Entrepreneur Suhas Gopinath told students at the Gulf News Edufair not to allow negative experiences affect their future prospects, as they take the first steps in their careers.
“Always remember, the past is a thief and you mustn’t let it steal your future. Learn from it and move forward,” he told the full house at the Conrad Hotel, Dubai. Gopinath, who has an estimated net worth of $5 million having started his company Globals Inc, aged just 14, took to the stage to offer students invaluable advice on how to be successful in school and in business.
“My advice is to always have the fire in the belly, and whatever you choose, you have to be passionate about it. When the fire goes you don’t feel like waking up on Monday morning it’s time to do something else,” he said. “My other advice is to be shamelessly aggressive. In this world you can’t be introverted, and if you are at least be bold.”
It was this bold approach to life, even from a young age, that led Gopinath to have a chance meeting with his hero Bill Gates – in a hotel washroom. “Bill Gates was always my inspiration, and of course when I was starting out he wouldn’t give me an appointment. So I went to a hotel washroom at the same time he did and that’s when I was able to meet him and give him my pitch.”
Impressed by Gopinath’s passion, Gates gave him 15 minutes of his time and the pair sat down for a coffee, thus sending the young entrepreneur on his road to success.
Gopinath also shared with students at the Gulf News Edufair that it’s never too early to start chasing your dreams, and recalled how being one of the world’s youngest CEOs came with it’s own challenges. “When I started my company people wouldn’t take me seriously because I was a teenager, so I grew a moustache to look older!”
The fifth edition of the Gulf News Edufair has given students an opportunity to listen to inspirational panel discussions and take part in workshops over the course of the three-day event.
