Who am I?

The Real Story

Hey, I’m Khaled. And before I tell you about this blog, here’s the real backstory.

I’ve always been a bit… scattered. I used to jump from one thing to another, get bored quickly, and struggle to figure out what I actually wanted to do in life (to be honest, I’m still figuring it out). Later on, I discovered I have ADHD—way before it became trendy to say you do. It explained a lot.

From Combat Dreams to Career Curveballs

As a kid, I dreamed of being a world champion—of something. I was obsessed with martial arts, inspired by Jackie Chan and every kung fu movie hero out there. I bounced between styles, chasing the “ultimate martial art” without ever sticking to one long enough to go pro. Olympic sports never spoke to me. By the time I truly fell in love with boxing, it felt like it was too late.

Life had other plans anyway—injuries, accidents, setbacks. It became clear that maybe it just wasn’t written for me. I still train, still dream of maybe being a national champion one day. But I had to make peace with the fact that chasing a global title wasn’t in my cards. And honestly? With the mindset I had back then, I wouldn’t have made it anyway.

Finding Marketing (and Hating Jobs)

After university, I worked jobs I honestly hated. Just to pay the bills. But one day, while googling “how to make money online,” I stumbled into digital marketing. Something clicked. I knew this was it.

It was tough—cutthroat industry, tons of competition—but I studied hard, practiced harder, and eventually carved out a space for myself. Now, I’m proud to call myself a digital marketing expert. I’ve even made it to the top of my field, working across different industries with people from over 30 countries.

But even after 9+ years, moving between companies and roles, I realized something major: I’ll never be truly happy in a full-time job. Most of them are stressful, repetitive, and (let’s be real) kind of soul-crushing. I’ve tried many times to build something of my own, but my old ADHD-fueled patterns would always pull me in too many directions. I’d never stick with one thing long enough to succeed.

This time, I’m trying to do it differently. I want to combine my experience in digital marketing with my passion for travel and content creation—to become a full-time traveler and blogger one day. That’s the dream I’m working toward.

India: The Place That Rebuilt Me

The real shift happened when I got an internship in India. I lived there for over 6 months—and it changed everything.

For the first time in my life, I felt happy. Like genuinely, deeply happy. That trip helped me reconnect with myself. It pulled me out of years of anxiety, depression, and fog.

It also reminded me of something weird but beautiful. As a kid, I used to watch this Egyptian/Indian song called Nari Nari. The video was shot in India, and I’d imagine myself there, even though I never consciously wanted to travel to India.

Fast forward years later—I get this internship and boom, I’m in India without even planning it. And only once I was there, at the same place as the song clip, did I remember that old memory. That’s when I realized: some dreams are planted in your heart long before you understand them. You just need to grow into them.

Love, Istanbul & The Best Company

That India trip gave me the confidence I needed to confess to the love of my life. Less than two years later, she became my wife.

Another dream I had growing up was sipping Turkish coffee by the Bosporus. But this one didn’t come easy. After marriage, I had to rebuild again. I didn’t travel for 3 years. But when it finally happened, I wasn’t alone—I had the best company ever.

We spent 6 months in Istanbul together. It wasn’t all sunshine—we faced real challenges. But we made beautiful memories too. We even traveled to other countries (you’ll read about them on the blog), and we made a promise to never stop traveling and creating moments—no matter how hard things get.

Now, there’s a new addition to our crew—our awesome daughter—who’ll be joining our future adventures. She’s already got the spirit, and we can’t wait to explore the world with her.

What Travel Taught Me (That Instagram Didn’t)

One big lesson I’ve learned: most places don’t look as magical as the internet makes them seem. Our minds love to romanticize, but reality? It’s a bit messier—and that’s okay.

Even the less-than-perfect trips give you something valuable. New people. New lessons. New versions of yourself. That’s why I still love traveling.

And yeah, I’ve tried to travel just to create content… and it kind of ruined the trip. I didn’t enjoy it at all. So now I’m trying to balance both—documenting what I can, but keeping my mental health and joy at the center.

Why I Started ByKaly

This blog is the result of everything I’ve lived through so far—my love for travel, my background in digital marketing, my personal growth, and my never-ending curiosity.

I chose the name ByKaly because I didn’t want to limit myself to a specific niche. I’ve always had a hard time sticking to one thing, so I decided to embrace that. I wanted a name that’s evergreen—something that gives me the freedom to explore different topics. And “ByKaly” just means… by me. By Khaled Aly.

So whether I’m talking about travel, cultures, philosophy, life lessons, or random thoughts—it’s all real, all personal, and all written by me.

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