Carla DiBello On Her Biggest Mentor, Achievements, And Calling The UAE Her Home
Entrepreneur and celebrity style insider Carla DiBello on how the UAE is a place where dreams come true – if you let them
In interviews, I’m often asked about whom I consider to be my mentors. While I’m lucky enough to have had several incredible guides throughout my career, in the last decade, I would have to say that the biggest mentor has been the place I’ve come to call home – Dubai. And not even just Dubai, but rather all of the UAE itself.
This December marks half a century since the seven emirates of the UAE were unified under one flag. It’s the 50th anniversary of a historic achievement and the birth of one of the most rapidly growing and developing countries in the world.
The growth has been both astonishing and an honour to witness firsthand. When I flew into Dubai to make a new home for myself nearly eight years ago, I touched down in a city that was vastly different from the one I live in today. With its bevvy of bold initiatives and incredible incentives, entrepreneurs like myself have been drawn to the UAE more and more over the years. It’s a place where dreams can come true – if you let them.
Buildings, services and new businesses have sprung up left and right all around, seemingly out of nowhere. Fuelled by this energy, not to mention the momentum of foresight, Dubai has grown exponentially. And with it, so have I. Some of the biggest lessons I’ve learned in my career have come from observing how my still relatively new home has grown into a thriving nation. Its vision has taught me how to think more broadly and more globally myself. It’s taught me to look beyond just my near future in order to map where I want to end up. Watching this city transform has been a constant reminder to always start with the big picture in order to understand how the pieces may fit – and that the impossible is only impossible for those who believe it to be.
The UAE reminds me of a personal favourite quote from Elon Musk: “Stop being patient and start asking yourself, ‘how do I accomplish my 10-year-plan in 6 six months?’ You will probably fail but you will be a lot further ahead of the person who simply accepted it was going to take 10 years.”
This is the UAE in a nutshell. And I love the idea that if we aim for the moon and fall short, we’re still amongst the stars. But continuing with the metaphor, I think the UAE may actually reach the moon itself. Throughout the last eight years, I’ve witnessed a great deal of skepticism about the pace at which the UAE and Dubai have developed. But in that time, I’ve also seen much of that skepticism shift to surprise and then into awe. Watching the place I live surpass all expectations has been one of the biggest motivators in my own career. And it’s given me the strength to take risks that, at times, almost no one but myself believed in.
Above all, I’ve learned that taking action yourself will always yield results – and that waiting for others will not. As Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum once said, “Most people talk; we do things. They plan; we achieve. They hesitate; we move ahead. We are living proof that when human beings have the courage and commitment to transform a dream into reality, there is nothing that can stop them.”
It’s impossible not to dream big in a country that not only encourages it, but stands by the principle itself. In the UAE, the goals are lofty, but the drive is as palpable as the pace. I only hope I get to bear witness to what this country will achieve in the next 50 years.
Photography: Efraim Evidor. Styling: Jody Hassan. Hair and Make-up: La Loge. Carla wears: Top, Dhs1730; Skirt,1610, Both Dodo Bar or at Matches Fashion. Shoes, Carla’s own. With Thanks To SLS Dubai Hotel
From Harper’s Bazaar Arabia’s December 2021 Issue