Meet Khalid Mashrah

We were lucky to catch up with Khalid Mashrah recently and have shared our conversation below.

Khalid, first a big thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts and insights with us today. I’m sure many of our readers will benefit from your wisdom, and one of the areas where we think your insight might be most helpful is related to imposter syndrome. Imposter syndrome is holding so many people back from reaching their true and highest potential and so we’d love to hear about your journey and how you overcame imposter syndrome.

I overcame imposter syndrome when I dedicated all my effort to creating meaningful work backed by analytics. I spent about a year developing a strategy for one company, working directly with them to prove that what I have to offer can deliver results. We managed to double their audience size and gave them their biggest Black Friday ever, creating around 450 pieces of content in just that one year. By applying myself and doing my very best work, I demonstrated that tangible results can be achieved.

I’ve invested so much time learning and teaching myself about my craft that what I do now has to have value. I am way further than the founders of these companies in my line of work because I’ve spent more time in that field. The fact that I’ve done the work proves that I have a lot of value to offer. At the end of the year working with them, I was expecting a raise, and since we couldn’t come to terms, I ended up walking away. Since then, they’ve actually started to lose followers because they can’t replace the dedication and skill I brought to their company. It was a great run, and I was able to walk away with a ton of studies and amazing work.

In the very beginning, I wasn’t confident in myself and what I could offer that company, but by the end, I was very confident. That’s a great thing because you don’t want to put yourself in bubbles where you’re not allowed to grow. So if you’re struggling with imposter syndrome, do the work, build enough analytics and data, track it, and look at it so that when someone tells you otherwise, you’re not just basing it on your opinion—you’re basing it on hard-core facts.

Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?

I am a video strategist based in Los Angeles. I came to LA about four years ago and went full into freelancing my video services. Since then, I’ve honed my skills in social media. After having the opportunity to shoot for Adidas, Tampico, Formula Drift, Agitha, The Good Karma LA and many more prestigious companies. I decided to pivot into the tech world. I wanted to take what I know about building communities through social media and video to help these companies that are changing the world.

I recently founded Seventy Studios and am working on launching our website. I want to move from working as a freelancer and start putting my team into doing work that is meaningful and can impact the world. I aim to aid these tech companies in speaking to their audiences more appropriately, honing in on what their audiences care about, and giving that to them in a form of content that isn’t boring.

From what I’ve seen, a lot of founders in the industry don’t have any experience in the entertainment industry, where video originally comes from, and I feel like that’s a significant gap. So I aim to make videos that people actually want to sit through and watch for these companies.

When opening a business, it’s always about how much more different you are than your competitors. If your video—which, by the way, I believe is the number one way to communicate to your employees and your audience—isn’t aligned and isn’t designed to tap into your audience’s emotions (which also requires retaining their attention), then you risk making videos that don’t matter and don’t spread your message. So that’s the gap I’m noticing and the gap that I aim to fill.

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?

It might take longer than you think, and that’s because in the very beginning, we’re all very motivated and confident in what we think we have to offer. As you learn and progress in your career, you start to understand why some renowned directors are in their 40s, 50s, or even 60s. Some directors don’t make their first film until their late 50s, and that’s okay—that’s the process of learning a very tedious and meticulous craft.

When you have those huge goals, it’s important to develop the necessary foundation of why you are going after them. Stay true to that purpose; don’t get sidetracked by shiny things. Keep your head down and do the work necessary to become the great person you want to be.

For me, it was about forgiving myself for not knowing enough and for failing at times. I think that’s very important because trusting the process also means being okay with not being good at something initially. Sometimes you have to struggle to become great. If you’re not challenging yourself and facing difficulties, are you really pushing your boundaries?

So yes, it may take longer than you think. Stay persistent and try your best to enjoy it. It used to be very hard for me to enjoy the struggles of freelancing and wanting to create videos. Sometimes I still find it hard to enjoy the tough times, but it’s gotten much easier once I looked at myself and became a lot kinder to myself. Beating yourself up about the mistakes you’ve made doesn’t help anyone. As long as you’re recognizing them, give yourself the chance and the opportunity to make them right, and you will. That has been the way I’ve been able to grow and not stay stuck.

What is the number one obstacle or challenge you are currently facing and what are you doing to try to resolve or overcome this challenge?

The biggest challenge I’m currently facing is stepping into the role of the businessperson that my company needs. Throughout my career, I’ve primarily focused on the creative aspects of my work, continuously striving to enhance those skills. While creativity is undeniably important, the business side is equally crucial. A great product alone isn’t enough; it requires strong business leadership to succeed.

Without the funding to hire a dedicated business professional, it falls upon the person most passionate about the product to master the business aspects. That’s exactly what I’m doing with Seventy Studios. I’m actively developing my business skills by seeking mentorship and educating myself in key areas such as finance, marketing, and strategic planning. By doing so, I’m ensuring that our creative endeavors are supported by a robust business foundation, enabling us to create meaningful and impactful work.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://SeventyStudios.com
• Instagram: Itbekhalid
• Linkedin: Khalid Mashrah

Image Credits

Khalid Mashrah