Teach Middle East Magazine Jan - Mar 2020 Issue 2 Volume 7 | Page 49
SON
motivational
workshops
for
my
classmates at Uni. I realised that there
was a gap in education, that required
empowerment and entertainment. I
also saw an opportunity to be in front
of people performing. Soon after that,
I decided to start my company called
FIXUP, which is a team of people going
into schools to motivate kids to dream
big, work hard and succeed in life. It
has been running for 20 years now and
we have had the privilege of working
with students in the UAE, USA, Africa,
South America, India and the UK.
What has been one of the
biggest lessons you have
learned in life?
One of my mentors said, “Never let
people’s opinion become your reality”
Since that day, I pay less attention to
what people think of me, and more
attention to having fun and serving
humanity. When I adopted this
mindset, I was more liberated to be
myself. Truly more people would be
happier if they decided to focus on
what makes them happy and not what
people will say. This is an epidemic that
needs to be dealt with. This has been
the core of the message we teach the
students we work with. Many young
people are trapped in the opinion of
others, trying too hard to impress their
friends instead of living a happy and
self-fulfilled life. “Never let people’s
opinion become your reality”
Who or what inspires you the
most?
Whenever I travel to the UAE,
I’m always inspired by the sheer
magnitude of the vision, leadership
and LEGACY that drives this country,
the late Sheik Zayed’s dream to turn
a desert into a city is one that inspires
me. It is the embodiment of turning
nothing into something and inspiring
the world at the same time, and I
find that to be very impactful. I have
learnt the importance of dreaming
BIG and never giving up. Environment
plays a crucial part in our wellbeing
and aspiration. When I behold the
tremendous achievements of the UAE,
I’m curious about the mindset behind
it, upon closer inspection I discovered
it is driven by family legacy and global
A moment with
impact. Making people happy and
challenging yourself to greatness
is key. A lesson I aim to teach my
children one day.
What are three things
educators should know about
today’s young people?
I’m going to cheat and give you 4 in the
form of an acronym L.I.F.E
1. Love – Our young people have lost
their identity and are left with self-
hate. Therefore LOVE is the antidote.
They need to hear it, feel it, and see it.
2. Integrity – Adults with formidable
character is essential to helping young
people form a sense of self. We are the
closest example they get to see before
they get into the real world. Say what
you mean and mean what you say.
3. Focus – Training our young people how
to FOCUS on what is important. They
are plagued with W.M.D - Weapons of
Mass Distraction, so trying to focus is
becoming increasingly hard.
4. Excellence – Doing just enough is not
enough anymore. Aim for excellence
because it makes you feel proud. Your
life’s work represents you.
How can educators help
young people to dream big?
The best way to help young people to
DREAM BIG is to D.A.N.C.E
Dream BIG – Aim for things that seem
impossible.
Act now – Now is all you have, stop
wasting time.
Never give up – There’s no battle
without bruises don’t give up.
with staff, students and parents in the
UAE over the last 5 years. After lots of
positive response, I decided to start
Amazing Education UAE - We train
students to be happy, to perform well
and make a global impact. The 3 pillars
that we stand for are;
1. HAPPINESS
2. PEAK PERFORMANCE
3. GLOBAL IMPACT
I aim to bring the best tools and
resources to empower young people
with the skills they need for the future.
Skills such as
Communication skills, Teamwork,
Problem-solving, Organisation skills,
Self-awareness, Emotional intelligence
and more. I want to work with
educators in the UAE to bring this
initiative to life. My experience with
the students in the UAE has shown
me that there is a great need to
support young people, under pressure
to perform well. My vision is to bring
great speakers, thought leaders and
facilitators into schools across the
UAE, to run; workshops, talks and
conferences aimed at helping the
young people to BE HAPPY, PERFORM
WELL and make a GLOBAL IMPACT.
Success is not by magic, but by work.
The quicker we get this mindset into
our young people, the better. How
I wished someone took me by the
hand and showed me the road. The
mistakes I made would have been less.
With the power of great educators and
technology, we will help our young
people shine.
How can you be contacted?
Confidence
–
Celebrate
your
uniqueness, don’t be like others, it’s
boring. I can be emailed at
Enjoy life – Have fun along the way, it
may get tough Twitter @ActionJackson
You have recently launched
AmazingEdUAE, What do
you hope to accomplish with
this initiative?
I have had the privilege of working
After the Bell
[email protected]
Linkedin Action Jackson
Youtube: ActionJacksonlive
Watch my Tedx Talk here:
https://youtu.be/6Pk2BcRNygY
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