Sahar Mirshafiei
Manager
About Sahar.
After running focus groups and conducting research on race riots and youth disenfranchisement for Warwick University, Sahar joined Mosi and Mulemba shortly after 2M’s inception – working from of a small windowless unit where night, day, and seasons were indistinguishable. Things have come a long way since then, and whilst the two M’s tended to machines far and wide, Sahar began building the infrastructure of 2M:
The design/launch/maintenance of quality systems/accounting systems/stock and inventory systems/export systems/R&D uplift schemes/grant schemes/social media platforms and content. She handles sensitive contracting and legalities between clients and suppliers, manages 2M partnerships with hardware specialists, assesses supplier performance and client feedback – brainstorming and creating the processes required to reduce project risks. She’s the in-house copywriter and marketer, and has built a brand identity based on radicalism and integrity.
She develops interactive concepts for clients seeking experiential installations, quoting clients on projects from spares to art pieces. Identifying and facilitating recruitment drives, Sahar needs to move with the times in terms of international standards/guidelines/legal requirements/and the physical environment of the business including office and workshop. Being mindful of the growth goals of both the business and individual team members, she prefers working in the shadows. Playing a pivotal role in the vision and ethos of 2M, her short term memory may be hazy at times (don’t ask her what she did yesterday), but her long view is robust.
Sahar has lent a hand or two in the past where extra resources have been required on control cabinet builds too, and needs a healthy overview of the business. She’s an abstract thinker and is responsible for bringing this technical forum to life.
For my counselling diploma I decided to research the prevalence of misrepresentation among counsellors. Unfortunately I’ve witnessed on a number of occasions how this can detrimentally impact clients. The research findings went on to be taught to third year counselling students within universities by my Supervisor who was a Lecturer.
Following on from that, I’d like to carry out some research on the impact of modern sales and business rhetoric on the psychological well-being of society. Based on the premise that incongruence (a disparity between what people say and what people do) is unsettling, I fear that as a society we may face an epidemic due to the increased prevalence and upholding of these strategies.
In contrast, at 2M we’ve always strive to keep things upfront and straightforward.
8 years ago I began training as a person-centred counsellor in my spare time. I really enjoy the ethos given it values equal and transparent relationships. So too does it hinge on the premise that each individual holds the key to their own solutions ~ therefore the discipline is not prescriptive or presumptive.
I went onto volunteer at two charities and also served as a Convener for 2 years. Working with clients in their senior years at one placement forever shifted my perception as the propensity to actualize remains in abundance. At my second placement I became aware of the injustices of no/low income and cutbacks ~ given clients manifest so much healing and progress in the environment of open ended counselling, which is denied most people on no/low income ~ and which is actually beyond the means of many on average income too.
In 2017, with much experience and a firm understanding of safeguarding within the discipline, I transitioned into my own practice which is proving very enjoyable and rewarding indeed.
I enjoy traveling to Tehran where I was born and capturing the culture and cuisine in snapshots. My Vine videos went viral in the middle of a trip there where I wandered around parks and behind the scenes at bakeries and house parties etc, capturing the breadth and scope of life. For my following trip users asked the Editor to highlight my work in anticipation. Conversely, the app asked me for a code a couple of days into the trip – a code that it would not accept. Therefore, I was digitally restricted from posting throughout that trip and user comments to the editor were deleted by the platform. These experiences shape my understanding of the shadow aims of digital.
Regardless, my videos have been played in schools and galleries, and it’s always rewarding sharing the ordinary lives of Iranians with the world.
Years later I did some Guest Shows on NTS Radio, which led to some Resident Shows there also, showcasing Iranian music from the 50s to modern day, inter-woven with storytelling in honour of the story and music cassette tapes I grew up listening to in Tehran as a child – some of those shows topped and entered Top 5 and Top 10 positions in the Persian, Classical, Reggae, and Folk Charts on Mixcloud which collates and compares worldwide output, such as DNA: Tehran’s Titans, DNA: Wild & Wistful, DNA: Renewal, DNA: Funky Pre-Coup, DNA: Reconcile, DNA: 38). At times, show write-ups disappeared, show tags and song names were not attributed or entered, a particular outro was cut short, and the show was deplatformed as I questioned certain narratives. My forewarnings all came to pass.
Retractions for my spoken word in the DNA series of shows include support expressed for: any politician (at the time I mentioned AOC and Ardern), any worldwide institution (at the time I mentioned the EU), any use of sun block, and the avoidance of using wool for clothing.
I have always been aware that I have to be ahead of the curve to advocate for and preserve my culture and humanity. At the same time, I rectify as I learn, as with my retractions above.
I’ve a very particular and unique way of perceiving and processing information, threads, and patterns.
By this tab you may have gained insight into my character which airs on anti-establishment whilst existing within establishment.
In summary, I am anti-psychological operations, whether they’re enacted and played out in the guise of wars, revolutions, social justice movements, or emergencies, all of which push fast and ill-considered change, scarcity, and upheaval in my view, and note them as shock and awe tactics against the whole.
For those of a spiritual, philosophical, religious persuasion:
As above, so below.
