Thoughts from my trip to Abu Dhabi and Amman - Sami Shalabi
November 26, 2009
Sami Shalabi
I had a great time in Abu Dhabi and Amman for both the MIT Pan Arab Conference and Amman Global Entrepreneurship Week. It was really an educational trip since I have not been connected with the entrepreneurial scene in the MENA. I saw two different approaches with regards to entrepreneurship in both Abu Dhabi and Amman. In general things are very positive, with innovation and creativity being at the forefront.
In Abu Dhabi, there is a lot of money floating around. People use billions more than they use millions. The scale of projects in play are a totally different level. Some of the key businesses emerge around relocating large industries to the UAE through government intervention. The bulk of the opportunity for startups lies in the ripple effects of these government led macro events.
In Amman, I saw a more of a bottoms up approach to entrepreneurship that is less tied to riding government led initiatives. You could feel the energy and excitement around starting new businesses and in particular I saw a large focus on solving problems using the the internet and mobile.
This might have been a function of who I met in both places.
However during my trip I saw a few common themes emerging from the many discussions I had with all the great people I met. Some of this might not be new, but I wanted to capture my reactions and recommendations for how to make things better.
1. Talk to each other people! - during my visit I met a lot of entrepreneurs. What surprised me was that I was sometimes introducing people in the same country to each other. People have a genuine fear that their ideas might get copied. That is crazy! If your idea will get easily replicated then you are not solving a hard problem and thus do not have a competitive advantage. A big part of my success resulting from socializing my ideas with others and this helping me think through the problem. Also, sharing ideas/needs/issues can help you solve things faster and even connect you with the people you desperately need to support you to make the business successful. One thing I learned from a good friend is that people like to do business with people they like. The only way to break these barriers is to build relationships. Have more ways to connect with one another!
2. When thinking about risk, think of the upside not downside - Joi Ito wrote a wonderful blog post about this topic that you should read. His view clarifies why early stage funding (hundreds of thousands to a few million dollar investments) needs a different way of thinking about risk. Investors please read this before talking to 2 guys working out of their homes.... continue reading Thoughts from my trip to Abu Dhabi and Amman
And
A bit about Sami Shalabi, on his site, and on Twitter @shalabi.
Sami Shalabi
I had a great time in Abu Dhabi and Amman for both the MIT Pan Arab Conference and Amman Global Entrepreneurship Week. It was really an educational trip since I have not been connected with the entrepreneurial scene in the MENA. I saw two different approaches with regards to entrepreneurship in both Abu Dhabi and Amman. In general things are very positive, with innovation and creativity being at the forefront.
In Abu Dhabi, there is a lot of money floating around. People use billions more than they use millions. The scale of projects in play are a totally different level. Some of the key businesses emerge around relocating large industries to the UAE through government intervention. The bulk of the opportunity for startups lies in the ripple effects of these government led macro events.
In Amman, I saw a more of a bottoms up approach to entrepreneurship that is less tied to riding government led initiatives. You could feel the energy and excitement around starting new businesses and in particular I saw a large focus on solving problems using the the internet and mobile.
This might have been a function of who I met in both places.
However during my trip I saw a few common themes emerging from the many discussions I had with all the great people I met. Some of this might not be new, but I wanted to capture my reactions and recommendations for how to make things better.
1. Talk to each other people! - during my visit I met a lot of entrepreneurs. What surprised me was that I was sometimes introducing people in the same country to each other. People have a genuine fear that their ideas might get copied. That is crazy! If your idea will get easily replicated then you are not solving a hard problem and thus do not have a competitive advantage. A big part of my success resulting from socializing my ideas with others and this helping me think through the problem. Also, sharing ideas/needs/issues can help you solve things faster and even connect you with the people you desperately need to support you to make the business successful. One thing I learned from a good friend is that people like to do business with people they like. The only way to break these barriers is to build relationships. Have more ways to connect with one another!
2. When thinking about risk, think of the upside not downside - Joi Ito wrote a wonderful blog post about this topic that you should read. His view clarifies why early stage funding (hundreds of thousands to a few million dollar investments) needs a different way of thinking about risk. Investors please read this before talking to 2 guys working out of their homes.... continue reading Thoughts from my trip to Abu Dhabi and Amman
And
A bit about Sami Shalabi, on his site, and on Twitter @shalabi.
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I recall a president of a Jordanian university in the mid 1990s calling Internet a luxury, PCs unnecessary and we had to have a permit to use the computer lab. Steve Jobs is a study in rising and learning from failing, what a hero. he never gave up;…
مساء الخير دكتور يوسف .. شكرا لاهتمامك بالاخبار التي أنشرها على اردن مبدع .. بالنسبة لاستفسارك ، للآن لا يوجد لدي نسخة من التقرير ، لكنني طلبته من نادي دبي .. وفي حال وصلني كن على ثقة بأنني سارسل لك نسخة منه ..
شكرا لك مرة تانية
عبير هشام ابو طوق…
This is an interesting article from the Economist
A Netscape moment?
Investors get out their chequebooks for electric-car start-ups
Feb 4th 2010 | From The Economist print edition
THE idea of the “Netscape moment”, a fund-raising that signals the…
هل لديك نسخة من التقرير؟ من المهم معرفة ما ورد فيه
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