This is what I’m up to at the moment – I’ll be updating this page at random, either when I start something exciting, or I remember that it exists!
Last updated: April 2024
Personal
House and home
I recently decided to replace the cladding on my house – and what an exercise that is! Because I’m upgrading the cladding material, I have to get council consent, which means I need architectural drawings… so it’s going to be a while before we can actually get around to the physical work on-site. I keep reminding myself that I’ll be so happy when it’s finished!
I’ve enjoyed a summer of reading, cooking, and hosting gatherings at my house, and I’m looking forward to plenty of cosy gatherings over winter.
Health and wellbeing
In October 2023, I finally had a cortisone injection in my foot to help a 2-year injury to heal. After a few months of intensive rehab, I recently joined the gym and am starting to bring some jogging into my workouts. After two years of almost zero cardio (because running, walking, swimming, cycling etc were impossible with the injury), I’m loving the endorphins, and seeing my fitness increasing.
My original goal was to complete a half-marathon in late 2024, but my rate of progress suggests that might not be achievable. So I’m in “watchful wait” mode – the event that I was originally targetting will happen just a few days before the third anniversary of my original foot injury, and there are multiple distances and run or walk options, so it will be a great way to celebrate my return from injury.
Helping out
My foot trouble has made me press pause on some of my volunteering. I supported Kindness Collective Foundation with the Christmas Joy Store – we helped out nearly 20,000 Kiwi kids and their whānau (families) with presents, food, and gift vouchers. The amount of gratitude from our shoppers was overwhelming, and it was so wonderful to know that so many people were going to have a better Christmas because of the generosity of donors and volunteers.
I can’t wait to get back to front-of-house at social restaurant Everybody Eats, a fantastic organisation that tackles food waste, food poverty, and social isolation. There are restaurants in Auckland (Onehunga & Glen Innes) and Wellington – check them out if you’re in the ‘hood!
There are so many benefits to volunteering, from the personal psychological boost, to having a positive impact in the world, to meeting new people and strengthening community ties. I gain so much from my volunteering experiences that I can’t imagine life without them.
Business
Products
I call myself an “accidental” creator – I never planned to make a product, but my frustration with some of the well-known strengths approaches led me to create The Strengths Deck in 2021.
I followed that up in early 2023 with my first book, ‘Unleash Your Awesome‘ (available in print, eBook, and audiobook format), and it’s had an amazing response. It’s available from the Store, Amazon and all your favourite eBook/audiobook platforms.
In 2024, I’m working on a new book, called, “Help, They Put Me In Charge!” for first-time leaders. I’ve interviewed established leaders to learn about their leadership journey, and what they wish they had known when they were starting out. And now I’m looking to talk to people who are right there in the throes of their first leadership role – if you know (or are!) someone who is a first-time leader, please drop me an email.
Services
The Strengths Deck
The Strengths Deck continues to go from (ahem!) strength to strength, for my coaching and corporate clients.
I run 1:1 and group Strengths Discovery sessions – why not set up a session for yourself, or get a bunch of friends or colleagues together? I promise that you’ll have plenty of “aha!” moments, and you’ll enjoy the process of clarifying your strengths, weaknesses, and everything in-between. And you’ll walk away armed with powerful, practical strategies to use your strengths to create the life and work you’ve been dreaming of.
Coaching
My coaching clients light up my world! I work with individuals at a variety of career stages – some are very senior leaders looking to hone their practice, others are just getting started and find it useful to have someone they can talk about their challenges and successes with.
From job changes to career progression to delivering sustainable high performance, my clients want to show up fully human and fully awesome, and they’re using their personal strengths to make that happen.
I have some capacity for new 1:1 coaching clients, so book your call if you’d like to talk about how working with a coach can help you get better results with more ease, energy, and fun.
Training & Facilitation
I work closely with several fantastic corporate clients on strengthening their leadership practices and leadership team culture. The workshops are insanely good – we see everything from laughter to tears, and everyone digs deep to consider their impact, hone their skills, and show up as the best versions of themselves.
I keep a strict lid on the number of 1:1 and corporate clients I work with so that they get the very best of me, every time. I currently have space for a limited number of new corporate clients – let’s chat if you want to level-up your leadership team and practice, for sustainable success.
Networking
I am always keen to meet more interesting people, so I’m often out and about at networking groups and events.
I’m a member of the Auckland Executive Club, a wonderful group of women from a range of industries who meet monthly for networking, dinner, and a speaker. Find out about our next event here, and if you’re signing up for a ticket, put my name down as the ‘Guest of’ and ‘Seated next to’, then send me an email to let me know you’ll be coming along. We’ll have a grand old time meeting in real life!
Outside of formal networking, I love meeting people online or in real life to share a cuppa and our stories. I’m constantly energised and inspired by the people I meet, and I’d love to get to know you better. Drop me a line if you’d like to book an Auckland-based catch-up, or book yourself a slot in my calendar for an online meeting.
What I'm excited about for 2024
In October 2023, I kicked off research for ‘Help, They Put Me In Charge’, and I’ve lost count of the number of people who have told me “They promoted me because I was good at what I did, but they didn’t teach me anything about leading people”.
I was fortunate that my first leadership role was in a company that was committed to developing all staff, whether in leadership roles or not, and my boss was an amazing coach and mentor.
I want to make it easier for more people to have that experience, so the book will be a practical guide to the skills emerging leaders need to be effective leaders, and will help established leaders to create a solid leadership pipeline, to prepare people for their first (and subsequent) leadership roles.
Other things I’m looking forward to in 2024:
- Rolling out some new training programmes and workshops for my corporate clients
- Developing the keynote side of my business
- Continuing on with my Personal Mastermind book club, and Coaching Circle of Practice. If you’re interested in learning more about either programme, drop me an email.
Why have a 'now' page?
Derek Sivers is the inspiration behind the ‘now’ page movement, and he explains the point of it here better than I ever could!
If you have your own website, why not set up your own ‘now’ page?
