1. Who is Khawla Al-Hasawi? And How did you get started in freelancing?

First of all, I am proud that I am the daughter of the late Mubarak Al-Hasawi, who had rarely seen a person like him. My order of birth is the sixth.

 I am more proud that I graduated from Mubarak Al-Hasari School, from which I learned honesty, loyalty, mercy, helping the needy, effort, perseverance, sincerity in work, and facing hardships whatever the circumstances.

I seek to share my experience with my four children, may God bless them, and educate them the morals I grew up with.

I get started freelancing after graduating from high school. I was accompanying my father in his work, and he encouraged me, support me and strengthened my self-confidence. I thank God that I followed my father's path as God granted me many blessings. Currently, I own shops and real estate inside and outside Kuwait and a law office to look after my interests, my family and every one need my help in Kuwait.

2.  Women have many commitments, so many people think that it would be difficult for women to achieve success, such as the difficulty of balancing success in work and maternal responsibilities, but you were able to break this rule, tell us about this experience.

To succeed in life, you need the confidence and ignorance.

Praise be to God, I am a mother of four roses crowned with my young son, Fawaz, may God protect them, and I did not have to balance my work and family responsibility only, but also my work, maternal responsibility, and my study, as I enrolled at the Faculty of Law ten years after receiving my bachelor’s degree. I was working in the Real Estate Department at my late father's company. By God's grace, I was able to balance my maternal responsibility, work and study. My father was the only one who encouraged me to study law after receiving the bachelor’s degree in economics and political science. My work did not prevent me to raise my children. I used to take care of my children in the morning before I went to my work, and devote my time to them after I returned home. I kept doing so until they became men and I am proud of them. They graduated from universities with different specializations. They support me, and I seek their assistance in the serious and minor matters. Life is valuable only if we strive to achieve our goals.

Life is a wonderful novel that we have to read to the end, and don't ever stop at a sad line, the end may be happy.

When a tree falls, everyone hears the sound of falling, while the entire forest grows, and no noise is heard. People do not pay attention to your success, but to your failure. So we must be confident and look ahead and never look back.

 

3.  You have a very nice and special charisma that attracts those around you. In your point of view, is charisma acquired and how? Or does a person get it by instinct?

Charisma is a grace from God that makes a person attractive and agreeable.

 I thank God for this grace that I enhanced with my love of life and my positive view of things and neglecting trivial matters.

Charisma is a combination of instinct, acquisition, and generosity of character in dealing with others.

I thank God that I am agreeable. This may be by virtue of my tolerance and my flexibility in dealing with the many people. I see that I have a positive personality rather than negative. I usually neglect petty things, and I do not tend to complicate matters, nor pay attention to trivial matters, and I always see things as simple.

 

 

 

4. What about your experience in law field?

My experience in law field broadened my horizons and helped me to be more strong in dealing with problems and difficulties of life, which affected my life in general and my children, their upbringing and their commitment to my ongoing guidance in particular.

In my point of view, my practice of the legal profession through my private office is a stronghold for me and my children in particular, and to serve the people of my country in general.

5. You were able to achieve success as a Kuwaiti and Gulf woman in the field of real estate, which is a field dominated by men. Would you tell us about this experience and what challenges you faced and how you managed to overcome them?

To achieve success in any field, a person must be honest, serious and persistent, whether a man or a woman.

I have acquired these qualities from my father, may he rest in peace.

I keep his words and actions in my mind.

His ongoing encouragement helped me to be more strong and smart and honest in dealing with others, and to make a definitive decision in buying and selling so that I can gain the trust of others.

As for the challenges we face in our work, they are the pleasure of work. I prefer to deal with difficult matters, as I find them more enjoyable than easy ones.

Humans are not equal. There are honest persons, on the contrary, there are liars. Praise be to God, I am a smart and wise in a manner that enables me to deal with many segments of people. The more mature you are, the less things that take you down.

6. Your father, the former prosecutor and businessman, the late Mubarak Al-Hasawi, may he rest in peace, played a significant role in your life. What are the lessons that benefited you in your life?

To be honest, the answer to this question is equivalent to a sea... If I work hard to answer it in volumes, I will not be able to fulfill the right of my father, may he rest in peace.

My father, besides his love for his country, used to warn against sectarian, doctrinal and factional matters that would lead to discrimination and destroying the country.

My father is above the level of words when I describe him or others mention and praise him, I feel shame because he deserves more than what they describe.

He is the father, the teacher, the guide, the adviser, the friend and the merciful brother to me, my brothers, to others, and to every person he lived with during his life, may he rest in eternal peace.

I learned a lot from him, and he was the reason for achieving my wish to be a lawyer. Praise be to God, I finished my law studies while he was alive. He was very happy, given the thought that it was a nearly impossible wish, as it was my second degree after getting a degree in economics and political science, and at that time I had three children who needed care and education in addition to my work in My father's company.

Accordingly, thanks be to my father, after God, as he taught me how to work diligently and respectfully, and work with men without fear, and to become a business woman, and achieve many accomplishments.

