Living the dreams brings the purest form of satisfaction
BY READERS DIGEST
15th Feb 2021 Down to Business

Life is full of obstacles and challenges. People from a very young age dream or aspire to become or achieve something when they have grown up. But due to uncertain circumstances, they stop working towards their vision.
Achieving a childhood dream is not a piece of cake, especially in today's era, when nothing is served on a plate, and everything requires hard work and persistence to be achieved. Studies and research have revealed that only 6-7% of people successfully achieve their dreams. But that does not mean that working towards a goal will always result in failure. The common traits in those 6-7% of people are consistency, determination, and passion, which others lack. It is solely because of these traits that people are able to achieve their desires.
One of the few bold people who did not give up on their dreams and continued to work towards them is Khalid Al Jaber, a renowned motorcycle traveler and tour specialist in Germany. He gives a unique twist to the traditional tours by organizing motorcycles tours. But it took him a long time to transform his dreams into reality.
Deviating from the norm
Khalid Al Jaber belonged to a family of learned Islamic scholars. Almost every member of the family belonged to a noble profession. His siblings, too, had built their interests in reputable fields. But Khalid was different from them and was interested in motorcycle riding. He was eight when he first rode a small quad bike. At thirteen, he rode his first bike and continued riding after that frequently. This was his first experience with motorsport. Khalid recalls his earliest memories of motorcycle ride by saying,
"A year later, I was on a motorcycle in Geneva as a pillion, and it was one of the happiest moments in my life."
Khalid was absolutely thrilled with the adventurous and fun-filled activity and decided that he wanted to do this for the rest of his life. But fate had something else in store for him. Although there was no pressure from his family, he followed his sibling's footsteps moved to London for his studies. Khalid obtained his Bachelors's degree in Computing Information Systems from Richmond, the American International University in London. He also completed his Master's from the University of East London in Innovative Technology and Computer Crimes. In addition to that, he is also a graduate of Qatar Leadership Center, Executive Leaders' Program.
Amongst the many good qualities of Khalid, a prominent one is that he never let go of the process of learning. Learning fed his curious mind, so he also enrolled himself for a PhD and studied for a year in Portsmouth but returned to his homeland, Qatar, for personal reasons.
Driven passion, pulled by purpose
After returning to Qatar, Khalid began working in a business firm. But he was unhappy with his daily routine of a 9-5 job, on a desk in an office full of paper, calling for a meeting, spending hours listening to a presentation, designing a project chart. None of this pushed him closer to his dream. At that time, he remembered his grandfather's saying when he was seven, "follow your dreams and chase them always even if they are in the stars!"
Khalid took him as an inspiration and decided to quit his job once he had made enough savings to fulfill his dreams. His first step towards his dream was getting a motorcycle license at the age of 33. Since he had an excellent knowledge of motorbikes, his first purchase was BMW R1200 GSA.
Due to his job and studies, Khalid was never able to be a part of any motorcycle club. He desired to be an adventure motorcyclist or a traveler who used a motorcycle as a way of transport. He began with going on short trips on his motorbike with the state, which slowly converted to interstate traveling and then intercountry traveling.
Khalid Al Jaber has, to date, traveled to eighty-two countries on his bike. He usually goes on a major annual trip, which could last anywhere from six weeks to six months.
His most favorite routes to travel are in South America because of the scenic views. He says, "This is where nature meets history. On many of the routes and towns, you would still sense history by riding through Mayan ruins, or Inka villages, farms, and the colorful dresses of Peruvian women. The delicious food, music, drink, and mountains. I would also ride back to Canada, where it is still untouched in many places, and some lands that have never been discovered by tourists."
This energetic personality has been interviewed by multiple news platforms such as Aljazeera and many more for his Silk Road trip. He was recognized as the first Arab who crossed the Silk Road on a motorcycle. He was also featured on Redbull's website as a motorcycle adventurer and traveler.
Khalid Al Jaber serves as an inspirational personality for those who are thinking to give up on their dreams or those who are unsure of the future. His story gives a message of trusting and believing in oneself to the extent where turning back is not an option.
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