as a reward for the amount of years one has spent with the company (tenure) or for the solid performances that he/she has put in over a period of time. That is the result of businesses not knowing how to create highly valued non-managerial positions within the existing structure (another discussion for a later time). Unless and until businesses understand that managerial positions are not rewards for solid performances and long tenures, they will continue losing money and talents. Gallup, in their blog (  https://bit.ly/2MmbTkU ) says that a dismal 85% of the employees are not engaged at work and the consequences of this “global norm” is costing the approximately $7 trillion (yes, you read that right!) in lost productivity. Out of the 85%, a huge chunk of 67% consists of employees who are “not engaged”. They are not your worst employees, they are those who are indifferent to the business, who do not provide the best effort nor ...

A coffee mate once asked me whether I was a good manager? That got me thinking. Am I a good Manager? May be. May be not. In my 14 years in a responsible management position in one of the most trusted employer brands in the country, I have never been asked that, either by my bosses or by my peers or by my staff. That’s why it got me thinking. To be the judge and jury of your own work is a bit selfish. For me, the work I have done over the entire course of my tenure as a team leader, and later as a manager, has been deeply satisfying. I have not mastered all, but I have learnt to see growing complexity, uncertainty, volatility and ambiguity through a different lens. Most of us are bad at most things by default. We are wired that way. The good thing is that our brain’s efficacy for putting the dots together and make sense of our environment, our body and the people around us is so damn good we can mold ourselves to be the experts at anything we set our minds to. So the secr...

As with your phones, your tablets, and your laptops,  you have an operating system too . And just like those gadgets need updates every now and then,  your brain does too —maybe even more often. If you want to be a high-performing, forward-thinking leader in today’s world, you’ve got to  upgrade your internal software . No excuses. No delays. The World Has Moved On Artificial Intelligence is already shaping industries. The Metaverse is here—slowly, but surely. Web3, blockchain, quantum computing, automation—it’s all happening. If your mindset is still stuck in 2000, you’re already playing catch-up. Do What the Greats Do Think of Bill, Steve, Mark, and the other high-flyers. They don’t binge negativity. They feed their minds—every single day. ✅ A few pages of a book. ✅ A podcast that sparks curiosity. ✅ A TED Talk that shifts perspective. ✅ A video on Robotics, Expansion of the Universe, the String Theory etc.. ✅ Even a song that lifts your energy. The input matters. Becau...

Story: Former Vice President Dick Cheney's quail hunting accident. Chen ey shot  Whittington. Identifying Cheney as the agent of the event. Wittington was shot by Cheney. Identifying Cheney as the agent, but distancing Cheney from the outcome. Wittington got shot. Leaves Cheney out altogether.  Cheney said, "Ultimately I am the guys who pulled the trigger that fired the round that hit Harry." Bush said, "he turned around and he heard a bird flush. He pulled the trigger and he saw his friend get wounded." Transformed Cheney from the Agent to a mere witness. https://www.facebook.com/TEDEducation/videos/1943976695615527/

The Ship sailed slowly towards the island, piercing through the sound of the calm seas. The moon shone on the deck in full glory, with tranquil splendor that would shame the best cinematographic scenes from the original James Francis Cameron's Titanic film. One could have sworn that the rushing breezes whispered the words so gracefully sung by the powerful soprano of the most acclaimed female singer who can effortlessly slide from whispers into F-natural so effortlessly. "Far across the distance, And spaces between us, You have come to show you, go on..." Such was the blanket of blissful serenity that encompassed the vastness of the oceans. The time, however, was before the time of the 882 ft long Ship whose closest competitor to the throne was simply half her size, graced her belly in the oceans. This ship carried King Olaf of Kenilworth. King Olaf was sailing from the east, returning from his holy pilgrimage to the remoteness of Arabia. Standing by the railing...

Einstein once said,  “The true sign of intelligence is not knowledge but imagination.” Socrates, long before him, famously claimed,  “I know that I am intelligent because I know that I know nothing.” To be honest, both statements left me scratching my head. So I began to ask myself:  What exactly makes someone intelligent?  And more importantly,  what does it mean to be an “intellectual”? This question nagged at me for one simple reason: in our everyday conversations, people are quick to label others as either “intellectual” or “stupid”—often without context, understanding, or kindness. I wasn’t convinced this was fair or even accurate. So, I did what any curious mind might do: I went looking for answers. Asking Around: How Do People Define an Intellectual? I decided to ask people from different walks of life how they define an "intellectual person." Their responses were as diverse as their professions. The Businessman “An intellectual person is someone who expr...