"My hobbies are ping-pong, chess, music, movies, mountains, and reading," — Shavkat Karimov on his lifestyle

Shavkat Karimov, city – Tashkent, head of IT Community of Uzbekistan, Linkedin

About Me

I am the head of IT Community of Uzbekistan, an entrepreneur, investor, mentor, and speaker. Previously, I was a top manager and head of the search optimization department at Microsoft, where I managed one of the largest technical communities in the world, called Answers. Until recently, I served as Vice President at BOLD, a global company and international leader in job search, resume preparation, and career development.

By education, I am a lawyer specializing in international law and a feature film director. I have directed 20 short films, written three books, created two social networks, and hundreds of online directories. At one point, I was the largest owner of online directories in the world. I have lived and worked in Belgium, Canada, the USA, Sweden, and other countries.

I obtained a US Green Card as an extraordinary person under the EB1A category. Two years ago, after 25 years of living abroad, I returned to my homeland to share my accumulated experience and knowledge with the younger generation of Uzbekistan.

You can learn more about me on my professional profile page on Linkedin.

I have a lot of work. I rarely take time off: I take vacations twice a year, for two to three days at most. However, my activities bring me pleasure. You could say that working is my form of relaxation. I am also a night owl, often staying up late at night, which also affects the balance between work and rest.

Where and How I Learn

I learn constantly, on a daily basis. The IT field is developing dynamically, especially regarding AI. It is important for me to constantly monitor innovations and understand where everything is heading.

I mainly watch videos, listen to podcasts, read articles, and e-books. On YouTube, I recommend channels such as TED, Big Think, and Khan Academy. Among podcasts, I recommend Lex Fridman, Stuff You Should Know, and The Tim Ferriss Show. I often visit Edx.org, MentalFloss, and The Positivity Blog to read articles.

I also receive a lot of information through the algorithms of Google, Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, Telegram, Reddit, and Quora, which constantly provide me with interesting material.

I also regularly attend events. Mostly those organized by us, IT Community of Uzbekistan, together with our partners. I also recommend them.

Environment

My environment consists of my close ones and my team. New people do not often appear in these lists. But once they join, they rarely leave.

I communicate with business people, representatives of science and art, athletes, and young people. The majority are from the IT field.

I rarely attend networking events. I am an introvert, and I go to events to give speeches, conduct master classes, and workshops. This is part of my work.

You can find like-minded people in IT through communities: specialized in your profession or general ones. Participate in conferences, hackathons, and other events, be proactive, and meet people.

How and Where I Spend My Free Time

I usually spend my free time at home with my family. At least once or twice a week, I try to play in table tennis tournaments. I almost always spend my rare vacations in the mountains.

My hobbies are table tennis, chess, music, cinema, mountains, and reading.

Where to Buy What

I am absolutely not demanding about technology. For me, it is enough if it performs basic functions, so I usually have everything inexpensive but not cheap. I have two simple criteria that help me make the right choice: good quality and an acceptable price.