Wealth
BUSINESS PROFILE
Beyond Money
Sayed Mia tells us why a generous man will never be poor...
by Paul S Rowlston
Sayed Mia has a problem, he can't say no.
He doesn't say no – not when yes is easier
to say and delivers to him and his
remarkable family the type of rewards that
money simply cannot buy.
When CSR sat down for a long conversation with Mr Mia in
his Killarney of?ces we actually met more than just Mr. Mia.
Not only were we introduced to two of his impressive and
empassioned sons, Zaakir and Reza, but we also felt like
we'd met the most impressive member of the family and the
seed from which this equally impressive family tree had
been born.
Maymoona Mia must have been a truly magni?cent woman;
her words, her inspiration, her attitudes and her approach to
life seem to inform everything that her son does, everything
that his sons do and we are sure everything that the Mia
family will continue to do as they build upon their businesses
successes and re-invest those successes in a life where
wealth is not de?ned by the content of your bank balance
but by the content of your heart.
It was then that Mr. Mia dropped the ?rst of his entirely
counter-intuitive and yet completely delightful ideas on us.
He talked about 'the boomerang effect'. He told us how his
mother had raised him to believe that every effect has a
cause and every cause has an effect. When you put out a
little, you get a little. Put out more and the universe gives you
more.
“Teach your sub-conscious mind to live in abundance and
you will attract more than you need. Look at other people's
need more than your own and always remember what it felt
like to be given something.”
Of course, this is all starting to sound quite 'spiritual' and
more than a little Dr. Phil. But these words are not coming
from some tie-dyed ex-hippie, or some entitled socialite. Mr.
Mia sits at the centre of a successful and pro?table business
empire. A teacher by profession, a man born to dif?culties,
he's built his wealth the hard way; and you can be sure that
he's no pushover.
So now you're probably thinking that it's easy for him to talk
about giving because he's already got. By any standards
“What you earn is how you make your living.” Says Mr Mia.
“But what you give is how you make a life for other people.
We make a living by what we get, we make a life by what we
give.”
As is very often the case with men like Mr Mia, he comes
from humble beginnings. His mother was a teacher. The
family was so poor that they could not afford to educate their
children and relied on bursaries to secure an education.
Which is how Mr. Mia learned two important lessons: the
?rst, that hard work is the only path to lasting success; the
second, that lives are changed by the gift of money and
resources – a gift given by those blessed enough to have
the ability to give.
“The help of other people, even if it was just their good
thoughts and encouragement, helped to make me who I am
today. But it was my mother who taught me the basic
principles of life: If another person has a greater need, give
to them. She taught me that what lies behind us and lies
before us are tiny compared with what lies within us.
Be true to yourself and, even if you can't do good, at the very
least do no harm.”
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Photo: Pieter de Ras
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