Conversations with Turkey's Career Pioneers – Hakan Özman

The guest of the week of Conversations with Career Pioneers is the CEO of GAMA, Hakan Özman. Mr Özman after having introduced himself, talked about his company’s ongoing national and international operations. He mentioned to students that mid-twenties pass with self-discovery, that they will start taking on responsibilities and grow. Mr Özman recommended the students to find out their personal areas of interest and to read a lot in order to expand their perspectives. He told how he started as a student of mechanical engineering, then changed his field after discovering he had greater interest in finance.

He explained the students that they will be acquiring a profession at the university but they should also attend classes other than their own fields, set goals and perform their works with love. He also mentioned that their expectations from life and the conditions may evolve but that these changes should not hinder their motivation. Mr Özman stressed that the students are a part of an important community as members of TED which brings many advantages as well as certain responsibilities.

Another important advice Mr Özman gave to the students was to learn a second language other than English to become a better engineer who can express his/her ideas clearly. He told them to learn to push themselves harder, to be open to novelties, leave aside conformism and be open minded. He emphasized the value of friendship, being a good person and added that there is always something to learn from another person. Following on with answering the questions, Mr Özman recommended the students to travel a lot, explore new cultures and learn new languages.