Today, we’d like to introduce you to Nader Safinya.
Nader, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
It’s always tricky to pinpoint how I got started. I was a dreamer when I was a child, always in my own world.
Playing and exploring both the life around my inner self and me. My family moved around internationally from the US all the way to Indonesia, so I began questioning the meaning of life very early on, and I would explore questions coinciding with my experiences through art and drawing.
As a naturally astute observer, I constantly pondered human interaction and learned active empathy very young. I learned that no matter who we are, where we come from, or our status in society, we are all after one thing—contentment and peace of mind. To let go of the burdens of life while still living it. This simplicity among the complexity of the intricacies of life and our interconnectedness with all things living and material became the seed that grew into my innate interest in design—the entire manmade world.
The rest is history. I followed this passion through art, which led me to the world of graphic design, which led me to marketing, followed by learning about systems, and through many failures and successes, I got to a place where I was actually able to teach these learnings. So today, I run my own brand strategy design company and teach younger students how to tap into their own desires and design a life around their passion.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Absolutely not. I would say it was smoother in the beginning. When I got my bachelor’s, I was in a pretty good place. I had a decent job, though it didn’t fulfill my desire to get into a paid design gig. So after I quit that job, I found a great role where I met my greatest mentor and stayed for nearly a decade as I grew into a creative director.
Once again, I hit a wall and decided it was time for a change, a big one. So I sold everything, packed up my life, and moved to Munich for a master’s at 32. Ever since that decision, it’s been rocky. My life has been unstable for about 8 years, and I’m constantly met with resets and newness.
Covid was hard on most people, and it was devastating for my newly launched business, so we’re still picking up the pieces from then and continuing to learn and evolve as gracefully as we can. The world is in constant spin, and that’s really all we can do. Luckily, humans are prone to adaptation.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe you can tell us more about your work next?
It’s funny, you should ask. I am constantly working on my brand. I would say I’m a strategic artist. I bring a balance of imagination and analytics to my work. But officially, I am a brand strategist and designer (in the practical and creative sense of the word).
I solve business and communication problems through evaluation, inspection, and deep, active listening. Whenever someone says things like: “Our company feels bored.” Or “The company feels like high school” or “Our customers have no idea what we do!” They come to me.
What makes my heart sing is whenever clients work with me, they always say, “I’ve never felt so heard in my life” or “No one has ever seen me as you did.” I have brought my clients to tears when they see the work I’ve produced for them, feeling a great sense of relief and clarity. For me, there are few things that bring me more joy than that.
Can you share something surprising about yourself?
That’s a hard one. I’m a pretty open guy. Most people who know me know me. Maybe the fact that I’m an inherent altruist.
My purpose is actually to bring cool jobs to cool people. I believe I’m snowboarding parallel to an avalanche, which is technology, AI, and all the changes in the workplace, and I’m doing everything in my power to keep up with it without getting hit before it covers the town below it.
I care so deeply about humanity that my goal is to get Blackribbit built up so we can volunteer the kind of help that doesn’t require an invoice.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://Blackribbit.com
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/blackribbit
- Linkedin: https://linkedin.com/in/nadersafinya
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@blackribbit
