Samï Ghawï, MBA, is the Director of FUSIONpresents and Manager, of the Surrey Board of Trade’s Surrey Music City Centre.
FUSIONpresents helps artists do what they love through their professional artist development services. They also help venues & organizations provide value to their customers through quality live entertainment, venue management and creative content services. Since inception, they have mentored and developed hundreds of artists, organized thousands of live music shows, and delighted hundreds of thousands of audiences. Ghawi’s experience proved a great opportunity for informational interviews in the Reboot Plus program.
Helping Young People Find Their Way
“Tim Blake from the Douglas College Training Group approached me to help young people understand the various career paths available through the music industry. Any time a young artist is interested in pursuing their career and is curious enough to ask questions I get excited to share what I know. My interviews with students have all been wonderful. I have given in-class presentations and found the students vocal and intrigued. I also provided online interviews and found the students prepared with great questions about the music industry.”
“We work a lot with youth in our industry, so luckily, our finger is on the pulse of the vulnerability of today’s youth. Our knowledge helps young people find their direction. We provide the resources and tools to help them on their journey. They are smart kids who may feel a little stuck. Our goal is to provide the information for them to realize the many opportunities available to them.”
Share Your Career Journey
“I highly encourage any professional to take the time to talk to youth and shed light on what it is that they do. It is a blessing to be able to share our knowledge with the younger generation. Through knowledge and discovery, the future generations will have a much better idea of which paths to take to get to where they want to go. It’s a real service to humanity.”
Give Hope to a New Generation
“I really enjoy spending time with students in the program. I know other professionals would benefit from interacting with this group of youth. I know many are struggling to complete high school and find it difficult to see what their future holds. This program opens them up so they can explore these directions. I find the students I’ve interacted with to be self-aware, sensitive, and intelligent with incredible talent that needs to be fostered.”
Find Your Why
“When I speak with students, I ask them to think of ten things they love doing more than anything in the world. Then break it down to 5 must haves. Then break it down to 3 that you would be willing and excited to wake up at 5am for to go to work and do all day. Those 3 are what you need to build your skills and talents in. We don’t need to worry so much about the end goal; rather, focus on building skills in areas that bring you joy.”
Take Time to Self-Reflect
“In the early years of my own career journey, I didn’t question myself about what I loved. I simply went to university and graduated with a degree. After I spent time questioning what I enjoyed, it changed the direction of my life. I am so glad I took the time to reflect and make the changes I needed to work, live and play in a career and life I love.”
Keep it Going
“Everyone who I worked with at Reboot Plus has been a pleasure to deal with. I truly believe in Douglas College’ mandate: Do What You Love. Everyone in the Reboot Plus program support youth in this mission. It is a great program and my gratitude to Douglas College for facilitating it.
With funding from the Government of Canada’s Future Skills Centre, we are examining whether a hope-centred education and career development program can help youth find their purpose.
Le projet Reboot Plus est financé par le Centre des Compétences futures du gouvernement du Canada.