5 years with PropertyGuru
Childhood: Helped at my parents' chicken rice stall. Watched them do everything themselves, from dawn till close. That's where I learnt what hard work really looks like.
17: My O level results were a disaster. Three months at Pioneer JC, then Ngee Ann Poly instead.
21: National Service. Served as an army officer. First time leading people, and I enjoyed it.
21: Business analyst at Tokio Marine. My first real job. Learnt how every department connects, the workflows and processes behind it.
22: Became a personal assistant to an insurance agent. Learnt the insurance sales process.
23: Got my insurance licence. Learnt hard selling.
25: Left insurance and started from zero. Bought a $12,000 minibus in cash and became a bus driver. Learnt to pay for everything in full. No loans.
28: Drove as a sub-contractor for 4 years. Learnt that my income was limited by my time.
29: Learnt Google Ads and started advertising. Started finding my own contracts.
30: Hired a personal assistant. My first hire. Learnt to delegate.
31: Hired an operations manager. I can breathe now.
32: Hired a salesperson. We're a team now!
34: Year 9 of the bus business. First $1 million in revenue. Fully paid, no loans.
35: Lockdown. Buses stopped, income stopped. Pivoted to real estate, starting from zero, again.
36: ERA, part time. $80,000. Tried Facebook ads. Learnt that nobody knew I existed.
37: PropNex. $120,000. Learnt lead generation through organic video (TikTok).
37: Walked away from $30,000 a month in the bus business to go all in on real estate. Learnt what focus really costs.
38: $300,000. Learnt SOPs, so virtual assistants could run things without me.
39: $800,000. Learnt CRM and data analytics.
40: Sabbatical. Stepped back to find the meaning behind all of it.
40: Learnt AI and automations.
41: Building again from zero, with a different perspective. Still building on what my parents taught me.
To whoever is reading this, we're all still figuring it out. Most of the good we do won't be seen, and that's fine. Do the work well, help the people in front of you, and don't let this life make you forget where you're really going.
-Hakim
