Changemaker
Iman Aghay
TL;DR
He was on his deathbed days before turning 27. Given a second chance, Iman Aghay moved from Iran to Canada with no job and little English, built the Vancouver Business Network from nothing, and now mentors entrepreneurs with the goal of making a difference in 100 million lives.
Iman Aghay grew up in Iran and was building a marketing career there when a sudden internal bleed put him in the hospital ten days before his 27th birthday. He had lost 60 percent of his blood, and all the doctors could do was give him transfusions and wait. Lying there, he found himself thinking about his own funeral, and about the fact that he had never really lived the life he wanted. He promised himself that if he got a second chance, he would spend it living his purpose. The bleeding stopped on its own, and he left the hospital the night before his birthday.
In 2009 he moved to Canada, landing in Vancouver just after the recession with little English and no network to lean on. When months of applications went nowhere, he started a web design company with nothing but a laptop, and on the same day founded a Meetup group called the Vancouver Business Network so he could introduce himself as a community founder rather than a job-seeker. The network grew into one of the city's largest business communities.
In 2010 he founded Success Road Academy, a training and mentorship company that has since worked with more than 15,000 entrepreneurs, and he set a life goal of making a difference in the lives of 100 million people. He is the author of Ultimate Course Formula, a TEDx speaker, and, as the film describes, an investor in more than 160 companies.
Iman Aghay is an Iranian-Canadian entrepreneur, speaker, and business mentor based in Vancouver. Through courses, live events, and coaching programs he teaches experts how to turn what they know into businesses that help other people, his way of reaching far more lives than he could one at a time.
Why OGSP Recommends It
Iman is the person this film is about. Everything in the story (the hospital bed, the move to Canada, the network built from nothing) is his life, told in his own words. If his story stayed with you, his site is where to find what he teaches now.
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Key Takeaways
- A hospital bed became his turning point. Iman decided that if he survived, he would live his purpose every day.
- When no one would hire him, he created his own position. Founding the Vancouver Business Network made him a community builder instead of a job-seeker.
- His three entrepreneurship rules from the film are to make money today, serve customers with excellence, and build systems so you can grow.
- His stated mission is to make a difference in the lives of 100 million people, mostly by training people who go on to help others.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Iman Aghay?
Iman Aghay is an Iranian-Canadian entrepreneur, speaker, and business mentor based in Vancouver, and the founder of Success Road Academy. His One Good Story Project profile tells how a second chance at life led him to build businesses that aim to make a difference in 100 million lives.
What is Success Road Academy?
Success Road Academy is a training and mentorship company that Iman Aghay founded in Vancouver in 2010, and it has worked with more than 15,000 entrepreneurs. His One Good Story Project profile describes it as the way he teaches experts to turn what they know into businesses that help other people.
Who founded the Vancouver Business Network?
Iman Aghay founded the Vancouver Business Network after moving from Iran to Canada with no job and little English. As his One Good Story Project profile tells it, he introduced himself as a community founder instead of a job-seeker, and the network grew into one of the city's largest business communities.
What happened to Iman Aghay before he turned 27?
Ten days before his 27th birthday, a sudden internal bleed put Iman Aghay in the hospital, where he lost 60 percent of his blood. His One Good Story Project film tells how the bleeding stopped on its own, and he promised himself he would spend his second chance living his purpose.