My personal profile and background

Me at around 4 years old, back in Baghdad, Iraq.

Background

My name is Ashur Sada, and I am an ethnic Assyrian. I was born in Baghdad, Iraq, in 1980, just a few weeks after the Iraq-Iran war began. Baghdad was my home and the backdrop of my childhood until 1993, a year that shaped my life profoundly. It marked the passing of my father at the young age of 44 due to a heart attack. It was also the year my family and I left our country, and we have not returned or revisited since—over 30 years ago.

Our journey led us through various countries, including Jordan, Turkey, Albania, and Greece, with brief transitions in places like Egypt and Slovenia. In 1997, we arrived in Toronto, Canada and have called it home since.

As an Assyrian, I speak our native language, also known as Neo-Aramaic, which is a source of great pride, considering its historical significance—Jesus himself spoke a dialect of Aramaic.

Education

After graduating from high school, I took a one-year sabbatical before attending Seneca College for a transitional year. Subsequently, in 2002, I enrolled at York University. Three years later, I graduated with a B.A. in Business and Society, majoring in Economics and Psychology.

Despite my passion for psychology and economics, I gradually shifted into the field of IT and have been working in it since around 2005. Over the past few years, I have expanded into project management within IT and finance. For the coming years, I do hope to obtain my "ITIL Foundation" certification as well as and possibly "Certified Supply Chain Professional" as it alights with some of my work duties in procurement.

My educational background includes:

B.A. in Business and Society (Economics, Psychology), York University - 2005
CompTIA A+ (Plus) Certification - 2006
'Project Management Principles' Certification, Humber College - 2017
ServiceNow Certified System Administrator (CSA) - 2020
Project Management Professional (PMP) - 2022

Achievements and Projects

- AssyrianVoice.net: This is an Assyrian community website I started at the age of 18 in 1999, while I was still in high school. I grew it into a worldwide Assyrian phenomenon, with tens of thousands of registered members, millions of annual visits, and it became a place where Assyrians would come to interact, communicate, and get the latest Assyrian news and updates worldwide. On April 15, 2024, the website celebrated a quarter century of existence, which is the equivalent of a light year in the context of the web, given how things come and go all the time.

-BudgetSense.ca: Started in November 2010 as an outlet for my passion for finances and wealth, this blog focuses on budgeting and finance. I regularly publish articles on various financial topics. In 2024, I created a Youtube channel to produce some of my topics in video.

-MySmileHygiene.ca : This is my wife's dental hygiene business and I am proud to be the person behind the website, as well as the project to start the business back in 2021.

Interests and Hobbies

- Shortwave radios, despite falling out of favor due to the advent of internet streaming and mobile apps, still hold a certain magical allure. If you've read my infamous story, you'll understand the fascination with the world of shortwave radio.

- Podcasts covering self-help, business, economy, and travel have been a significant part of my life. Although I began listening to podcasts as early as 2015, it wasn't until the height of the pandemic in spring 2020 that I truly immersed myself in them. Since then, I've devoured well over 5,000 episodes, essentially replacing my music and radio listening time with them. Click here for more about my podcast listening habits and favourite ones.

-Reading Books, something I have been doing from a very young age of 7-8 years old or so. While my parenting life comes in the way, I try to read an average of 12-15 books or so, something I have been successful at for last few years (going back to 2019) .

-Soccer (Lifelong and die-heart Brazil soccer fan since I was 7 years old or so) . Click here to read my story about how I fell in love with Brazilian soccer since the age of 7.

-Cruise ships: been on 3 so far, but would do it every month if time and money allowed it! We first experienced one in our honeymoon and we were instantly sold. What is more fun to be able to tour the world, get to experience different cities and cultures, be able to eat so much variety, all while on a floating city in the middle of the sea.

-IT in general and the new world AI.

Interesting Personal Tidbits and Insights

I have a birthday that some kids might envy: Halloween! But it's not as fun as you might imagine, since we can barely celebrate due to all the Halloween festivities that day.

Although it's not something I brag about, and I must admit, it's a tad embarrassing, here's a funny tidbit from my childhood: between the ages of 2 and 4, I had quite a unique diet. I used to munch on ants and nibble on small pieces of wood from the trees in our backyard. You could say I had a palate as adventurous as someone who dines on ants and wood, though I've since upgraded to more conventional fare!

In Grade 3, back in Baghdad, Iraq, I was selected as the equivalent of a class valedictorian. When my name was announced, and my classmates cheered, even carrying me in class, I started crying. It wasn't tears of joy, but feeling overwhelmed by the whole thing. I was honored to be elected again for grades 4 through 6, but by then, I was used to it and didn't cry!

My first official job ever was in Athens, Greece at around 15 years old, delivering flyers to homes and businesses, where I would walk for 5-6 hours daily. Imagine if I had my Apple watch back then!