I learned from him the sincerity in saying and wisdom in making my decisions, as I learned to love and loyalty to my homeland without limits, and he helped me to enhance my self-confidence, and to build up my personality, and became strong, as well as I learned to work with men and women equally and not afraid to say the right word, whatever the outcome.

7. As a leading female figure, businesswoman and lawyer, what is your advice to the girls of Kuwait?

My advice is not limited to my Kuwaiti sisters only, it is addressed to everyone. Achieving any goal requires diligence, perseverance, self-confidence, and not hesitation, no matter what difficulties we face. Moreover, we must not let failure destroy a step of success, but rather be a stronger motive to achieve the goal and to address any obstacles.

All successful people had faced many obstacles. If they had stopped, they would not have achieved success. There are many examples of those who preceded us in different fields, let us make them our role model to achieve our goals.

8. You are the first Kuwaiti woman chosen by the Council of Ministers as a member of the Zakat House Board of Directors, how was your experience?

The responsibility was great, as the tasks of 3 out of 4 committees were assigned to me, and I amended the Zakat House regulation to achieve its goals. I had taken time out of my workday in the office to serve the Zakat House and achieve its goals.

My experience was successful and I benefited a lot from it. Zakat House added value to me, where I was working with love and strength, and I dealt with men, who were like brothers to me, they helped me in work as I was the only woman there. I've been trying to make Zakat House benefits from my ideas and suggestions according to needs. Praise be to God, we have achieved successes and accomplishments. I was moving to Zakat House branches all over Kuwait.

I initiated a lot of campaigns to collect money from charitable people, which benefited the needy people of Kuwait.

I Contributed to the opening of additional branches of Zakat House in many commercial complexes.

 I focused on shedding light on the Zakat House in the media, and I made efforts to publish the works performed by Zakat House and its active and effective role in helping the needy.

9. You have an outstanding and strong presence on social media. In your opinion, is social media really a good platform for women to reflect their success to society? What is your advice to women on how to use these platforms?
10. Of course, social media has an outstanding role in the world in all fields in general. The reflection of success of Kuwaiti women in society does not depend only on social media, the efforts made by her in favor of the society has an effective impact. As evidence, the Kuwaiti women were selected to be the a minister and deputy in the National Assembly, and they also occupied leadership and non-leading positions. Regarding my advice to women on using social media platforms, I advise them to be careful in using social media, as it is a double-edged weapon.

• There are some weak-spirited people who misuse social media, which may offend those who respond to them, so ignoring such people is a gain.
• If someone is offended, he must report to the cybercrime investigation department to prevent blackmail. The purpose of using Social media, in my point of view, is to benefit and share our experiences and write informative messages, whether religious or social or related to love of the country and obedience to the rulers, sports and economics, not to abuse and distort so that others can benefit from it.
• - I also consider Instagram as a family archive that collects my memories with my precious children, my family members and my loved ones, through photos I share with my loved ones and followers. I also share important messages that benefit the society in all its segments.
• - I would also like to single out the messages I address to some mothers in their childcare, because I hold in my arms a precious gem named Fawaz (Down syndrome) who I treat as a normal person. I also share some photos, precious moments and meaningful videos to raise awareness of some people so they don’t feel embarrassed by the blessing they were granted by God. Instead, they should be proud, strive in raising them and seek God’s satisfaction for the trust granted by God in this world. I’m quite sure that God will bless him and his siblings, in this world and the hereafter, as long as I’m thankful, grateful and satisfied with my fate.   
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• 11. What is your advice to Kuwaiti women on Kuwaiti Women's Day?
• I believe that Kuwaiti women are very successful in many fields across the Arab world, especially since our late Emir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah and the wise leaders in general have given Kuwaiti women a lot of privileges and rights. Therefore, Kuwaiti women could become doctors, engineers, lawyers, prosecutors and judges which made Kuwaiti women feel proud.
• We, as women, should use this support for the better in order to achieve many successes, because women can reach significant and prestigious positions.
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• 12. What are the secrets of your success?
• Undoubtedly, the secret of my success is God’s satisfaction, (Alhamdullah), which I find in my health, wellness and reconciliation in my practical life; as well as blessing me with my four precious children.
• May God grant me their kindness in my life and after my death; and may they are never harmed, as they are the harvest of my life.
• In addition to, my father’s satisfaction, may God have mercy on his soul, who died 17 years ago, leaving me a wound in my heart. Although fate has separated us, his love is engraved in my heart; as farewell is hard and leaves oneself in agony.
• I ask God to prolong my mother’s life and bless her with health and wellness, as she is my only door to Jannah, and I always seek her satisfaction, may God protect her from every harm.
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• 13 - One last word
• In the end, I would like to extend my unlimited thanks and appreciation to you for hosting me in your esteemed magazine. 
• I ask God to prolong the life of our Emir Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, cover him and his Crown Prince Sheikh Mishaal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah with health and wellness, and help them in bearing the responsibility and trust in favor for the country and the people.
• I also ask God to protect my dear homeland from any harm, and keep us away from envy, temptation, affliction and epidemics.
• May God bless the beloved people of Kuwait and keep us, and all Muslim countries, blessed with security and safety.