‘Believing that all we have is time, I set out to be more than just another CEO’

Apart from having a busy schedule as CEO of The Concept Stadium and being a husband and a father of two beautiful girls, Jonathan Dalli has recently taken on the Camino de Santiago challenge to honour his late business partner Jonathan Chetcuti, raising €15,000 in the process to build a playground in Ethiopia in Jon’s name.

If there is something I aim to do in life is to ensure that I set myself to be more than just another CEO. The function is so much more than a title, which is somewhat cosmetic in my opinion. I am only part of a much bigger commercial creative team. And if there is something I want to say that I accomplished is that I inspired others to do the same. This I learnt through many years of hard work alongside my business partner, Jonathan Chetcuti, who sadly passed away back in 2020.

When becoming a CEO, many succumb to the pattern of working constantly and forgetting everything else that previously made them happy to be alive. Such a pattern is not only destructive for that person but also for any business and the respective team they would be leading. Putting all your eggs in one basket, meaning all your effort, time, and dedication into just your job can end up costing you greatly in the future.

As I grew professionally, I learnt the need for balance in life. I became aware that the phrase “I don’t have time” is just a lie we tell ourselves. All we have is time, and we decide who we choose to spend it with, what we choose to do with it and what tasks are not worth our time at that moment. “All we have is time” is my personal motto and it is inspired by the three milestones that I aim to follow through every day:

1. the corporate one, fulfilling my favourite part of my workday: working with the team. Together we ensure to deliver value to our clients;
2. the family one, ensuring to spend time with my wife and children giving me the love and the inner energy that I need to be able to contribute to other things in life;
3. and the personal one, pushing me to continue working for charities and supporting great causes that will allow me to leave something behind, when my own time comes.

The balancing act between these three elements is crucial to be able to sustain this “all we have is time” mentality.

The personal milestone is important to me as it keeps me aware that I am not living alone and that I too can instil positivity and do more. That’s why I decided to take on this Camino de Santiago challenge whilst continuing to ensure that people remember Jon and the love he had for life. I went a literal extra mile, and trust me, while my feet are killing me my heart has never been fuller.

Last year, together with Jon’s wife Elaine, we set up The Jonathan Chetcuti Program to support young athletes with great potential. This year, I trained hard and flew myself out to Spain where I walked almost 130 kilometers over five days from Sarria to Santiago de Compostela while raising money for a playground to be built in Ethiopia in Jon’s name. Several members of the public and local businesses supported this cause and donated over €15,000 through the Zaar Crowdfunding Malta platform. Now, in January, I will be going to Ethiopia to attend the inauguration of The Jonathan Chetcuti Outdoor Facilities in collaboration with the SiGMA Foundation. The outdoor facilities will be part of a school that is currently being built in Bonga, as part of a three-tiered project that also includes a Kindergarten and Primary School for 700 students.

Having the pleasure of working with Jon for 11 consecutive years, I was truly inspired by him to ensure that I am more than just another CEO. I am not the CEO of my organisation, but of our organisation, and I hope that through his love for life and my aim to ensure Jon is remembered, our team, our clients and our loved ones are also inspired to do more than just survive.

Jonathan Dalli co-founded The Concept Stadium and is passionate about Strategy as well as Corporate Social Responsibility and its link to Brand Marketing. He leads a team of professionals and creatives and consults several local and international brands and ventures on Branding, Tech and Marketing Strategy. He is driven to define a culture of Commercial Creatives, in which aesthetics and business performance objectives could co-exist and create their own eco-system.