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In this week’s episode, Geoff chats with David Titeu, was a finalist of the National Protective Services Safety and Wellbeing in the Workplace Award and a finalist in the First National Leadership Award in the 2023 Victorian7NEWS Young Achiever Awards. He is a mental health advocate and social entrepreneur, devoted to creating solutions that promote holistic well-being. Also, a speaker, coach, and founder with a passion for empowering humans to embrace their unique voices and redefine vulnerability as a strength.
David Titeu is the founder of Linkmate, a social enterprise devoted to proactive emotional support. David and his team implement initiatives which foster a psychologically safe environment at work. These include displaying radical candour and vulnerability for deep collaboration; learning and development initiatives co-designed with leading experts to explore intersections of mental health; and an interconnected network of peer support, breeding empathy and companionship – or “Mateship”.a tangible difference in the lives of others and strengthening the sense of community.
Listen now on Spotify, Apple Podcasts or Google Podcasts.
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Transcript
00:00:08] david
Welcome to inspirational Australians, where we share stories of Australians making a difference in their communities and in the lives of others. We are inspirational Australians acknowledge the will one day and vulnerable people of the pool and nation as their traditional owners and custodians of the lands and waterways on which this podcast is produced. We pay our respect to elders, past and present, and those who are emerging and extend our respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, and inspirational Australians. We are inspired by the world’s oldest living culture and pay homage to their rich storytelling history. When we share stories on our podcast,
[00:00:58] Josh
My guest today is an extraordinary speaker coach, and he is the founder of blink made. Pretty significant contribution to mental health advocacy. David tittel was awarded the National protective Services, safety and well-being in the workplace category. In a twenty twenty three seven years young achiever Awards Typekit. It’s so wonderful to have you on the podcast today. How are you going?
[00:01:26] david
I’m grateful Firstly, to be on this podcast and join the ranks of other amazing award winners and finalists and adjust. I always see you speaking on stage at these Awards, Jeff and you have such a warm and inviting energy, so I’m, it’s rubbing off on me. So Thank you for making this a reality.
[00:01:54] Josh
Well, thanks so much. That’s very kind. Certainly love what I do and I love what you do to make a difference that can be no more rewarding outcome in life. So Thank you for all you do as well. It’s just such a privilege to be able to acknowledge people like yourself, who are amazing, who really inspire US to, for all of US, to continue in our life to do whatever it is we can do to make a difference. And David, you’ve achieved so much for so many. Congratulations for that. What led you down the path of founding link mine and all the work you do?
[00:02:36] david
Yeah, Firstly, just Thank you for Sharing those kind Words. It means
[00:02:39] david
a lot from you and from the whole Awards, Australia, community. And so the seed,
[00:02:50] david
all link made was really planted after I experienced my first battle with mental health. After finishing year twelve,
[00:03:03] david
my parents broke the news to me that they were getting
[00:03:05] david
a divorce. Which shook me. It devastated me. I really didn’t feel as
[00:03:12] david
though I had the right supports in place at the time to process it
[00:03:19] david
effectively.
[00:03:20] david
I’d moved in to call themselves living on campus studying performance
[00:03:25] david
at uni and I just felt so afraid of,
[00:03:32] david
of Social connection. I was incredibly anxious. I spent the better part of two years holed up in my room,
[00:03:43] david
trying to come to terms with what had happened and just craving and mourning. That
[00:03:49] david
loss. I think it meant, oh, I had
[00:03:52] david
a particularly profound impact on me because I’m an only child. I didn’t have
[00:03:59] david
siblings to turn to for solidarity and
[00:04:07] david
What I guess compounded those feelings of anxiety and stress was not getting the
[00:04:14] david
results I had hoped for at uni. So I was intending to finish five minutes and study
[00:04:21] david
medicine. And upon reflection,
[00:04:24] david
now I don’t really know if I truly wanted that, I think for a lot of our parents,
[00:04:31] david
I think for a lot of listeners out there, the who might be able to relate to this.
