“Be open minded with what you do, that’s what I would say to
my younger self. Don’t ever stop yourself from doing something you want to do.
Go into any field. If it doesn’t work, come back and do something different.
You can only learn.”
The words of Abadir Hashi, a 19 year old architecture
student, making strides in logo design. Abadir, born in Somalia, was always aware of
his creativity. At only 13 years old, he started to teach himself how to use
Photoshop. While his peers were playing football, he was building his expertise
in graphic design. His eagerness for editing showed when he would ask his
friends for photos to transform on Photoshop.
Abadir reflects on his school days, telling us that he
shifted around many friendship groups but always found solace in his art.
However, he did not restrict himself to only one hobby. In later years, he
found his passion for poetry. He has participated in international poetry
competitions and is a member of the Barbican Young Poets scheme.
Abadir began to see the potential of his hobby becoming a
business, when the organisers of Fiiri Bandhiga reached out to design their
logo, a convention dedicated to Somali entrepreneurs. Abadir has designed logos for many Somali organisations around today, such as; Somali Sideways, United for Somali Students and Gaaran Foundation an orphanage
in Somalia.
As a young person, Abadir has struggled with people doubting
his interests. He says, “At times I struggled with carrying on. There were
moments where I stopped and there were moments where I thought to myself I
don’t care what they think, I will just go ahead and do it.” To cope with this,
he found himself becoming friends with people who were like-minded, including poets
and people who had different interests to him.
Abadir advises young people like him to “Join a club. Join
something outside of school. See if you can do something different.” He
encourages that young people do not get stuck in a box and explore new things
that will set them apart from the crowd.
Abadir Hashi has an extremely positive outlook on the future
of his designs. He wants Hashi Designs to become a brand, to expand itself. To
his younger self he says, “Don’t stop yourself, ever. Don’t doubt yourself.
Sometimes we get into this position where we think about the end goal but we
never think about the steps that you take, the falls, the obstacles, the
frustrations, the stress.” This message resonates with many young Somalis who
are in his position.
To his fellow Somalis, Abadir says, “Success does not happen
in a day, it takes years. Don’t be afraid to do those things. You don’t lose
anything. But you discover more about who you are.”
By Deega Jama
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