James Caan CBE

If you have lost your job due to COVID, I would like to make one thing clear: it is not your fault. People across the world have experienced hardship that was simply unimaginable just a few months ago.

However, there is light at the end of the tunnel. In the words of the UK’s Chief Medical Officer, science will come to the rescue.

At some point, this challenging period for society will come to an end.

As an individual, you must focus on your successes to date and prepare for a brighter future. Use this period to celebrate your successes. Take a look at your achievements. Assess your transferable skills.

This pandemic will not define you.

Born blind into a disadvantaged family in India, Srikanth Bolla was determined to become an engineer when he grew up. But when he was told he wasn’t able to study the sciences due to his visual disability, he took legal action.

He won the case and went on to achieve remarkable grades in all of his exams - earning himself a place at MIT in 2009 as the first international blind student.

Returning to his home country in 2012, he founded Bollant Industries Pvt Ltd, an inclusive and environmentally friendly company that manufactures eco-friendly products and packaging - now worth £48m. Key to his company's mission is giving opportunities to other disabled and disadvantaged people - who account for around 36% of his staff.

He’s an inspiration to us all.

#engineer #inspirational #motivation #india

𝗜𝘁 𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗲𝘀 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗴𝘁𝗵 𝘁𝗼 𝘄𝗮𝗹𝗸 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗼 𝗮 𝗿𝗼𝗼𝗺 𝗮𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗲—𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗵𝗲𝗹𝗱 𝗵𝗶𝗴𝗵, 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗮𝘁 𝗽𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗲.
 
To eat at a table for one.
 
To buy a ticket with just your name on it.
 
But here’s the truth: if you can embrace solitude without shame, you’ve already mastered one of life’s greatest powers.
 
Because confidence isn’t built in crowds—it’s forged in quiet moments of self-respect.
 
Build that inner strength… and there’s nothing you can’t do.
 
#SelfMastery

I don’t take risks, I make decisions. Let me explain: Entrepreneurship is an industry infamously connected with the R-word. It’s often painted as a world of reckless individuals ready to lose everything in the name of their Big Idea. In my experience, this just isn’t the case. There is no such thing as a risk. Once you’ve asked the right questions and put in place appropriate precautions, a ‘​risk’ is simply a ‘​decision’. I have sold four companies at the top of the market. Now, this isn’t because I’m brilliant, or because I have a crystal ball - this was possible because I charted graphs for months and did my due diligence. Entrepreneurship doesn’t always have to be a risky business. If you apply logic, rationale, and common sense - the odds will be in your favour.

Do you agree? #entrepreneurship #decisions #risks #duediligence

𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗺𝗮𝗽 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗽𝗽𝗲𝗱 𝗺𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝗺𝘆 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗰𝗸𝘀.
 
Half the world’s population—𝟰 𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗽𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲—live in this small yellow area. The rest of us? Spread across the entire red section.
 
It’s one of those rare visuals that changes how you see the world.
 
Because this isn’t just about population density—it’s about where the future is being built:
Where the next generation of consumers, workers, and entrepreneurs will come from

Where new markets will emerge
Where ideas, energy, and ambition are rising fastest
 
For decades, the West shaped the flow of capital, innovation, and opportunity.

But that balance is shifting—and quietly, steadily, the centre of gravity is moving East.
 
If you're building a business, investing in people, or simply thinking about the next 10–20 years, this map matters.
 
It’s a reminder that the future won’t look like the past—and those who adapt first will be the ones who lead it.
 
#GlobalPerspective #EmergingMarkets #StrategicThinking

I always had a passion for entrepreneurship. When I was just 12 years old, I used to buy jackets from my dad and re-sell them on the playground at a £2 markup. It seemed like a lot of money at the time!

Like a lot of Asian families, there was an assumption in my family that I would join the family business. But I was driven to go out on my own, and do things my own way. I certainly didn’t want to spend my life working in a factory.

At 16, I left home with just £30, and said I was setting out on my own.

I think my father and I both thought that a day or two would pass, and then I’d be back. But I was too driven to follow my own path, and I never went back home.

I have always thought that passion played a key part in my own success. That’s why, when choosing to invest in other entrepreneurs, I value passion so highly.

Being an entrepreneur can be incredibly challenging. If you don’t love what you do, how will you have the grit to see it through?

Photo Credit: Ian Harrison

#Passion #Grit #Entrepreneurship #Business #Success

Everything happens for a reason.

My father moved us to the UK when I was two.

For the next thirteen years, he built a leather goods business – driven by the belief that my brothers and I would one day take over.

I remember him leaving for work at around seven o’clock every morning and rarely returning home before eleven at night. He made incredible sacrifices to support his family.

When I was 17, I decided not to join the business and to pursue other endeavours instead.

Though he supported the decision, I’m sure it must have broken his heart.

From thereon, I felt a huge pressure to show him I had made the right decision. I could not bear the thought of returning two years later to say I failed. I simply had to make it work.

Had I not had that pressure, perhaps I would not be where I am today.

#career #entrepreneurialjourney #entrepreneur

In 2013, I sold Alexander Mann.
It was perhaps one of the most significant achievements in my life so far.

However, it's not what makes me most proud.

Having launched the government’s Startup Loans Scheme and my own angel investment practice, the thing that brings me most joy is helping other entrepreneurs get their start.

Watching them develop and grow brings me joy in a way I would not have predicted as a twenty-five or thirty-year-old business owner.

That’s one of life’s greatest gifts: how it can surprise you and teach you things about yourself you never knew.

Keep an open mind — it could lead you to true happiness.

I had a fascinating Q&A with UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak about the impact of AI on jobs.

By 2025, AI will displace 85 million jobs globally but create 97 million new jobs in industries such as healthcare, education, and renewable energy.

I asked how to ensure the UK has the right skills for future tech investment.

Take a listen to what the Prime Minister had to say.

#AI #jobs #futuretech

Life has a way of humbling us, healing us, and then handing us the very victory we prayed for.
 
If you’re going through something right now—hold on. Stay faithful. Keep moving.
 
#Faith #Resilience

Over 3,000 workers at 60 companies in Britain will try out a 4-day working week as part of a pilot program that is believed to be the largest of its kind in the world.

During the trial, which will run for 6 months from June,  there will be no loss of pay for employees working one fewer day a week; instead, they will be expected to maintain 100% productivity for 80% of their time.

As I have previously discussed on my LinkedIn, this is one of several around the world organised by 4 Day Week - Global, which aims to shorten the workweek.

I'd really like to hear your thoughts below.

#4dayweek #recruitment