Sabirul Islam, an award-winning United Kingdom entrepreneur, author and global speaker, graced the students and staff of Limkokwing University of Creative Technology in Botswana with inspirational words of encouragement recently.

At just 20 years of age, Sabirul has charged himself with the responsibility to instigate the young across the world to transform their thoughts and see the world and its opportunities differently and plunge in them to better their own lives and of people in their communities. 

Journey in the inspiration

When addressing the Limkokwing community, Sabirul noted the importance of inspiration because it ignites the beginning of a fruitful journey into success and abilities that are not only cutting edge but bring results and present opportunities to make money ardently and persistently. 

He is of the notion that “inspiration does inspire young people to be successful entrepreneurs, it also helps one not be arrogant but to always stay grounded and have respect of who you are and what you want to achieve in life.”

Sabirul says he does not only inspire young people, but also educates them about the world of entrepreneurship and taking risks that open doors to great discoveries.

The long road to success

Sabirul lost his first job as a calendar designer at the age of 13. That job with his cousin’s calendar design company, the Royal Dragons, paid him 60 pounds.

Not one to be deterred, Sabirul drew inspiration from his cousin and at the age of 14, he started his own web design company called Veyron Technology. He wanted to earn more than the 60 pounds he received as starting pay with the Royal Dragons and he didn’t want to sell to teachers like his cousin. He wanted to vend to big corporate companies. He approached about six companies of whom only one responded—Merrill Lynch, a financial management and advisory company. In just two weeks, he made 2,060 pounds.

Sabirul ran Veyron Technology for two years. At the age of 16, Merrill Lynch gave him an opportunity to learn stock markets in New York. He seized the opportunity and became a junior trader under his father’s name. Sabirul also self-published his first book at the age of 17 called ‘The World at Your Feet’. The book sold over 42,000 copies in a span of nine months within a year of its publication in 2009.

The gifted speaker notes that it is all these inspirations that presented him the opportunity to launch his own board game called ‘Teen-Trepreneur’ at the age of 18. The game is meant to give teenagers insight on what it means to be in the business industry.

The game is now effectively used in the education market and has been bought by over 450 schools across the UK, teaching many aspects of business. Sabirul also launched alongside the board game his second book, ‘The World at Your Feet: Three strikes to a Successful Entrepreneurial Life’.

His Journey in Botswana

Sabirul Islam arrived in Botswana with the aim of speaking to young people in high schools and tertiary institutions across the country to inspire, motivate, encourage and share his Teen-Trepreneur ideas.

Sabirul’s visit to Botswana is in partnership with The Junior Chambers International (JCI), Botswana National Youth Council (BNYC) and AIESEC.