Today we’d like to introduce you to Bahja Mohamoud.
Hi Bahja, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
Hello! My name is Bahja Mohamoud & I am 22-year-old business/crypto consultant and entrepreneur living in Minneapolis. I moved to Minnesota from my hometown of London, England when I was in middle school. It was a hard adjustment as there is a completely different culture and community here but I have grown to love it & am glad to call Minneapolis home now! I am a student at the University of St Thomas, majoring in Finance (on a pre-med track), but I currently put that on pause to complete Blockchain & Fintech certifications at Wharton & Oxford, respectively, to further my crypto career.
I initially got started in the field of business because of my parents; who from my early teens they taught me many essential business skills I have today and this early exposure to business helped me get an early start. . From showing me how to & letting me how to structure and run businesses, to bringing me along to meeting’s with lawyers & colleagues, to giving me my first push in my endeavors and to always go after what I believe in, I would like to thank them.
I would not only like to thank my parents, but also my siblings, my aunts, uncles and grandparents and best friends first foremost for shaping me into the person I am today.
Growing up, I always wanted to be a doctor (still do!) and thought I would go into medicine straight away, I never thought to go into business. Attending the University of St Thomas, a school hailed as the best private business university in the state, really opened up my eyes to my natural vocation for business. I didn’t realize I learned more in those 6-8 years of early business experience than some of my classmates did in school. After all, experience is the best teacher; knowledge in theory is nothing if you don’t know how to apply it in practice.
What really sparked my interest in business was coming across Tim Ferris’ book “Tools of Titan’s”. There was a quote from the book that immediately struck and inspired me:
“If you want an average, successful life, it doesn’t take much planning. Just stay out of trouble, go to school, and apply for jobs you might like. But if you want something extraordinary, you have two paths: 1) Become the best (top 1%) at one specific thing. 2) Become very good (top 25%) at two or more things.”
I didn’t want average. I got into trouble, I questioned everything, took breaks from school & quit my job last month to be 100% self-employed. I knew it was almost impossible to be the best at one thing and I also knew I didn’t want to give up my passion for medicine, so I chose both. I am an average girl, but I definitely did not want an average life when my upbringing and background was anything but. None of it was easy, but it made me who I am. If you want it bad enough, you will find a way to make it happen.
I decided I wanted something extraordinary, something different. At the same time, as the eldest of 10 and a first gen college student, I didn’t know what to do or how to make it happen. I always did well in school as but college was a whole ‘nother ball game. It wasn’t enough to do well, you had to work to become something and someone.
I entered St Thomas as an ambitious first gen student with vast goals, an incredible amount of faith, a healthy dose of courage and a drive to succeed. I dreamed of seeing my visions come to fruition, connecting with like-minded, as well as different people and having an open approach to new ideas. I wanted to discover my potential, to actualize my dream & passion of becoming a doctor as well as a forward-thinking innovator that drives to progress the common good while honoring my personal convictions and my identity as a Muslim Somali-British-American young woman.
I found it was incredibly challenging trying to balance cultural norms and embark on the journey that is college and try to achieve my goals while adjusting to an entirely new environment. I was trying to honor my convictions and maintain a healthy balance while pursuing a higher education, but I did not anticipate failure or friction, nor did I plan in the event of it.
When I started school, I promised myself I would graduate with no debt & I would find a way to make a livelihood without waiting & climbing the corporate ladder. I allowed myself a semester off to pursue other interests and business ventures and just a break because those of us who went school in the pandemic know how absolutely tough that was! The best thing I did was not beat myself up and allow myself breaks to recover, recharge and truly reflect about what I wanted.
Being Gen Z & seeing my peers do things previous generations told us were impossible really opened up my eyes to the world of possibilities and financial & location freedom. I just could not accept the only way to success was to work your way up the corporate ladder at a 9-5. Seeing my friends who have been in crypto longer than I have travel the world and have their job and finances at their fingertips was what inspired me the most. Why sign up for the former, when I can live the latter? That is what really made me decide I want to be my own employer. My father introduced me to Crypto in 2017, but at the time I was heavily in stocks and forex so I sort of brushed it off.