[00:04:36] david
You know,
[00:04:36] david
your parents may or may not have guided you down
[00:04:42] david
a specific path when it came to your career. And I felt like I had very
[00:04:49] david
high expectations and standards set for me by my parents to become
[00:04:54] david
a doctor. I’m sure I’m not the only one and that put
[00:05:00] david
a lot of pressure on me. And when I didn’t get in and I failed. My mom my
[00:05:07] david
interview to get into medicine. That just yeah, I mean, broke me. I feel like
[00:05:14] david
a complete and utter failure. I feel like that failure defined to me like my entire
[00:05:18] david
self-worth was wrapped up in achieving these study goals and mocks and Career targets,
[00:05:28] david
which now I look back on and I think that’s just part of learning and Learning to
[00:05:34] david
find self-worth and otherwise.
[00:05:36] Josh
But I also had already felt like you failed in terms
[00:05:40] Josh
of your parents breakup, and probably had the thoughts of what should I do?
[00:05:44] Josh
? What did I do wrong, that, you know, precipitated this or contributed to that. You know,
[00:05:49] Josh
probably already having those negative thoughts about your own ability and statements
[00:05:57] david
such to point to absolutely like, yeah,
[00:05:59] david
it’s so easy to fall into that trap of self-doubt and spiraling and wondering,
[00:06:05] david
you know, where do I go wrong?
[00:06:08] david
Yeah. So it’s, it’s difficult and not many people know this, but you know,
[00:06:13] david
my parents wanted, or there was a discussion of getting
[00:06:19] david
a divorce when I was around aged three. But my parents decided to stay together for
[00:06:24] david
fifteen years until I finished school to, you know,
[00:06:28] david
potentially protect my mental health in some ways. And so it may not interfere with
[00:06:35] david
my studies or something like that. So I mean, one can only imagine,
[00:06:40] david
appreciate the potential tension that may have brewed over a decade and a half and you know,
[00:06:50] david
trying to keep it all together for the sake of the child. So in any case, it was a very,
[00:06:56] david
very depressing time for me. I didn’t really know where to start. I felt lost
[00:07:00] david
directionless in my career. I picked up
[00:07:03] david
a few jobs but never really found my feet in the workforce. I worked in predominantly sales and fitness pharmaceuticals,
[00:07:13] david
health Care and all throughout I was subjected to
[00:07:19] david
a lot of what some might call toxic workplace cultures who I just didn’t feel comfortable I felt abused,
[00:07:26] david
discriminated against.
[00:07:28] david
And Whilst I was processing all of this and, you know, still struggling to find my feet in
[00:07:36] david
a career that I felt was right for me. My dad attempted
[00:07:42] david
suicide and I didn’t know about it. I didn’t know about it until
[00:07:50] david
I opened up to him about all the challenges I was facing. And that was really hard
[00:07:57] david
things for me to do because I perceived my dad to be quite
[00:08:03] david
a stalwart role model, growing up, you know,
[00:08:08] david
he would keep his emotions quite close to his chest and perhaps for fear that it might be seen as
[00:08:15] david
a weakness. So I grew up with that mentality and I grew up with the narrative that
[00:08:21] david
if you’re going through a tough time, put up,
[00:08:23] david
shut up and move on. And those Words like still ring echoing like this. But I know that that’s not
[00:08:32] david
a healthy coping mechanism.
[00:08:38] david
But really know what to expect. So when I opened up to that,
[00:08:40] david
I thought he would just tell me to put up shut
[00:08:42] david
up and get on with it. But I didn’t
[00:08:43] david
really know who else to turn to. I had a few friends,
[00:08:47] david
but I still felt uncomfortable Sharing everything regarding the divorce, the, the academic failures, the career failures,
[00:08:58] david
and something really special happened when I shared all this with dad, you know,
[00:09:04] david
instead of telling me to move on,
[00:09:08] david
he actually listened. He validated what I was going through and then almost as if
[00:09:15] david
he now felt he had permission and he felt comfortable to do so as well. The
[00:09:20] david
floodgates were open and he poured his heart out to me for the very first time and
[00:09:25] david
told me about all of the trauma he faced migrating to Australia, from Romania,
[00:09:32] david
the discrimination. He faced the journey through refugee camps sleeping on park
[00:09:37] david
benches. The divorce and the emotional turmoil that he went through and the attempts to end his life. And
[00:09:50] david
it sounds confronting, and it was, it was incredibly confronting. But I’m really grateful for it because it actually
[00:09:58] david
brought US a lot closer together. You know, we both knew what it was like to feel
[00:10:06] david
a sense of despair To lose hope.
