Mashiat Fariha Alam: The Rising Asterisk

Mashiat Fariha Alam is a young corporate lady who is not only career-focused but adventurous with a sensible taste of fashion. With a multi-diverse education, she completed her high school at Dalian American International School in China, after which she finished her honors degree in Business Management from Sheffield Hallam University (SHU) in Shanghai, China.  Alongside her studies, she ran as the president of the International Student Association Board at the university and was also a student ambassador throughout her four years there. On her final year, she won the award of ‘Student of The Year 2017 – 2018’ from SHU.

She had started her career while she was completing her honors, at Summit Power Limited. Some of her colleagues have said that Mashiat has an excellent power of understanding and a keen interest in learning. One of her ex. colleagues said “she is such a talented and spontaneous girl! If someone works with her for a few days, he/she will not be able to forget her very easily. I want to see Mashiat at a very successful and prestigious position in the corporate world, and with her effort and tenacity, she will conquer it!”

Morning shows the day, so we’re not exaggerating when we consider Ms. Alam as a rising asterisk of the corporate world! We reached out to this striving young lady to know a little about her life, some of which we have shared in the following:

Career Synopsis: Management Trainee, currently in the Executive Search Team, for PrimeStaff Management Services, a local HR Consulting firm based in Singapore.

Daily Life: 9-6 work time, with overtime at times when needed. I then spend time with friends here or family if they are visiting Singapore. If alone, I go for a swim at my residence and make myself some homemade Deshi-style dinner, watch Netflix and call it a night. But my evenings are never the same, which makes it more fun!

Passion: I am a people’s person, so I guess you could say my passion is helping people. That way, my job is a perfect fit for me because it’s a mix of corporate life whilst supporting people!

Most Preferred Clothing: Depends really. While I was working in Bangladesh, I use to always wear Salwaar Kameez, even when I visit home now and then. You could say they are both sophisticated and stylish. Whereas here, I tend to wear formal; shirt, a pair of slacks and dresses. On Fridays we wear smart casual, so I usually pair a shirt with a pair of jeans, or wear floral long dresses (my absolute favorite!).

Habit and Hobby: Discovering new places and eateries! Since I’ve got family visiting almost all the time, I’m able to explore Singapore with good company. For an island this small, there’s quite a bit to see. I have yet to see so much! When it comes to food, I’m willing to try bizarre things. Some of the weirdest things I’ve had would include crickets in Vietnam where I grew up, silkworms in the roots of trees also in Vietnam, scorpions in Xiamen, stinky tofu and 1000-year-old eggs in Shanghai, and live octopus in Japan. I believe life is too short to not try these things. Haha!

Favorite Brands:

Western Clothing: I usually wear H&M, Mango, Dorothy Perkins and etc. I often find really good formal wear back home in Bangladesh, so I take an empty luggage back home and purchase a whole closet full of clothes for so cheap!

Deshi Clothing: Most people have famous celebrities as fashion icons, but mine would be Amma Jaan. Thanks to her, I have a gorgeous collection of Salwaar Kameez and Sarees from Libaas, Rina Latif, Anokhi, Khan Brothers and some others. My latest purchases before coming back to Singapore were from Irises in Banani for some regular Kurtas and Kameez-like-shirts which I sometimes wear here to work too!

Watches: I don’t have a particular brand per se, but I do own a couple of Marc Jacobs. My first Armani Exchange watch was given to me by Amma Jaan as my graduation present. Papa gifted me a Fossil watch a couple of years ago for Christmas. I also purchased a couple of old-school Casio ones to match Papa’s watch. Most of my fancy watches are gifts. I’m not quite there yet to purchase luxury items myself!

Perfumes: Perfumes were actually introduced to me by Tintin (my Bhaia). He bought me my very first one when he came to visit us after he left for University. I use to love Calvin Klein; my signature perfume in high school was CK Beauty. To this day, my friends say whenever they smell it, it reminds them of me. My recent favorite is Sauvage, by Dior and Deep Red by Hugo Boss.

Favorite Author: This question is a bit embarrassing because I don’t remember the last time I picked up a book. But I am (or used to be) a bookie so, I would say Agatha Christie and Jane Austin (and yes, they write two extremes of opposite genres).

Favorite Book: I love Emma, by Jane Austin. Believe it or not, this book was forced on me when I was in the 5th grade. Oh, but more than that it would be And Then There Were None, by Agatha Christie. I love the thrill of reading this book!

Favorite Holiday Place: Home, which would be Chittagong (or I’m sorry, Chattagram) hands down!

Favorite Dish: La Zi Ji (辣子鸡) – Spicy Fried chicken. It’s a Sichuan delicacy, which is diced chicken with bones fried in chili (lots and lots of chilies) and Chinese spices.

My Motivation: My motivation is my Papa (Eng. Mohammed Shamsul Alam).  His hard work and dedication which resulted in success has motivated me and has gotten me where I am today.

I’m in three words: Social, friendly, and tenacious; which people can perceive as aggressive at times, but I mean well. Haha!

Childhood Dream: I honestly always wanted to be a big-shot corporate officer. Only now I realize how hard it is to actually achieve that. I have to compromise a lot. But hopefully, it will be worth it.

The Three Things That I Cannot Live Without: Super cliché, but I would say Amma Jaan, Papa, and Tintin. They have raised and nurtured me to be who I am and where I am today. Everything I do, achieve and accomplish is for them.