Each morning, countless persons wake up and immediately check their phones. The reasons vary from person to person: some check for messages, some check for news while others check for the time. But when Jamall Adams checks his phone, he does it for a crucial reminder.
At age 28, Adams has already published three books and while he is proud of his achievements, his phone reminds him each day, “Jamall stay humble; you don’t know anything.”
His quest for humility comes from his difficult past and Adams credits his experiences as making him a hard and persistent worker.
In a recent interview, Adams said his single mother was an important factor in his life and it was from her he learnt the importance of hard work. His mother, he said, worked tirelessly to provide for her four children and was always supportive of him.
At 16, Adams had been forced to drop out of Tutorial High School in order to provide financial assistance for a large household. He found himself a job at Nigel’s Supermarket as a cashier and supervisor. He eventually migrated to the United States but that did not mean things became any easier; there, Adams found a job as a shoe-shiner in New York, where he worked day in and day out to earn an income.
However, he nonetheless managed to attain a Degree in Business Management. But how does one move from a Business Management Degree to publishing three books? For Adams, a break-up fuelled his foray.
According to Adams, his curiosity about women and the break-up led him to writing. He explained that while working his shoe-shining job he started to tell people about his experiences and they started to give him advice. He said a customer advised him to write his thoughts down to bring them to reality.
He said that writing is therapeutic and he hopes that his readers have a mindful experience as well. Adams said it is important that his books help people because they are self-development books.
Touching lives
At a recent book signing in Georgetown, Adams was able to personally interact with the persons he helps.
The signing was held at Nigel’s Supermarket and was a homecoming of sorts for the young writer.
While he sat at a small table with his books, business cards and chocolate for interested patrons, a woman approached him. Passionately, she told him that tragedy had struck her family and she had been looking for something to give her hope.
The woman said she read one of his books in a night and loved the way he touched on faith and belief in God. She credited the book with bringing light to her life.
It seemed like Adams wish to inspire people with his works had become a reality.
His first book, ‘#100for1,’ deals with the “do’s and don’ts” of relationships. His second book, ‘When Faith Happens,’ touches on faith in God and it tries to explain that God might not always be there when people want him, but he is always there when they need him. His third book, ‘#60for1’ gives young people advice on how to be a positive influence on society.
In this book, he advises young people to believe in themselves because any accomplishment, such as writing a book, starts with belief.
Meanwhile, Adams said he would like to see young Guyanese writers provided with the necessary resources to help make it easier for their works to be published. He said getting your work published and accessible is easy and he expressed hope that those in authority would treat writers with dignity and respect.
