# The Art of Success | Dr. Nezar Bahabri | TEDxAGS Youth Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rvutl0dfLxI Recap page: https://rapidrecap.app/video/rvutl0dfLxI Generated: 2026-01-27T18:05:13.581+00:00 --- ## Quick Overview Dr. Nezar Bahabri achieved success, culminating in becoming the CEO of eight hospitals, by enduring 21 years of continuous setbacks, including failing medical school initially, which he attributes to the core principles of patience, continuous trial and error, punctuality, strong family support, and unwavering faith in God. **Key Points:** - Dr. Bahabri was expelled from medical school in his third year after receiving continuous warnings, requiring nine years plus an internship (totaling 10 years) to graduate when the standard was six years. - When he revealed to his father that he was expelled, his father’s immediate response was solution-oriented: "لا وقت للعتاب الوقت فقط لايجاد الحلول" (There is no time for blame, only time for finding solutions), leading to his reinstatement. - He spent 15 years trying to get a scholarship to Canada and failed exams until he finally succeeded, accumulating six or seven certifications and winning an award for best doctor in Canada, which no one from his country had won in 15 years. - One doctor advised him against surgical specialization, stating, "الكونكشن اللي ما بين مخك وما بين يدك غير موجود" (The connection between your brain and your hand is non-existent). - Dr. Bahabri identifies the five essentials for success as: patience (الصبر), trying/resilience (تحاول), punctuality (ايز اون تايم), strong family and social support (العيله), and faith in God (الله سبحانه وتعالى). - He emphasizes that people will talk about you regardless, citing an example of Imam Al-Muaiqly receiving 62,000 dislikes on a Quran recitation video, urging focus on positive outcomes: "اذا انت كنت بتنجح دائما لطالع الاشياء اللي انت كويس فيها" (If you are succeeding, always look at the things you are good at). **Context:** This TEDx talk, delivered by Dr. Nezar Bahabri, recounts his arduous journey to professional success, beginning with his early struggles in medical school in 1990. The narrative centers on overcoming repeated academic failures, being expelled, and enduring a decades-long process of re-qualification and specialization, contrasting his initial difficulties with his eventual high-level achievements, such as becoming a CEO of multiple hospitals. ## Detailed Analysis Dr. Bahabri details his difficult path, starting as a promising medical student who quickly began failing, leading to continuous warnings and eventual expulsion in his third year. He concealed his failure from his parents for three years until he was forced to admit it; his parents reacted not with blame but with immediate support, helping him secure readmission to the university. Despite returning, he continued to struggle, taking 10 years to graduate when it normally takes six. After graduation, he was placed in emergency medicine due to a lack of Saudi candidates, but an attempt at orthopedics failed due to perceived poor hand-eye coordination. He spent 21 years trying to pass specialty board exams, failing repeatedly until he finally secured a scholarship to Canada, where he worked, studied, and took 19 courses to address his weaknesses. In Canada, he won the award for the best doctor of the year. Upon returning, he held six or seven certifications. He now serves as the CEO of eight hospitals overseeing over 8,000 employees. He concludes by outlining his five pillars of success: patience to endure failure, constant effort combined with adaptation (not repeating the same failed methods), punctuality, strong supportive relationships (family and friends), and deep faith in God, noting that his life only improved when he fixed his relationship with God. ### The Struggle in Medicine - Expelled from medical school in the third year after continuous warnings - Took 10 years total to graduate including internship instead of the standard six years - Initially assigned to emergency medicine due to lack of better options. ### The Turning Point and Perseverance - Father's response to expulsion focused only on finding solutions, not blame - Spent 15 years trying to get a scholarship to Canada, failing exams repeatedly before succeeding. ### The Five Pillars of Success - Pillar 1 is patience (الصبر) through defeat and injury - Pillar 2 is continuous trial and adaptation (تحاول) - Pillar 3 is punctuality (ايز اون تايم) - Pillar 4 is the support of family and friends - Pillar 5 is maintaining a relationship with God. ### Dealing with Criticism - People will always talk, citing an example of an Imam receiving many dislikes on a Quran recitation - Success requires focusing on positive achievements rather than failures or negative comments - Urges listeners to 'Don't believe what others say, accept yourself' (دونت بليف اكسبت يور سلف). ### The Role of Support System - Credits family support for helping him lose 66 kg during COVID-19, despite public criticism of his appearance during weight loss - Daughter Sidra provided constant encouragement during grueling exercise sessions. ### Final Reflection on Faith - Life improved only after trying to fix his relationship with God - Believes success comes from having good expectations of God ('انا عن ظن عبدي بي') - His father viewed his legacy as having a son who could heal people and teach others.