Mahmoud grew up with different concepts about life. He became an educator, trainer, and designer of learning experiences. He combined philosophy and theater, academia and art, to eventually launch his own educational project, “Therefore Play” – an initiative based on play as a tool for learning, expression, and communication between people.
He says: “Today, I consider myself, above all, a teacher. I care more about people than anything else. I’ve worked and specialized in fields that touch on this passion, with an academic and engineering background. I started early on working with individuals and teams in self-development, institutional development, and education.”
To get to where he is today, Mahmoud had to play. A child of the war generation, he says, “The outside world was my real playground during childhood. We used to play in the square, behind the house, and among the olive trees. Outdoor play took up a big part of my day.” One of his favorite games was “Seven Stones.” He still remembers the details of the neighborhood and the stones. “We’d stack seven stones and try to knock them down with a ball, then rebuild them before the opposing team hit us.” Mahmoud believes these simple games shaped a different kind of awareness of play.
He adds: “As kids, we created new games with neighborhood friends, even though we were surrounded by danger during the war. We used to go play in the fields despite the risk of landmines. For us, adventure was part of the game.” He continues: “It’s not surprising that winning is a child's main goal.” But when Mahmoud won, it often caused tension among the children. Despite his young age, he decided to turn that tension into a life message. “When my friend lost, it was the first time I thought that some games aren't about winning – they’re about continuing together and creating a space we return to.” He affirms that such simple experiences at a young age helped him realize that play offers lessons far beyond rules.
Later, he discovered the concept of “finite and infinite games.” The former have a beginning and end, with winners and losers. The latter are played simply to keep the game going.
For Mahmoud, play didn’t remain just a childhood phase – it became a powerful professional tool. He studied psychology at university, eventually earning a PhD in education. During his academic journey, he also studied at the National Conservatory in Sidon (South Lebanon). He began with the oud and then moved on to the ney, which he describes as a magical instrument that he always carries with him. “The ney helps me create a new reality when I play it – during stressful moments or in training workshops. I believe music and play can open doors to deep human connection.”
Speaking about the “Therefore Play” initiative he founded, he says it offers a variety of activities aimed at companies, organizations, and individuals from different backgrounds. For organizations, he designs interactive workshops to foster team spirit, develop shared vision and mission, encourage creative and strategic thinking, and promote participatory future planning.
For individuals, the initiative supports self-growth, life skills development, reconnection, expanding imagination, openness to others, and psychological well-being. Through these activities, the initiative aims to strengthen people’s and institutions’ capacity to solve daily and professional problems, improve teamwork, and create healthy environments. “This initiative brings play back to its natural place – a tool for self-understanding and interacting with others.”
Mahmoud stresses the need to “change the traditional educational approach that resembles an industrial model, where learners are treated like factory products receiving uniform knowledge.” He believes education today needs a fundamental transformation in how learners, materials, and the entire learning process are approached. “The traditional method is no longer suitable. We need a new educational approach that resembles a playground more than a classroom – where roles are redefined, and the learner is at the center of the process. The teacher becomes a guide, supporter, and facilitator, not a transmitter of information.”
He explains that “through play, broader spaces for growth, thinking, and discovery open up, and learners’ abilities evolve more deeply and interactively. When the classroom becomes a real playground, learning turns from a heavy duty into a vibrant adventure full of experience and life.” For Mahmoud, “Play isn’t just a teaching tool, but an innate energy in every human – a natural capacity that doesn’t need training. Since childhood, we learned through play, developed communication skills, tested our imagination, learned how to resolve conflicts, and built relationships with the world.”
To him, play is “the third space – between reality and possibility, between who we are and who we could be. While traditional education focuses on rote learning, play changes the equation: there’s no passive recipient, everyone participates and interacts. The trainer and the learner grow together.”
He concludes: “For all these reasons, I chose play… not because it’s the opposite of seriousness, but because it’s a profound entry point to creativity, real learning, and both personal and collective growth.”