Imran Amed - How to Align Your Skills and Passion to Find Your Purpose

I met today's guest briefly when he walked by while I was having dinner with a mutual friend. He is one of the most special people,  a perfect example of a person who has done the work. Growing up a" brown, gay, small, and muslim" man in a  post-9/11 North America, he has not only arrived at the very top of one of the world's most prestigious industries, but also at the height of knowing and embracing his true identity. And I promise you, it's a wonderful one.

Imran Amed is one of fashion’s leading writers, thinkers and commentators, and is founder, CEO and editor-in-chief of The Business of Fashion (BoF), a modern media company and the authoritative voice of the $2.5 trillion global fashion and luxury industries.

Imran began his career as a management consultant and started writing about the fashion business from his sofa in London in 2007.BoF sparked a new kind of fashion dialogue, exploring the key drivers of an industry  undergoing unprecedented change and rapid growth. 

Imran’s writing filled a void in fashion media and soon his analysis garnered tens of thousands of readers who would wake each morning to The Daily Digest email newsletter.  In 2017, ten years after founding BoF, he was appointed by Queen Elizabeth II as Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) for services to the fashion industry. In 2018, Imran was awarded an Honorary Doctorate from Central Saint Martins College of Art & Design. He has also been named in Fast Company’s annual list of the Most Creative People in Business, British GQ’s list of the 100 Most Influential Men in Britain, Indian GQ’s list of the 50 Most Influential Global Indians, and Wired’s list of the 100 most influential figures in Britain’s digital economy.

As you can tell, this episode is longer than normal. As a result, the last 15 minutes were only recorded on a back-up device. You will notice a shift in audio quality that may be bothersome at first, but stick it out and your ears will soon adapt. It's worth it. I am a one-man traveling podcast studio, and I don't always get the tech right. But we're doing our best for you and thank you for your patience as we perfect this craft.

Listen as we discuss:

• We're all "fashion people", the most democratic form of expression.
• Why do wealthy people tend to dress extravagantly?
• The reason I wear a black t-shirt everyday (and my soft spot for cars).
• Imran's childhood and his journey to becoming who he is.
• A broad, general, multifaceted education beats - and often leads to - specializing.
• You don't have to fit into life. You can fit life into who you are.
• How we can find gratitude for our pain.
• A defining moment: confronting anti-Islamic abuse at Harvard after 9/11.
• What it's like to be an openly gay muslim man.
• The origins of his massively popular company, The Business of Fashion.
• Align your talent, skills, and passion, and you'll find your purpose.
• Why it's refreshing to be asked personal questions.

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