We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Gifted Ali a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Gifted , thanks for joining us today. What sort of legacy are you hoping to build. What do you think people will say about you after you are gone, what do you hope to be remembered for?

I always anticipated being asked a question like this and surely I had one of the best answers to this. Much to no surprise it was typical like many, I wanted to be loved and remembered for what I contributed to the people I was universally connected to. However, today Im more prepared to speak to this in a more authentic way. Id love to start with my childhood and how my younger experiences has landed me to who I am today! I was born on the South Side of Chicago, to once High school sweethearts and grew up in the 90’s, Growing up in Chicago, I seen so much violence, even within my own home. My family were Gang Leaders and I didn’t have to worry much about anyone doing any harm to me, but I did in-fact have to worry about family. I was bullied at home on a weekly basis with verbal and even physical abuse. Like many kids I learned early how to hide these things from everyone. My parents divorced after a brief marriage and it was just my mom, myself and my siblings. When I was around three or four years old my mother turned on the car radio while we were headed to a family functIon, As Mary J. Blige began to sing her chart topping song, I kicked my legs to the beat while joining her in harmony singing “Im going down.” Shocked my mom turned down the radio to hear me singing and I believe thats the first moment I seen someone react to me singing. I believe that day may have been the start of me dreaming bigger than the world I was seeing. By the time I was in 4th grade, I started cultivating my skills and singing and performing on small stages locally and leading my elementary school chorus. I think these were some of my most happiest days. I landed a record deal with Jive Records which was a big deal then. Most kids my age and even older looked up to me. I was very well liked and popular for being fashionable and talented. One day for a school program, I was selected to perform with a student in school that unfortunately was bullied by kids. I was reluctant to perform with her and threw a temper tantrum falling on the classroom floor pretending to cry. The kids in class laughed as I rolled on the floor while my teacher tried to calm the room. Mrs. Reed pulled me out of class and was so disappointed in me. I looked in her watery eyes as she started to speak to me letting me know she was very upset with my actions. She told me that she chose me to partner with the student because she thought that I was a Leader and would set the example for the other kids but to her surprise I did the opposite. She asked me was I aware of the influence I had on the other kids. At that time I didn’t and I couldn’t see why I was any different from any other kid. She asked me how did I want to be remembered and I sat silently not knowing how to answer her question. But I sat for sometime and thought of her question over and over for many hours until I realized that I traumatized that student by not wanting to perform with her and acting like I did! The next day I wanted to make it right so I went to the student and asked her did she want to practice with me and to my surprise she forgivingly replied to me, yes.. and grabbed my hand. It was a relief and we practiced until we perfected our performance. I made her a promise that I would never do that again and we became friends. That experience definitely made me change my mindset and it certainly changed her life at school because nobody ever bullied her again! Mrs. Reed was correct but I guess I just didn’t realize it before. I believe I was acting out because of things going on on at home and as a kid we really don’t realize how our actions can affect someone else’s life. Since then, Ive been dedicated to helping others overcome adversities and achieving their goals. Currently I am a serial entrepreneur and one of my businesses is called HELP ME GIFTED. I created this business because I wanted to create a place where people can go to and get the help they needed to start their small business. Most ideas are loss due to lack of support or knowledge how to just began. So I look back and see how every since I was that fourth grade student I have been able to be helpful to others and Today I wanna be remembered for someone who did the work. Someone who can hold themself accountable and make the effort to be a better version everyday. I want people to be inspired by my journey how I survived my own traumas and hopefully gave them the courage to stand up for themselves or others. So when I’m gone, when tomorrow starts without me.. remember me for my heart and what I did with it!

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I can still remember my grandma coming into the house needing help carrying something in the house. It was metal and very heavy. She told me that a computer salesman came to her job and was selling desktop computers and she purchased three of them. Actually I don’t think my school or local library had one at this time, So I consider myself lucky to have had this available at home. I quickly became interested In computers. I would type my homework for school and teachers would look at it as tabu often making me redo the work with a pen and paper. I credit my graphic design abilities simply to having the technology available to me which gave me advantages early on. My first taste of doing work in this was creating business cards and party invitations for people. Later when Myspace was created I quickly became to go-to guy for creating layouts for my Friends and Cousins. Today my company, HELP ME GIFTED creates websites for many small businesses and offer consultations for start ups. I am most proud that almost all of my clients literally cry real tears after I reveal the results. My goal is to take someones vision and try to make it a reality offering their business the chance to succeed and grow. I offer a range of services including but not limited to: Websites, Logos, Obituaries, Marketing Packets and Flyers.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

I feel most rewarded when my clients succeed. It’s a gratifying feeling when they also love the hard work that I put into their business.

We’d love to hear the story of how you turned a side-hustle into a something much bigger.

While I do have other businesses, one being a Online store called CollectionByGifted offering Clothing and other items… HelpMeGifted has become a full time business. It also is the one that takes the majority of my focus. Prior to last year I would only design as a side hustle but today it’s my most important company.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.HelpMeGifted.com
• Instagram: @GiftedAli
• Facebook: @HelpMeGifted
• Other: @CollectionByGifted
  @HELPMEGIFTED

Image Credits

Instagram @GiftedAli