I grew up in a house where I was the only girl in a house full of boys; 4 brothers and 2 male cousins. As the eldest daughter, I had to help my mum with house chores and cook for everyone whereas the boys did whatever they pleased without any domestic responsibilities.

When I turned 10, I promised myself that I will use all the skills I developed and continuously build on them. My dad always encouraged us to explore the world and learn so I promised him that I will finish school and go to college, despite my obligations at home.

I studied very hard, many late nights, finished school, went to college, despite the fact that in my dad’s family, girls would get married straight after school and knew nothing about life after the age of 18 apart from marriage, whereas I studied and worked in Oman and overseas.

Later, I left my job and of course, my family thought I lost my mind to give up a steady job, so nobody supported my motivations, but I believed in MYSELF. I started my own company, and I ran it MYSELF. It was a lonely journey with countless obstacles. I would go to business meetings with men, and they kept asking me “You’re a girl from a good family, why would you come out like that and ask for business? Is your father not there to support you?”. That mentality took a toll on me, saddening and disappointing me but I also felt it as a greater challenge that made me want to improve my prospects even more. I promised MYSELF that I will achieve my targets and be successful in life. I worked hard, fell down many times but always found my way back up.

A decade later, my family finally see the fruits of my lonely journey and extreme efforts. I now sit back and smile remembering my stubborn younger self and smile at her with a lot of love, as she’s the reason I benefited from the skills I developed at a young age and now I get to enjoy my independence, continuous growth and success.