Mohamed Sekkina, general manager of Talabat Mart Egypt: Each week, My Morning Routine looks at how a successful member of the community starts their day — and then throws in a couple of random business questions just for fun. Speaking to us this week is Mohamed Sekkina (LinkedIn), general manager of Talabat Mart Egypt. Edited excerpts from our conversation:

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My name is Mohamed Sekkina. I’m the GM of talabat mart in Egypt. I’ve been with Talabat for almost four and a half years, and I was lucky enough to be part of the team that launched Talabat Mart in Oman and Egypt. I led the company in UAE for a short period of time before leading the Egypt team.

talabat mart is the online retail arm of Talabat. It started in the Middle East back in 2018. It’s centered on dark stores — retail facilities or warehouses used for fulfilling online orders. Our network of dark stores enables us to deliver groceries and other products to our customers in an average of 20 minutes. We operate more than a thousand dark stores across the globe. In Egypt, we have 45 dark stores across 10 cities, operating 24/7 and serving hundreds of thousands of customers.

I would categorize my responsibilities into three main blocks. The first block, which is at the heart of everything I do, is people. A big part of my day involves connecting with people, ensuring they have the resources they need, and making sure the organization operates with the right spirit and culture.

The second block involves making sure that business operations run properly. This means looking at daily key performance indicators (KPIs) and customer reviews. My team and I often go through customer feedback to ensure we’re in tune with our customers’ needs and make sure they’re happy.

The third block is solving big problems. I encourage myself and my team to ask big questions and think deeply about how to solve them. For example, when I first took the reins at talabat mart three years ago, a big question was “How can we make Talabat Mart Egypt the biggest online supermarket in Egypt?” We drew up a plan, executed it, and achieved that goal. Then we started tackling other benchmarks like how to make Talabat Mart Egypt the biggest in the region and then globally.

I have a pretty monotonous morning routine. I don’t believe a groundbreaking process is necessary for a successful start to the day. The first thing I do when I wake up is workout for ten minutes to reset my body. Then I have a simple breakfast — two boiled eggs — before I shower. I usually go for cold showers, which are very beneficial. I also do a lot of journaling and practice morning affirmations. When I get into the car, I recite Adhkar and Quranic verses.

I also read EnterpriseAM. It’s a great source of what’s happening in the market and keeps a very close eye on the technology industry. I particularly enjoy interviews with Egyptian leaders. I’m a firm believer that we have a wealth of talent here, and EnterpriseAM does a very good job spotlighting great minds across different industries.

I dedicate the first hour to hour and a half of the day to resetting my brainwaves and calming my nervous system to set myself up for success. I try as much as possible to avoid high-pressure situations — such as tending to crises, heated meetings, or debates — when I first arrive at the office.

In our team, we’ve embraced what we call a “sprint culture.” We recognize that our energy oscillates. So we break up our work into chunks — high intensity phases where everybody is hustling and other periods where we slow down intentionally. This is how I manage my energy and my team operates in the same way. For example, October was very intense. We would come into work before 9am and leave at 7pm. But we started to slow down a little bit last month.

The time I spend after work is a mix of sports, social activity, and art. I listen to my body, so what I do really depends on how I feel that day. Some days I just want to go back home, have a hot meal, and unwind. Other days, I feel social, I meet friends or spend time with the family. And on most days — three to four times a week — I play sports. I go to the gym, play paddle tennis, and go horse riding. I believe that it’s very easy to lose your artistic side unless you’re very intentional about staying in touch with it, especially with a very practical job like mine. So every now and then I try to do something art-related, like painting or staying up to speed with music.

To stay organized at work, I turn recurring tasks into routine processes that don’t consume a lot of energy. For example, if a task arises frequently on an ad hoc basis, I turn it into a process, a meeting, or a report so I don’t need to worry about it again. I also try to utilize technology and tools. I heavily use my calendar, trend reports, and collaboration tools like Google Documents.

I also place a strong emphasis on defining business priorities. I create a document once a year and cascade it to every single department — all the way to the most junior individual in the organization — so that everyone could list their priorities. This is how we make sure that everybody’s focused and aligned. We also have a monthly document where everybody lists just three things that they are going to deliver on, no matter what. Revisiting this document helps me regain focus when I get overwhelmed.

When I look back in 20 years, I hope to see myself as someone who has shaped the technology industry in the Middle East. In the midterm, my aspiration is to continue contributing to Talabat’s success — whether by continuing to lead Talabat Mart in Egypt, on the regional level, or spearheading a new vertical. It’s a great company with massive potential. I believe we’re just scratching the surface — we’ve only accomplished a fraction of what this business is capable of becoming.

I don’t think work-life balance should be an objective for everyone. The way I see it, if you opt for balance across your entire career, you will end up with an average set of results across the board. If you really want to deliver something exceptional — be it in your personal or professional life — it comes at a cost. Certain priorities take precedence over others across different stages in life. For example, early career might demand hustle, while later stages could emphasize family or personal growth. The caveat here is that there are two things you cannot compromise for long — health and family. The impact of neglecting either is irreversible.

There’s a verse in the Quran that’s a motto for me: Wa an laysa lil-insaan illa ma sa’a, which means that ultimately what really matters is the effort you make rather than the outcome. When I reflect on this verse, it brings me a sense of peace. It’s easy to become obsessed with results, but the reality is that sometimes they don’t materialize, and you can fail miserably. You just need to try your absolute best to problem-solve, be genuine with people, and remain honest. I know this might sound unconventional in the business world, where we meticulously build strategies, set KPIs, and pride ourselves on critical problem-solving skills. But at its core, everything truly boils down to this.

Good to Great was a really eye-opening book for me. It explores the principles that transform ordinary companies into exceptional ones. Two principles really resonated with me. The first is about prioritizing people over objectives — it stipulates the team you have on your bus matters more than the destination. The second principle is about brutal honesty, which means that leaders must remain realistic about their company’s situation, because it’s very easy to lose touch with what customers actually think and how they see the brand.

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