Meet Abid Abedi

Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Abid Abedi. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Abid, looking forward to learning from your journey. You’ve got an amazing story and before we dive into that, let’s start with an important building block. Where do you get your work ethic from?
I came to the US at the age of 17 with only $100 to my name and no real support system. It was very clear that if I was going to make it, I had to figure something out, and do it fast. I secured student loans and graduated from college, but luckily for me, I’ve always had an entrepreneurial spirit. Even from a very young age I would come up with ways to make a buck. Although some attempts may have been amateur or ill formed, each experience taught me very valuable lessons in the ‘university of life’ that I would take with me into each new endeavor. Today, I run 6 successful businesses making over $90 M in revenue each year.

Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?
In 2015, I started iCode, a STEM education school that focuses not only on teaching students vital technical skills like coding, robotics, and web design, but also develops important soft skills like critical thinking, teamwork, and problem solving. One of the biggest keys to our success is our use of gamified learning to keep students engaged. When students are having fun, they forget they are learning and quickly develop an interest and love of the subject matter. But our campuses themselves are also integral to our success. Each campus is broken into 4 classrooms which we call hubs. This is important for a variety of reasons. It allows us to offer smaller class sizes, so students get the individual attention they deserve, while still allowing for collaboration. This also enables us to offer a variety of topics to a variety of age groups. Many of our competitors have only one large room which does not allow for this same flexibility. Each of our hubs have glass walls for students to write on as they collaborate on their projects. The glass fosters teamwork while also making learning fun! And finally, our hubs are decked out with state-of-the-art hardware including gaming PCs, robotics, 3D printers, and so much more. This is because we know students learn best when they engage in hands-on activities that reinforce the concepts we are teaching.
It’s truly satisfying to see something you’ve built making a difference in students’ lives and preparing them for a brighter future. This is the only business I’ve ever had where parents thank me for starting it!

There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
My ability to think differently has served me well as an entrepreneur. In order to start any successful business, you must first identify a problem that many people face, and then develop a solution. I often start businesses in fields where I have no previous experience. While some may see this as a detriment, this outside perspective enables me to look at the situation with fresh eyes and develop a truly unique solution that is not bound by the past methods or beliefs.
Additionally, being able to assemble a talented team and empowering them allows me to stay focused on the big picture with the confidence that my team will get the job done. Many entrepreneurs get caught up in the details since they’re not able to relinquish control or their unable to assess their strengths and weaknesses preventing them from making important hires. Learn to hire right, then let go.

Finally, having a willingness to listen with humility is vital for generating the best ideas. Often as entrepreneurs, we think we have to have all of the answers, but when we sit back and listen to our team, our board, and other business owners, we’ll often find that we get the validation we need for our ideas, or we discover a new, more innovative solution. Learning to accept your limitations and listen will lead to better outcomes.

Okay, so before we go we always love to ask if you are looking for folks to partner or collaborate with?
At iCode, we are always evolving to meet the changing intersection of technology and education. Our in-house curriculum development team is working on a new program that targets high school students and their unique situation in today’s world. This program will provide students the opportunity to study an area of interest which is also aligned with the demands of today’s industry leaders. These students will be positioned for internships and potentially future careers with these and similar companies. We are looking for tech industry partners who are bold in vision, who think differently, and who want to help shape the workforce of tomorrow. Companies of the future will require a new workforce that is different than what our traditional schools have been able to produce in the past. We need tech leaders to help us develop programs that will create the next generation of workers.

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