It took me a couple of years to truly dive into crypto and then I expanded into blockchain, fintech, Web 3.0, NFT’s, the Metaverse & DeFi (decentralized finance). Finally, a field I deeply enjoy and found myself immersed in, that accepted me and didn’t care if had a degree yet or not or who I knew. The crypto community became a home for me like no other. A place where I could be anonymous and have a seat at the table for my skills and capabilities, not because of my degree or who I knew but who I WAS. I could create, learn and work with other creatives and innovators to help lead this new frontier of the internet (Web 3.0) and decentralized finance.
When I first got into crypto, I decided when I was good enough I would expand to teaching the Somali & Black community, communities which are historically under-represented/served/educated, especially in tech and finance. I focus on teaching the youth as I believe they are the future. I believe in bringing my knowledge and experience to my community. I always believed you can predict the strength and future of a community by looking at the youth. A lot of youth in my community come from war torn, trauma laden and single parent households and don’t have the access or ability to access the knowledge and help they need.
A lot of stories end there and I wanted more for my people, not just myself, because I know many are in my position. I am one person and I cannot change the world, but as MLK say, I hope to spark the brain that does. I hope to be the inspiration and guide for the youth I so desperately needed a few years ago.
I want to show them someone who looks like them belongs in and can make it in underrepresented spaces such as tech, finance and medicine; with the financial literacy and medical racism crisis’ in the community. I am passionate about helping bridge my communities distrust of the banking, hospital system and bridge the educational gap to bring more of my people into the nascent industry of fintech. My long term goals would be to become a doctor and build a medical school in Somalia, as well as a culturally sensitive practice here in the US and a free clinic in Somalia. I plan to also use my network of Somali diaspora to teach, help introduce and implement decentralized finance to my country whose banking system has long been destroyed, as well as a central identification system for citizens. A few of my goals pertain to rebuilding, restructuring and repairing both my community and country of ethnic origin.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Trying to how to navigate college proved impossible as I didn’t have the guidelines, circumstance or support a lot of my classmates and peers did. The thought of going through 4 years of college, then to go straight to 4 years of medical school & then another 4 years of residency all while accumulating debt and zero safety net did not sit well with me, especially since I 100% support myself through school. I almost gave up and didn’t know how I would achieve my dreams without a way to pay for school aside from loans. I spent many nights crying because I felt like I hit a brick wall and was at my wit’s end, I didn’t want to become just another statistic. I still will continue to get up and work away at my goals, even if it means school taking longer. My biggest mistake was falling into a victim mentality & helplessness. I am now taking my time and understanding things cannot be rushed & we cannot avoid obstacles.
2018-2021 were the years I grew the most, the time I had a complete paradigm shift where I went from feeling victimized to feeling empowered. The hardest part of growing up was realizing that no one is coming to save you, only you can save & help yourself. Your past shapes you, teaches you, shows you, and pushes you, but it does not define you. Ray Dalio says, “When the pain passes, don’t just go forward, reflect, because that’s where your progress is.”
Reflecting in my discomfort showed me I feared not pursuing my aspirations more than I feared failure. Reflecting showed me I am more resilient and determined than I ever knew, and I have learned to efficiently adapt, accept, try, and implement new methods. In our society, we are taught to toughen up, to get past and ignore pain. We can’t ignore the pivotal, defining moments of failure that compelled us to make difficult decisions and shaped our mindsets because to ignore the lows is to not learn from them & what we don’t learn from, we repeat.
If you are reading this and it resonated with you, take it from me… don’t allow roadblocks or naysayers to dissuade you. Find and keep those who believe and support you. You’ll know when you find your tribe and I am forever thankful for mine. With a little bit of effort and a LOT of faith, grit, consistency and perseverance, no obstacle in this world can stop you. It starts with you believing in and standing up for yourself, your ideas and your future!
