Bazaar Belief: Maryam Bin Al Shaikh On Career Defining Moments, Life Passions, and Her Biggest Achievements
Bazaar Arabia speaks to the Director of Sharjah Business Women Council about her biggest inspirations and career defining moments…
She may only be 31 years old, but Maryam Bin Al Shaikh has been instrumental in changing the careers (and lives) of women of all ages across various industries.
Taking immense pride in her community and assisting it in any way she can, Maryam says in her teens her ambition was: “to become a human rights lawyer, driven by a deep desire to defend and give a voice to those who were voiceless.” Fast forward some years, the young leader shows no signs of slowing down which is great news for all women in the Emirates.
Harper’s Bazaar Arabia (HBA): Share a defining career moment.
Maryam Bin Al Shaikh (MS): Taking responsibility to help lead an organisation for the enhancement of women in business and being selected by His Highness Dr. Sultan Bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, Member of the Supreme Council and Ruler of Sharjah, to be part of the Sharjah Council 2019-2023.
HBA: Who is your career role model and why?
MS: His Highness Dr. Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qasimi and his wife Her Highness Sheikha Jawaher Bint Mohammed Al Qasimi. They are the epitome of what true leadership is. Everything I do is to serve the emirate of Sharjah, to give back the investment and trust they have put in us.
HBA: What motto you live your life by?
MS: Water your mind to grow your soul.
HBA: Share with us the book that changed your life?
MS: Reclaim Your Heart by Yasmin Mogahed, it showed me faith in a different lens, with the understanding of this generation.
HBA: What inspires you most?
MS: Serving the community by empowering women with opportunities and facilitating their access to the economy.
HBA: Describe yourself in three words…
MS: Honest, ambitious, loyal.
HBA: Biggest sense of achievement?
MS: Learning to be present in the moment.
HBA: What do you still want to learn and why?
MS: The Piano. I studied piano for eight years and stopped when I started university. It would be nice to pick up the hobby again.
HBA: Which experience in life taught you the most about yourself?
MS: Being alone with myself taught me a lot about who I am, what I like and what I’m comfortable with. We tend to get too distracted by our surroundings – then we identify ourselves with those around us.
HBA: What are you most passionate about and why?
MS: Self-growth. We’re not meant to stay stuck in the same phase for life
HBA: The key to success is…
MS: Believing in yourself before anyone does.
HBA: The values you most admire in others?
MS: Honesty and mental strength.
HBA: What would you tell your younger self?
MS: It will always work out.
HBA: Biggest regret?
MS: Worrying in the past about the future and the what–ifs.
HBA: Finish these sentences…
MS: The future is… optimistic.
My greatest joy is… my family.
My greatest fear is… cockroaches, if we’re talking about the physical things.
Luxury is… health.
HBA: If you wrote a book one day, what would it be about?
MS: A bit of everything. Similar to an encyclopedia, but for life.
HBA: When you were younger, what did you want to be?
MS: An astronaut. I remember the electricity shut down at home one day so we sat in the garden. I was laying on my mothers lap and looking at the stars above me, telling her I wanted to go out there.
Image: Supplied.
From Harper’s Bazaar Arabia’s February 2024 issue.