Kamal Mohamed Delivers Powerful Message at Speaker Series Event

On February 1st, Kamal Mohamed joined Gopher Athletics for a Leadership U Speaker Series event. Kamal is an entrepreneur and owner of renowned Twin Cities restaurants StepChld and Nashville Coop. Throughout the event, Kamal delivered a powerful message on his journey to success, battling adversity and showcasing the power of resilience.

Emigrating to the United States at age 10, Kamal and his family resided in Minneapolis in the Cedar Riverside neighborhood. As Kamal was peering out of the window at their Minneapolis apartment, he reflected on the endless opportunities and thought to himself, "truly anything is possible." Kamal went on to attend the University of St. Thomas to pursue a path in PreMed, which was his parents dream for him. It was not until Kamal joined a business competition with his peers that he found his true calling and passion, a career as an entrepreneur. Twelve years later, Kamal finds himself as the owner of two renowned Twin Cities restaurants, the founder of Gallant Tiger crustless sandwiches, and is widely-regarded as one of the leading young entrepreneurs in the upper Midwest. When asked how he achieved great success, Kamal credits his passion and love for what he does. He stated, "You are never going to outwork someone who loves what they do more than you." This mantra has been a guiding principle for Kamal throughout his illustrious career.

Upon graduation, Kamal was met with countless rejections from corporate America. He decided to take a leap of faith and set out to California to pursue his first of many business ventures. Although Kamal and his team found themselves achieving great success through hard work and building connections, they began facing adversity with the start-up that was impossible to overcome. At the same time, the global pandemic struck and sent him back to Minneapolis to be near his family to brainstorm his next business opportunity – but it was not without perspective and experience to use to his advantage. Using his family's passion for Ethiopian spices and his love for one of his favorite California restaurants, Kamal and his family found incredible success selling hot chicken out of a food truck. This is what Kamal describes as, "trusting the process that the dots will connect." Without each element from his past, both successes and shortcomings, Kamal would not have been in the position to establish what is now, Nashville Coop.

Kamal propelled his career to new heights when he took yet another leap of faith to open his second Minneapolis restaurant, StepChld. This time he put a professional spin on it to align with his personal leadership philosophy. Running a flat hierarchy system, Kamal is focused on providing all employees a seat at the table and creating a sense of belonging. He states that he reinforces this approach by "recruiting individuals that respect those to their left and right, and keeping talent density in mind to create a positive culture." Kamal's expertise and ability to identify gaps and pursue them, led him to develop his Gallant Tiger crustless sandwiches that has grabbed the attention of Smuckers. Through these trials and tribulations, Kamal has learned to take challenges head on and to use your opponent's strengths as their weaknesses, also known as the judo strategy.

Similar to his mantra of loving what you do, Kamal centered his reflections around the theme of perspective. Coming to the U.S. from Ethiopia at a young age, Kamal calls this the "immigrant privilege" to have context and perspective that allows you to see opportunities in a different light. Kamal states that framing his days as, "I don't have to do this, I get to do this" has set him up for tremendous success.

Kamal's incredible story and insights on his journey to success sparked thoughtful reflections and discussion. Leadership U is looking forward to hosting more Speaker Series events in 2023.

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Kamal Mohamed Delivers Powerful Message at Speaker Series Event

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