Akshat Harbola, MD of Spotify MENA and South Asia: 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 Akshat Harbola (LinkedIn), the managing director of Spotify Middle East, North Africa, and South Asia. Edited excerpts from our conversation:

I'm Akshat and I am the managing director of Spotify Middle East, North Africa, and South Asia.I'm an economist and a business management professional by training. During my university days, I managed quite a few independent music bands. After graduating, I worked in the management consulting industry for about 10 years before moving to consumer tech at Google. For the last seven years, I've been at Spotify, where I’ve worn different hats. My previous role was the head of strategy for MENASA. Joining Spotify felt like a return home because I’ve always loved to be engaged in music.

My morning routine starts with waking up my daughter and getting her ready. After that, I often go for a run and put on some of my favorite playlists. Then I sit down for some coffee and reading. I usually block the first part of my day for deep work — I try to keep that time of day relatively meeting-free, at least for three days a week. I use that time to focus on big opportunities and challenges.

Music consumption tends to reflect the demographic structure of each market in the region. In Egypt, for instance, Spotify and general music charts are primarily led by Egyptian pop. You also see a lot of hip hop, indie, and mahraganat consumption. In the UAE, you see a mixed bag of Filipino, South Asian, and Arabic music doing well because the society is very multicultural. In KSA, where the music scene is undergoing a transformation, there’s a lot of interest in international music, but also very fast growth of local music genres like Khaleeji and Sheilat.

A trend we're seeing across the region is increased music exports. Between 2019 and 2023, we've seen a 40% increase in streams for MENA artists. And that’s not just the legends like Fairuz, Amr Diab, or Nancy Ajram. Moroccan artists like Kouz1 and ElGrandeToto are very popular in markets like France, Germany, and the Benelux region more broadly. The consumption of Moroccan music in Europe is very encouraging. And artists from the UAE who don’t even sing in Arabic are finding audiences across the globe.

When it comes to music, I love Cairokee. They’re topping my playlist right now, and I’d recommend them to anyone — regardless of whether they're an Arabic speaker or not. Other than that, I primarily listen to rock music, so another band that I’d vouch for is the Jordanian group JadaL.

An audio book that I'm listening to right now is How Brands Grow by Byron Sharp. I highly recommend it to anyone who's interested in finding out how mass market brands are built.I'm also a big fan of TheHubermanLab, a podcast by a Stanford professor who uses neuroscience to offer insights on how to lead a productive life and improve your mental and physical health. A recent episode I really enjoyed explores why music makes you feel the way it does.

My philosophy is to work hard and then completely disconnect in the evenings. After work, I engage in activities that allow me to switch off completely. That’s either meditation or some sort of workout — like swimming or running — depending on how much energy I have.

Work-life balance needs to be established as a number one priority. Everyone has an individual responsibility to create that balance, especially those in leadership roles. If you're unable to manage yourself and your life right, then as a leader, you need to go back to the drawing board and fix that problem before you start looking at the business. I've had my own challenges with feeling burnt out and overwhelmed — there are definitely ups and downs. But ultimately, I like to set the tone so that nobody's trying to burn themselves out trying to impress me.

I've tried quite a few things to stay focused and organized. Ground zero is working on my health and cultivating a sharp mind. Once I have that in place, my core system is making sure that my calendar reflects my priorities on a weekly basis. I also continuously adapt my schedule as I go because our business moves very fast.

One of the best pieces of advice I’ve received is what I call “renewing the novice license,” which means finding opportunities that allow you to feel like a rookie. I was introduced to the concept by one of my mentors early on, and it has since shaped the trajectory of my career. I moved from consulting to consumer tech even though I had never served a consumer tech client, then on to music tech with no formal training.

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