SOME 2,000 young Saudis interacted with experts in various fields for five long hours in an enthusiastic and lively atmosphere at a conference hosted by King Salman Youth Center (KSYC) in Jeddah recently. The conference, entitled Khattet (Plans), was held at King Faisal Conference Hall of King Abdulaziz University. The goal was to develop planning skills in young people both at individual and business levels through topics such as turning dreams into reality, financial planning, communications and performance measurement. The participants also learned how to analyze personalities through geometric shapes, so individuals can get to know themselves and others better. Khaled Alsabr, in his session, pointed out the importance of understanding oneself before planning long-term (5-10 years) and a short-term (daily, weekly, and monthly) by keeping quality and quantity in mind. Alsabr invited the participants to start working to achieve their dreams with low cost projects, such as event management and training others in skills in which they have expertise. He introduced a number of practical steps an individual should take for future strategic planning. In addition to practical examples of the project life cycle (initiating, planning, executing, monitoring, finalizing), he also shared several inspiring moments in the lives of people who have changed the world. He said German-born US physicist Albert Einstein, regarded as the greatest scientist of the 20th century, did not speak his first words until the age of 4 and his teachers thought he had a learning disability. Dr. Ibrahim Alawi focused on dreams in life and how to turn them into reality. In his training session, Alawi asked the participants to write down their dreams, then divide them into small manageable phases and start executing them one by one with short-term goals. Alawi cited the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) as he demonstrated the right way of turning dreams into reality according to a defined timeline. Dr. Kamal Abdulal, an expert in financial planning, stressed the importance of saving 10 percent of an individual's income and gradually making it to 30 percent. The role model for this story is a fourth grade girl who saved her money and divided her savings into specific purposes — recreation, charity and investment. This mindset reflects positivity both at individuals and on community levels and supports the individual's financial independence. A short film about Saudi youth direction regarding planning was screened. The film showed that 20 percent of males apply their plans completely against 18 percent of females. About 45 percent always plan while 24 percent plan for short term, 18 percent plan for weeks, 8 percent plan for years and 5 percent have never planned before. However, 7 out of 10 entrepreneurs execute more than 50 percent of their plan. Dr. Fahed Alsunidy, a communications expert, has received plaudits from the audience for his presentation titled “Communication eye.” He introduced several communication techniques and the best 10 steps to achieve efficient communication (listening, speaking, body language, self-understanding, feelings bank, reading, writing, connecting, universal, spiritual). He also pointed out that 90 percent of errors in messages are the sender's fault and it's important to choose the right channel or medium to deliver the message to the receiver efficiently and successfully, whether it is images, drawings, phone calls, direct talks, conferences or other ways of communication. In the final and fifth session, Ibrahim Neyaz talked on the topic of performance measurement. Giving a clear demonstration for the importance of measurement as a tool for performance enhancement and goals achievement, he compared the performance of Al-Ahli and Al-Etihad football teams. The audience received this lecture with great enthusiasm. Hani Almuqbil, executive director of KSYC, has said: “Khattet is one of the initiatives targeting youth in different sectors and we are pleased with the positive interactivity of the audience as we at KSYC are working to effectively mold young Saudis' lifestyle with three axes — direction, development, and empowerment.” Almoqbil added that KSYC is working to achieve direct interaction with youth around the Kingdom through different initiatives and activities. Khattet is targeting four major cities in the Kingdom this year and hopes to target more cities in the coming years, he added. Almuqbil has also asked young individuals to visit KSYC website, www.ksyc.org.sa, to view all available tools and training courses to help them achieve their goals and to monitor the center's activities and events. “Khattet's importance is derived from its role in empowering and developing young generations, who are the future leaders and the hope for our country to be best in every field,” he said.
