a Ray of inspiration
11 lessons on business and creativity from an 11-year-old
I was visiting with his parents in Doha. His dad called him to greet me. Ray appeared Slender and tall, shook my hand, said hello, and quickly turned back to attend to whatever he was doing. The parents and I visited. One conversation led to another and another. I wanted to say hello to Ray one more time.
Dad: “Ray… Ray… Would you come over for a second?” Ray: “Yalla!”
He told about a dozen things in one minute. I saw someone exceptional and wanted to learn more from and about him. The parents, my friends, okay'ed me to interview him. Ray agreed to sit with me at another time. That evening was adult time over good food, talking about Lebanon, Qatar, family, and life.
He's 11, in grade 5. Mathematics and English are his favorite subjects. The other subjects? "Not as interesting," as he says. The more I talked to him, the more I discovered how much he loves so many other subjects without him knowing. They come disguised in the pre-teen adventures he has taken. In the projects he's created.
I visited a second time. Ray and I went into the workshop room of the apartment. I told him that I was recording our conversation. Focused, he started showing and telling.
I transcribe about 3500–4500 words in my usual interviews for about an hour of conversation. Ray's was 3800 in 25 minutes of audio. I loved every single second of it!
Ray the writer
He started telling me about The Tale of Justice Junk. If you haven't heard of Justice Junk yet, hear Ray out.
Seven superheroes converge from Marvel, his favorite video games, and some he created from scratch into a hero's story. Chapter one starts with Junkman: who he is, how he talks, what he does, and what he was before. And then, it's about other characters like Superman,
“You might know him,” Ray tells me, “he saves the world.”
and other people, like normal ones. And it's like a video game with one team leader named Codel. The pink bears against the pandas and stuff. You only knew there would be a team once the author made them one in chapter seven.
Junkman will invite all the superheroes to the party, and they will have fun in his junkyard. He cleaned it all up and made it like a disco place for people to have fun. To create new teams and lives together, and some stuff like that.
So that happens. And then, there's the best team. Junkman's best team is called Justice Junk, formed from Codel team leader, Superman, someone named Jello, another one BeeBlop, and the famous Mr. Bag (AbouKees). He's got plenty of bags he uses as weapons: poison bag, fire bag, ice bag, all hidden in his cape.
You know, Junkman was a small chicken named Chris whose family ignored and used to call him bad names. He moved away, found a portal, and became a highly creative man. He found a junkyard and built a smart car that he named Coco. It can talk to other cars and turn into a plane and everything. Junkman also created the time machine and other inventions.
That was chapter one.
In chapter two, Superman saves a kid thrown from a 10-story building by the enemy. He punches the enemy first, then picks up the boy right before the kid hits the ground over a fire. Batman uses ice to freeze the fire.
There's also like AbouKees. He was poor from a small village and fought the bad guys who came to steal stuff. One day, AbouKees found a weird costume in his attic. His mom told him that it was for his great great great grandfather who used to be a superhero.
24 chapters, he wrote. And never printed the book. The computer crashed. His parents are trying to fix it.
“I want to rewrite it.”
He wants to use the "correct words." He wants to use deep and detailed words so people see them in their heads. He wants to add color and incredible details. Miss Amal taught him this. He likes his English teacher.
It's important to put details on the first page of the first chapter. If you don't, readers will think the book is boring, and they will ask for a refund.
A writer and an entrepreneur.
Lela — the comic book
Four years ago, when he was seven, he produced a comic book. And then he casually dismissed the accomplishment and told me, as an 11-year-old grown-up:
“It’s full of seven-year-old imagination stuff.”
He drew nine pictures and added conversation around them—his first comic book, Lela.
“My drawings are not that good.”
He sold all his Lela books except for one he wanted to keep. He's thinking of a new edition with upgraded pictures and coloring.
Customized e-pencils
He makes and sells customized electronic pencils (e-pencils) that work on any tablet. If you're talented and your finger is not good enough to draw on a tablet, use the e-pencil. It's terrific and much cheaper than an Apple pencil.
"So it's basically some electrical charges, like an electrical movement or something. So you have to touch the tinfoil for it to pass the atoms."
Three dollars a pencil. You'll need your finger and a little water. You customize it, too. Pick any color, background, or motif. You can print your name on it. Of course, it will cost you more, like 5 riyals. He needs the money for the paper, the work, and a little profit.
“Because it’s my invention.”
It's on YouTube, but he made it work and decided to customize it. He tried and failed many times until he got it right. Some of his finishings were "really bad," as he says. He took me through his three versions until he proudly showcased his latest.
Seashells anyone?
His family stayed at a compound in Dubai with his cousins once. When the parents left for dinner, he got his brother, cousin, cousin, and yet another older cousin to collect seashells. They got a huge pile. They were able to get even more the next day. And more in Lebanon. He started selling them to family and friends. He's thinking of decorating, painting, and customizing them.
“But I don’t have the glue gun.”
Cards
He also sells Pokemon cards. His friend gave him about a thousand cards. He took tin foil, wrapped 10 at a time, stapled the sides, scotch-taped the pack, and sold each pack for 10 riyals.
He’s king_ray141 on TikTok
To date, he's got 20.6K followers and 149.0K likes on TikTok. One of his latest videos got 1.2 million views. His account blew up (this is good)! His content? Him playing with his toys. When he got his Pokémon books, he did a TikTok of its opening. He has a mouse that changes colors when he clicks it. So, he told his followers to say to him how many times he changed colors. If they follow, he follows back. He makes them guess on other things. If they guess right, he follows or gives them a shout-out. If they don't, they can always try again. He sometimes makes his plastic figurines fight on camera. Followers enjoy this. Occasionally, he shows Pokémon cards, decks, or books. Sometimes, he posts some memes.
Lessons learned
Ray reminded me of the boy in me. The one men tend to forget as they seemingly move into the more important phases of their lives. In those 25 minutes, I couldn't help but re-learn:
To dream again,
To create again,
That first impressions count,
When you lose everything, start over,
To identify what you’re not good at,
To give your clients value,
To use what the sea throws at you,
To bundle the discarded because someone out there wants it,
Sometimes it’s good to sit down and think,
When you love what you do, it won’t be work anymore,
and…
Don’t leave money on the table
“Do you want to buy an e-pencil?”
“Sure.”
“I can give you a deal if you buy a bundle.”
“What’s in the bundle?”
“I’ll customize the cover for you and I’ll give you three tips for 30 riyals.”
“Ok.”
He comes back with the merchandise, and then he puts it in a package for me. This boy will not leave any table empty-handed.
The 25 minutes with Ray went so fast. Yet, writing this piece took me decades deep into the spirit of a child that I left behind somewhere on my road.
It takes a village to raise and nurture the Rays out there. It takes parents, extended family, friends of the family, a brother to play with, teachers, and Miss Amal.
A special shout out to Miss Amal and all the misses and misters who dedicate their careers to educating our children. To influence their and our future.
Starbucks drink: Tall hot chocolate with chocolate chip cookies.