From Mega-Projects to Meaningful Learning
For over 15 years, I led procurement, quality assurance, and process design in multi-billion-dollar oil & gas projects — from South Pars gas field phases to ISO-integrated management systems across 20+ departments.
But my real drive has always been building things that teach, connect, and grow. Since 2012, I’ve moonlighted as a WordPress website developer, and in 2022, I founded Joy of Persian to share the depth of Persian language and literature with the world.
Joy of Persian: A Learning Platform, Not Just a Website
As founder, I shape every layer of the learner journey.
Strategy & Business Design
I define our ideal learner and craft our value proposition through the lens of the Value Proposition Canvas and Jobs-to-Be-Done framework — identifying learners’ pains, gains, and real motivations. Building on that foundation, I design our value ladder and business model to align our offerings with one core goal: making Persian feel alive and accessible. To validate these insights, I built a custom AI-powered Customer Journey Simulator that stress-tests personas, uncovers unmet needs, and guides iterative improvements across landing pages, copy, and course flows — turning data into meaningful design decisions.
Instructional Design Specialist
I transformed the “Fārsi bīyāmuzīm!” textbook into an optimized online self-study experience. I enhanced the content with key interactive features and developed the Let’s Learn Persian (A1–B1) courses, as well as the Beyond the Core (Thematic) Courses based on Dr. Leila SeyedGhasem’s “Teaching Persian to Foreigners” series. I also converted our team’s wonderful but raw Word documents and audio files into comprehensive, interactive Persian Literature courses using LearnDash and H5P — integrating grammar, culture, and poetry into engaging, measurable learning experiences. Our platform offers a unique combination of multimedia features such as Interactive Flashcards, Dual Audio (Formal & Spoken Persian), Instant Translations, and Synchronized Audio & Text, all thoughtfully designed to support every step of the learner’s journey.
Web Developer & Platform Architect
As the Instructional Design Specialist, I realized that many of the features we needed weren’t available in existing tools or plugins. Taking on the role of Web Developer and Platform Architect, I built our multisite WordPress ecosystem from the ground up. Using custom CSS, JavaScript, and PHP, I tailored the platform to our learners’ needs—optimizing UX and solving complex challenges such as seamless RTL/LTR integration for Persian alongside Latin-based languages (English, Turkish, etc.), a task even major platforms often overlook or fail to fully support. The result is a fast, secure, and scalable system—designed to grow from 100 to 10,000 students—and now expanding to serve learners whose first language isn’t English (our A1–A2 Turkish course is already live, with more languages on the way).
Content Marketer & Community Builder
I’m focused on growing our reach through SEO, Instagram, and YouTube. My background in statistics and experience consulting on marketing research projects (CBBE, SEM) gave me an analytical mindset — but these days, I’m learning the fun stuff: the Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok tricks that help us connect with more learners 🙂. I’m exploring the creative side of growth at my own pace — in between all the other things that come with being a founder.
Multimedia Design
In a larger team, this work would belong to dedicated design and media departments — but at Joy of Persian, I take on that creative role too. I design course and YouTube posters, enhance visuals used across lessons, and edit videos for Instagram, YouTube, and other channels. These projects tie together my instructional design and marketing work, helping us visually express Persian language and literature in engaging, accessible ways.
Beyond Work: Chess
I’m a lifelong chess enthusiast — inspired by the brilliance of Mikhail Tal, the fire of Rashid Nezhmetdinov, and today’s giants like Magnus Carlsen, Alireza Firouzja, and Parham Maghsoodloo. Iran’s rising star Sina Movahed and Turkey’s prodigy Yağız Kaan Erdoğmuş keep me glued to Lichess. With an ELO of around 1300, I’m far from a master, but I love playing to unwind and recharge.
Let’s Connect
Joy of Persian is still growing — one learner, one story, one idea at a time. I’m always open to connecting with educators, linguists, and creators who care about meaningful, human-centered learning experiences. If our mission resonates with you, I’d love to exchange ideas on LinkedIn.