Best Selling Author - Solve for Happy, Scary Smart, That Little Voice in Your Head & Unstressable / Podcast Host - Slo Mo / Serial Entrepreneur / Founder- OneBillonHappy
Why I walked away from my dream career for happiness I was born and raised in Egypt. Public school, public university. The idea of becoming Chief Business Officer of Google X? Not even a dream. It wasn’t something I could allow myself to imagine. By my early 30s, I had it all, everything the world tells you is success. And yet, I was miserable. Then, I lost my wonderful son, Ali. That loss changed everything. I walked away from a dream career in tech and set out on a new mission: to make a billion people happy. People often ask me how an engineer, a mathematician, ended up talking about happiness. The truth? I had to solve it. My brain sees the world in algorithms, so I built one for happiness. But Ali… Ali just knew. He taught me that happiness isn’t something to be engineered. It’s something to be lived, to be shared. One Billion Happy started as a father’s selfish attempt to keep his son’s essence alive. If I could share Ali’s wisdom with a billion people, maybe, in some way, a part of him would live on. Today, we’ve reached tens of millions. And I won’t stop. Happiness is not an illusion. It’s a choice. And maybe, just maybe, we can all choose it together. #OneBillionHappy #Happiness #Legacy #MoGawdat
I absolutely LOVE you Mo and Ali's wisdom on "true" happiness. What a smart guy, it demonstrates perfectly how children can teach us so much as they are not at that stage of life of "constantly doing", which you have to do as an adult, it's not fun but has to be done. It's equally as important to pause, rest and reflect if you are at a very busy stage in life. I could not agree more. Happiness cannot be engineered or chased, it should be lived in the present. I love this - the choice you took and the path it lead you on. Choose wisely, time is the only true asset we have. How we choose to spend our time and with whom we choose to spend it with are probably the more fundamental questions we should ask ourselves that can bring happiness, peace and joy. Well done on everything you have achieved so far. Sharing Ali's wisdom so beautifully. Keep up the amazing podcasts and mission - One Billion Happy. I don't normally write heartfelt messages on LinkedIn but I will make an exception 😊
Mo, reading your story is deeply moving. The way you’ve turned your personal pain into a mission for the greater good is nothing short of inspiring. It’s a reminder that happiness isn’t something we can engineer, but rather something we live, share, and choose. Your work with One Billion Happy is changing lives, and it's truly remarkable to see how you've reached millions of people. I’m so grateful for the wisdom you're sharing, and I believe we all have the power to choose happiness together.
Happiness is a choice, the secret is in perspective and the wisdom is contained in the big picture. No matter how great the suffering reminding oneself of the big picture that we will all die and this suffering like everything in life is temporary allows for us to shift perspective easily. If this suffering is temporary, then let me smile at it rather than writhe in it. If I have to withstand this only for a period of time, let this period be of learning rather than sinking. This perspective shift empowers. And in this empowerment is undisputed happiness.
ربنا يرحمه رحمة واسعة ويصبرك على فقده ويجعله سبب لدخولك الجنة كما جعلك سبب لإظهار المعنى الحقيقي للسعادة May Allah grant him abundant mercy, give you strength and patience in your loss, and make him a means for your entry into Heaven, just as he guided you to discover true happiness and inspire others to find theirs.
That's so true. Happiness isn't something that happens to you—it's something you choose. Each day presents moments where you can decide to focus on gratitude rather than lack, possibility rather than limitation, and joy rather than discontent. It's in front of us, we just need to want to see it.
Mo what a meaningful mission! You inspired me. I walked a parallel path - came from China, grew up poor, went to an elite business school in the US, became a senior executive in a Fortune 500 company - checked all the boxes and looked successful on paper, while feeling miserable inside...3.5 years and I embarked on the journey of living a life on my own terms and choosing happiness...my life is changed forever. Your podcasts and books have been a source of inspiration on this journey.
When I listen to your podcasts, I feel I've found someone who truly resonates with my worldview. We share Middle Eastern Arabian origins (my son name is "Ali" too 😊), am sorry to hear about your loss, and so happy to see how that transformed you. I deeply admire much of what you say. '' I recently started writing a book, and many ideas from your podcasts have inspired my thinking. Your story about losing your son Ali touched me deeply. The way you transformed that unimaginable grief into a mission to make a billion people happy shows extraordinary courage and vision. keep going!
“... happiness isn't something to be engineered. It's something to be lived, to be shared.” What a powerful truth hidden behind such simple words. Too often, we get caught up in the endless rush of work, forgetting that pressing pause - even briefly - is essential to reconnect with the things that truly light us up. Yes, career success brings its own version of happiness, but it's only one chapter of the story. To feel complete, we need to collect the other versions -moments of joy, connection, and presence - so we don’t lose sight of what living really means.
I needed to hear this today. Thank you Mo. I started working on my project Neuropower World after listening to your podcast with Steven Bartlett and reading Mustafa Suleyman's book The Coming Wave. I watched you live on stage and I listen to your podcast. The wave is coming but I am going to try to slow it down to enjoy the next 2 years with my 2 girls, until they are ready to spread their wings and fly. ٱلْفَاتِحَة to wonderful Almarhum Ali الله يرحمه Ramadan Kareem to you and may this month bring peace and kindness to our world.
Senior Director, Consulting
2dNo words can describe the deep heartache the loss of our loved ones brings. I lost my brother—a healthy young man—gone in a glimpse. Just a few months earlier, I lost my mom. We never truly get over the pain of their sudden departure, but we learn to relive their happy memories and carry their messages to those around us. We learn to be more merciful, gentler, and more patient, yet the weight of loss never truly fades.