[00:10:14] david
And that’s really powerful. And that was
[00:10:17] david
a safer link. Because I realized in that moment that we both navigated the mental
[00:10:22] david
health Care system with challenges. We found it difficult to connect meaningfully
[00:10:28] david
with a psychologist for the counselor. You know, I’m grateful now that I have
[00:10:33] david
a psychologist who I feel comfortable opening up to who asks me, you know,
[00:10:40] david
really thought provoking questions and empowers me. But it was really difficult.
[00:10:45] david
And for those listening, you might be on this journey right now.
[00:10:49] david
And who might be,
[00:10:51] david
you know, perhaps you or someone you know,
[00:10:53] david
is trying to access support and between costs waiting lists distance the Sony
[00:10:59] david
barracks, the people run up against. And what I learned is that it’s, yes,
[00:11:04] david
it’s so tough. I see it as
[00:11:06] david
a game of trial and error in some ways because it does take time to find who you
[00:11:12] david
truly resonate with. But this whole interaction with done showed to me that when we
[00:11:18] david
can actually find someone who shares those same feelings as US, it creates a space of trust,
[00:11:29] david
solidarity. And for both of US, it was living proof that we felt more comfortable opening up to one another,
[00:11:36] david
potentially even saving our lives in the process as well. So that spawned the idea
[00:11:42] david
for link back, which was really to bring together people in
[00:11:45] david
a space virtually since we’re all tech savvy humans these days.
[00:11:54] Josh
I think the numbers
[00:11:57] david
are somewhat, some of the numbers. Yeah, that’s right. But you know,
[00:12:03] david
the Luddites out there as well. This is an approach that works even better
[00:12:10] david
in person and for everyone really, this whole notion of peer support,
[00:12:14] david
which is what dad and I did know what we were doing at the time,
[00:12:17] david
but it was the practice itself. An approach which is evidence based has a lot of support behind it,
[00:12:24] david
and really hinges on people. Sharing their own lived experiences of mental health challenges in a purposeful by listening,
[00:12:35] david
holding space for the other person. Displaying empathy and Sharing their own
[00:12:42] david
lessons learned and framing it in a way that builds hope, I guess for the future.
[00:12:50] Josh
What doesn’t get more important when did you start?
[00:12:53] Josh
? So when did all this come about when doodling might Come to be?
[00:13:00] david
This was towards the end of twenty nineteen so covid actually was
[00:13:09] david
A blessing in some ways occurs in other Words, but certainly
[00:13:13] david
a blessing in the sense that it gave me the time to reflect
[00:13:20] david
on was it worth spending all my time in a job that didn’t fill me with
[00:13:30] david
You know, that I wasn’t enjoying that,
[00:13:32] david
didn’t fulfill me Ultimately. And as all of this happened and the idea came to me
[00:13:38] david
and I enjoyed working on it, it just naturally gave more way to to making it a reality,
[00:13:48] david
I suppose. And using the time in covid to chip away at it,
[00:13:54] Josh
I don’t want to move on without saying that,
[00:13:59] Josh
that discussion between you and your dad was clearly critical to both of you. And Empowering and on
[00:14:09] Josh
a stress the importance as you have of just talking to someone finding someone and
[00:14:15] Josh
you never when it could be the person least expect that will be the most willing to listen. So yeah,
[00:14:25] Josh
it’s just so important for everybody. We all have stressors, that we might not even realize at
[00:14:33] Josh
a building and just to chat. One of the things that I love most in life is
[00:14:40] Josh
my Saturday morning tennis and which precipitates
[00:14:45] Josh
a coffee catch up with the team mates and we just chat and that to
[00:14:51] Josh
me is so powerful and important. So take time, just to share, share yourself, share your journey,
[00:14:58] Josh
share what’s going on in your week. And it’s an opportunity for others then to also
[00:15:04] Josh
talk about what’s concerning troubling, good as well. Talk about the good things. Because they are really important. And
[00:15:13] Josh
don’t just focus on things that are wrong,
[00:15:16] Josh
but to get that chance and have that chance for the Okay.
[00:15:19] Josh
And for you,
[00:15:20] Josh
that was Empowering has led you to link. Right? So,
[00:15:24] Josh
and there are plenty of people out there probably think who really came to know how
[00:15:29] Josh
that journey started and what was the Key behind the success of that happening. So
[00:15:36] Josh
what were the Key aims and purposes of link man, and how did you strategize that?
