Book

Lessons.. Not Written in the Job Description

Ahmed Al-Dhafiri

Publication date: July 19, 2026 00:21 KSA

Professional life passes us by like caravans in the desert, each station has its impact, each companionship its mark, and each experience adds something to memory before adding it to the resume. And some stations remain present in the heart because what they carried of meanings is greater than the details of the job and deeper than its administrative description. Among the stations I am proud of is my work at the Ministry of Islamic Affairs, Dawah and Guidance. That phase was not just a space for professional achievements, but a window through which I looked out onto human and leadership experiences worthy of contemplation. Working close to an official gives you a rare opportunity to read behind the scene. You see how difficult moments are managed, how priorities are arranged, and how principles turn into decisions. Much of what makes a leader does not appear in press conferences, but in the daily details that lenses do not capture. During that experience, I had the honor of working close to His Excellency Sheikh Dr. Abdul Latif Al Al-Sheikh. People know him for his spontaneity, naturalness, and frankness that leaves no room for interpretation, but what struck me most was his constant presence whenever talk turned to the homeland. Love of homeland is a value we were raised on since childhood, and it was ingrained in our consciousness before we entered the fields of work, but seeing a leader who carries this conviction in every situation gives it a different practical dimension. There is a difference between believing in an idea and seeing how it turns into a way of thinking and a criterion by which situations are measured. He often spoke about the danger of rumor-mongering, not as a transient media issue, but because it targets trust, gives rumors the ability to confuse societies, and opens gaps through which those who lie in wait for homelands try to penetrate. And he would emphasize in his meetings with youth that a word can build awareness, protect a homeland, and give people a reassurance they need more than ever. Those messages were not lessons in patriotism, so much as a constant reminder of every individual's responsibility towards his homeland. Love of homeland is a feeling, and protecting its security and stability is a behavior, and the difference between them is made by daily positions. And when I return in my memory to that phase, I feel grateful for every experience that added a human value to my professional expertise, and for every leader in whom I saw harmony between what he says and what he practices. Words leave an impact, but role models create an impact that remains long in memory.

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