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
“A jack of all trades is a master of none, but oftentimes better than a master of one.” To take that further: you cannot be a jack of all trades without being a master of at least one.
I am involved in a number of ventures/industries, I don’t believe in limiting yourself, though some might disagree. To each their own! Find your zone of genius and keep going at it. Consistency is the biggest key.
I am a crypto and business strategy consultant, but I also (co)run/operate a few businesses virtual and in real life. My most recent venture being launching my own lash business (always wanted to dabble in the beauty industry) & consulting business.
Within my main fields (crypto) & finance, I specialize in blockchain, cryptocurrency, DeFi, investing/trading & Web 3.0. I also help artists turn their art into NFT’s & help integrate businesses into the metaverse.
I currently also specialize in:
-business strategy
-business/financial planning
-content creation/creative direction
I am also expanding my skills, learning and have had experience in Artificial Intelligence, Augmented Reality (Facebook Spark), Coding (HTML & Linux so far), Private Equity, Venture Capitalism & Virtual Reality.
I am still pre-med and plan to become a family physician when I have the right foundation and footing to enter medical school later.
For fun, I love to play the piano and violin, hang out with my friends, volunteer at local animal shelters, do lashes, cook or go for a run around Lake Minnetonka or get up to adventures with my friends. I believe it is very important to have a healthy work-life balance & make time for hobbies and your health or you run the risk of burning out! I am huge on health. I also am a growing social media influencer/model/content creator and have create content for a few other small and big brands. I will be launching my own travel agency here in Minneapolis in the next few weeks.
I am always open to working with and collaborating with others!
Are there any books, apps, podcasts or blogs that help you do your best?
There is one app that I use for all my notes, aside from the Apple Notes & it’s called: Agenda Best note taking app I have EVER USED.
I can divide up my goals, assignments, life development plans, business plans, to-do lists in their own little categories and then add mini tabs underneath with the ability to sync certain notes (such as meeting notes) to my calendar directly + tag contacts so they can sync in that note. It’s just amazing, but let me not go on and on about a notes app, hahaha.
I don’t really listen to many podcasts as I do not have the attention span (jk not jk), but I have 2 favorites:
– The Pomp Podcast by Anthony Pompliano
– Confluence VC by Tyler Dean, a good friend of mine & legendary young black Venture Capitalist & startup genius (find him on LinkedIn @ Tyler Dean)
Now onto my favourite section, books! 🙂
I have put together a list of my top 20 business/life books & they can also be found on my Amazon Page along with other things.
• Mindset: The New Psychology of Success by Dr. Carol Dweck
• A Radical Awakening by Dr Shefali
• Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari
• Ego is the Enemy by Ryan Holiday
• Principles by Ray Dalio
• Mastery by Robert Greene
• How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie
• The 10x Rule by Grant Cardone
• Tools of Titans by Tim Ferriss
• The Compound Effect by Darren Hardy
• Outliers: The Story of Success by Malcolm Gladwell
• How to Consciously Design Your Ideal Future by Benjamin P Hardy
• A Beginners Guide to the Stock Market by Matthew R Kratter
• Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill
• The Intelligent Investor by Benjamin Graham
• The Hero with a Thousand Faces by Joseph Campbell (Ray Dalio gave this to the Chinese president!)
• Originals: How Non-Conformists Move the World by Adam Grant
• How to Think Like Leonardo da Vinci by Michael J Gelb
• Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman
• The Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith
Pricing:
- Business Consulting – $75/hour
- Crypto Consulting/Lessons – $100/hour
- Creative Direction/Styling – $100/hour
- Modeling – $75-$250+/hour
Contact Info:
- Email: bahja.m.mohamoud@gmail.com
- Website: https://calendly.com/bahja
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bahja.eth/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/CryptoBahja
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bahjamohamoud
- Other: https://www.amazon.com/shop/_bahja_
