(MENAFN- Khaleej Times)

Squeals of joy and hearty applause echoed through the halls of Sharjah International Book Fair (SIBF) on Friday evening as Oscar-winning actor Will Smith walked into the main hall of Expo Center. Wearing a white shirt and his characteristic smile, the 57-year-old shook hands with fans lined up there, before going up on stage.

Some kids sat perched on their parent's shoulders, while others stood on their seats to catch a glimpse of the actor before he entered. The lights dimmed and a short video consisting of some of Smith's most popular movie scenes played before the man himself walked in.

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Chatting with Emirati entrepreneur Anas Bukhash, Smith called on everyone to write their own story, revealing that his experience writing his book was“transformative".

“I encourage everyone to write your story,” he said.“It is such an enlightening process, to use words to write what you are experiencing.”

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He said that the process was transformative and gave him much more humility in his dealings with others.“Getting to know myself and having to be honest with myself about who I am versus who I thought I was is a humbling experience,” he said.“

It was in 2021 that Smith penned his memoir. Titled Will, the book maps Smith's transformation from a West Philadelphia kid to one of the biggest rap stars and Hollywood movie actors. It went on to become a #1 New York Times bestseller.

"Excited about the Middle East opening up"

He added that he was excited to work in the region where thousands of year's worth of stories remain undiscovered.“I'm really excited about the Middle East opening up,” he said.“It's one of the only places on earth that has thousands of years of stories that hasn't been mined on a global scale. So I'm really excited to be a part of the region as it is opening, to be able to work with creatives, find stories and tell stories.”

He added that storytelling was a powerful medium and that stories were often similar across cultures and borders.“There are things that are beyond race, creed, color and culture,” he said.“There are universally relatable ideas and that's where I live and that's where I work. I think my gift is that I can see the part of the story that doesn't need language to translate. I just take that piece and elevate that as the spine of the story- the universally relatable idea.”

When asked whether people misunderstood him, he replied that it was almost“impossible” for one person to understand another person.“We don't even understand ourselves,” he said, as the crowd broke into appreciative applause.

Quiet transformation

Over the course of the conversation that lasted for almost an hour, Smith delved into deep topics like his achievements, the importance of disconnecting from social media and the process of rediscovering his self-esteem.

When asked about his achievements, Smith said that he realized that success in the material world is“utterly incapable” of making people happy and that his real success came from knowing that his work, energy, ideas and God-given gifts are helpful to others.

He also advised the audience to disconnect from social media and spend solitary time.“The detox of that is critical because it can poison your mind,” he said.

According to Smith, over the last few years, he has been undergoing a quiet transformation where his self-esteem is concerned.“We all get trained to have other people approve of us starting with our parents,” he said.“Suddenly, we wake up one day and our self-esteem depends on other people saying that we're good enough. For me over the past couple of years, it has been the process of taking back my self-esteem from the world.”

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