Should I go talk to him?
What if I make a fool out of myself?
Would asking for a selfie be too rude?
All of these thoughts raced through my mind as soon as I saw David Beckham. He wasn't as tall as I thought he would be in real life, but quite easily the sharpest man in the room. There was already a small crowd around him, all thinking the same thing I bet. I convinced myself that it really was a lifetime opportunity for me, so I mustered up all the courage and took my shot.
I have given hundreds of presentations, got grilled by venture capitalists before raising funds, presented in front of thousands of people, but I was probably more nervous in that ballroom asking for a photo that day than I have ever been in any other situation. That is how serious my relationship is with football.
People usually describe me as an entrepreneur or an author, but I am first and foremost, a teacher and I will always be one. As much as I love building and scaling our business, very few things give me the satisfaction that comes with teaching. I remember teaching mathematics to a bunch of kids at a coaching centre one day and I could tell they were falling in love with the subject. Their eyes lit up, their jaws dropped; for a second I felt like I was the king of the world. I think it was one of the first instances after growing up that I felt happy and validated as a teacher.
That was the foundation on which I built 10 Minute School - an online education platform which is now the largest in its category in Bangladesh. I have loved every single second of this incredible journey over the course of the last seven years. It has allowed me to be in a position to meet the most talented people across the world, represent my country on global stages, and more importantly, enable myself to grow both on a personal and professional level. It is for my work with this 10 Minute School that I got to spend an award event with Beckham in attendance.
I have been lucky to work with some of the best people around but at the same time running a company with over 250 employees has its stress. There's more work now, which means there's more challenges to tackle, which means there's more stakeholders to manage. My daily routine revolves around this role which leaves me little time for socialising and entertainment. But no matter what, every week I will keep a few good hours blocked out for one thing only: playing football.
This is the only time after a hectic week, the noise in my head completely shuts off. There's no high-level strategic presentations to worry about, no KPIs to be met, no space for pitch decks - it's just me, my mates, a couple of goalposts and a ball.