June 2026 marked a significant milestone in my professional journey and for Bangladesh’s maritime community. I was honored to be elected to the Board of Directors of YoungShip International as the Regional Representative for Asia & Middle East during the Annual General Meeting held in Copenhagen, Denmark. This appointment makes me the first Bangladeshi to serve on the YoungShip International Board.The role carries the responsibility of representing YoungShip members across one of the world’s most strategically important maritime regions while contributing to the organization’s global initiatives, governance, and future direction. It also provides an opportunity to strengthen collaboration among maritime professionals, promote leadership development, and create greater opportunities for the next generation of industry leaders across Asia and the Middle East.This achievement reflects years of dedication to youth development, international collaboration, and professional engagement within the maritime sector. Through YoungShip Bangladesh, I have had the privilege of working alongside an exceptional community of professionals committed to advancing the industry and empowering young talent. The recognition by YoungShip International is not only a personal honor but also a testament to Bangladesh’s growing presence and influence within the global maritime community.I remain committed to fostering stronger regional partnerships, supporting emerging maritime professionals, and contributing to a more innovative, sustainable, and connected global shipping industry.Media CoverageThe Financial Expresshttps://thefinancialexpress.com.bd/others/bangladeshi-maritime-professional-elected-to-youngship-international-boardTimes of Bangladeshhttps://tob.news/tanjil-ahmed-ruhullah-elected-to-youngship-international-board/The Business Standardhttps://www.tbsnews.net/bangladesh/bangladesh-maritime-leader-elected-youngship-international-board-1466831BRAC Universityhttps://ocsar.bracu.ac.bd/news/brac-university-alumnus-takes-bangladesh%E2%80%99s-maritime-leadership-global-stage

Dwelling on this big question for some time now with my colleagues at Interport Group: What is the best approach to building habits that last?Imagine two people resisting a cigarette. When offered a smoke, the first person says, “No thanks. I’m trying to quit”. It sounds like a reasonable response, but this person believes they are a smoker who is trying to be something else. They are hoping their behavior will change while carrying around the same beliefs.The second person declines by saying, “No thanks. I am not a smoker.” It’s a small difference, but this statement signals a shift a in identity. Smoking was part of their former life, not their current one. They no longer identify as someone who smokes.According to James Clear, author of the New York Times Bestseller "Atomic Habits", the key to building lasting habits is to focus on creating a new identity first. Our current behaviors are simply a reflection of our current identity. What we do now is a mirror image of the type of person we believe that we are (either consciously or subconsciously). To change our behavior for good, we need to start believing new things about ourself. We need to build identity-based habits. Many people begin the process of changing their habits by focusing on what they want to achieve, which is ‘outcome-based habits’. With ‘identity-based habits’ we start by focusing on who we wish to become. So if we change our identity, then it’s easier to change our actions.In the words of James Clear: “For most of my life, I didn’t consider myself a writer. If you were to ask any of my high school teachers or college professors, they would tell you I was an average writer at best: certainly not a standout. When I began my writing career, I published a new article every Monday and Thursday for the first few years. As the evidence grew, so did my identity as a writer. I didn’t start out as a writer. I became one through my habits.”Today morning in our townhall, I told my colleagues that they are all leaders (not followers) and requested them to believe that they truly are. If they believe they are leaders (identity), they will act like one and eventually prove it to themselves!Two-step approach for building “identity-based habits”:1. Decide the type of person you want to be. 2. Prove it to yourself with small wins.Real life example: Want to become a better writer? Identity: Become the type of person who writes 1,000 words every day. Small win: Write one paragraph each day this week.Conclusion: We have to become the type of person we want to be, and that starts with proving our new identity to ourself. If we are looking to make a change, then we should stop worrying about results and start worrying about our identity. Become the type of person who can achieve the things we want to achieve. Build identity-based habits first. The results will come later. #myreflections #atomichabits #startwithidentity

How Can You Design Your Own Environment for Success?“During the energy crisis and oil embargo of the 1970s, Dutch researchers began to pay close attention to the country’s energy usage. In one suburb near Amsterdam, they found that some homeowners used 30 % less energy than their neighbours - despite the homes being of similar size and getting electricity for the same price.It turned out the houses in this neighbourhood were nearly identical except for one feature: the location of the electrical meter. Some had one in the basement. Others had the electrical meter upstairs in the main hallway. As you may guess, the homes with the meter upstairs in the main hallway used less electricity. When their energy use was obvious and easy to track, people changed their behavior.”Lesson from the story:Every habit is initiated by a cue, and we are more likely to notice cues that stand out. Make the cues of good habits obvious in your environment.A personal story by James Clear to elucidate this point further:“I used to buy apples from the store, put them in the crisper in the bottom of the refrigerator, and forget all about them. By the time I remembered apples would have gone bad. I never saw them, so I never ate them. Eventually, I took my own advice and redesigned my environment. I bought a large display bowl and placed it in the middle of the kitchen counter. The next time I bought apples, that was where they went - out in the open where I could see them. Almost like magic, I began eating a few apples each day simply because they were obvious rather than out of sight”Here are a few ways you can redesign your environment and make the cues for your preferred habits more obvious:If you want to drink more water, fill up a few water bottles each morning and place them in common locations around the house.If you want to practice guitar more frequently, place your guitar stand in the middle of the living room.The opposite also works for e.gIt’s easy not to take your vitamin when they are out of sight in the pantry.It’s easy not to read a book when the bookshelf is in the corner of the guest room.Conclusion: If we want to make a habit, a big part of our life, we have to make the cue a big part of our environment. Environment design is powerful not only because it influences how we engage with the world but also because we rarely do it. Most people live in a world others have created for them. But we can alter the spaces where we live and work to increase our exposure to positive cues and reduce our exposure to negative ones. Environment design allows us to take back control and become the architect of our life.In the beautiful words of James Clear, “Be the designer of your world and not merely the consumer of it.”#myreflections #anideaaday #environment #cues #atomichabits