[00:15:41] Josh
? You talked about getting it right. How did that all come to be and what steps did
[00:15:47] Josh
you take to ensure that was going to happen?
[00:15:50] david
Yeah, look, first thing before I ask that Jeff, I just want to acknowledge what you said before. Firstly,
[00:15:57] david
I love the fact that you carve out time with good nights to play tennis, to have
[00:16:03] david
a coffee and then to have those conversations. I think that’s just such a wonderful way to you know,
[00:16:11] david
promote healthy conversation. I think in some ways a lot of people prefer doing an activity whether it’s going for
[00:16:21] david
a walk or kicking the footy or you know, whatever it might be, having
[00:16:27] david
a coffee and that, and brings people together. It’s sort of like
[00:16:32] david
a ritual or an activity that naturally brings people together and you know, conversations can, can,
[00:16:40] david
can spark and meaningful conversations can spark. So I just want to Thank you for
[00:16:44] david
bringing that up because it is such an important reminder to, to,
[00:16:50] david
to use those opportunities as ways to connect deeply. Do you find that
[00:16:57] david
by having those hits of the tennis ball and having
[00:17:01] david
a coffee it is easier to to then go deeper with it with your friends and find out
[00:17:07] david
more about, you know, I guess some of the emotions that they’re experiencing.
[00:17:12] Josh
Yeah. One hundred percent,
[00:17:13] Josh
you know, we talk about the highs and lows of how I guess in a group can be
[00:17:19] Josh
a little bit more difficult to be personal. But certainly as we grow to know each
[00:17:25] Josh
other, it does become easier to share issues and problems. And generally more on a work basis I guess,
[00:17:34] Josh
but because we all know each other’s families quite so well. But I think, you know, in that regard,
[00:17:41] Josh
if you sense that there is an issue that’s when it’s really important to talk to
[00:17:46] Josh
that individual. On a more personal basis, I was not sure if everything’s okay. You mentioned this and I am,
[00:17:54] Josh
I have been nothing, but I’m just, you know,
[00:17:57] Josh
I want you to know I’m here for you when you need,
[00:17:59] Josh
if you need. And that can be any situation, work in your personal life.
[00:18:07] Josh
If you say my,
[00:18:09] Josh
my team often tongue in cheek,
[00:18:12] Josh
I think I think sometimes rib me and say you’re so embarrassing because you talk to
[00:18:18] Josh
everybody. And I do have a smile that everybody, some people might think, you know,
[00:18:24] Josh
that’s a bit weird, but you know, I really don’t care because I’ve had people to turn around and said,
[00:18:30] Josh
you just met my day. Just that smile was really important to me right up this
[00:18:35] Josh
minute. I talked to people in the elevator, I asked them how they’re doing. You know,
[00:18:40] Josh
what are you doing in Hobart or Sydney or what are you doing on holidays you’re
[00:18:44] Josh
working. You have a great day, I think says whatever it is you’re going to be doing at
[00:18:51] Josh
a restaurant. It doesn’t matter when I traffic lights,
[00:18:57] Josh
but Mark checked, people that you know, going up to and people say, oh,
[00:19:03] Josh
I think I’m in. You know what if they do that’s, that’s on them,
[00:19:07] Josh
but I make someone’s day at centre and then that federal bonus
[00:19:13] david
you’re a gym, human Jeff, we need to enable people like you, I think that’s, that’s really such
[00:19:19] david
a wonderful thing to go on. And because you never really know what someone is going
[00:19:24] david
through and that, that chance encounter that smile,
[00:19:27] david
that complement that check in and asking how the date is going. That that really
[00:19:32] david
can just turn their entire mood around and potentially life around as well. If
[00:19:38] david
they’re, if they’re really struggling. So Thank you for Sharing that.
[00:19:42] david
That’s,
[00:19:42] david
you know, I think the role modelling some just amazing, wonderful behaviours.
[00:19:49] Josh
I can only try and I think the Key David is not to not to
[00:19:52] Josh
think you need to be perfect to be outgoing or to share or just to, you know,
[00:19:58] Josh
whatever it is with people to engage because no one is supposed to stop worrying
[00:20:04] Josh
about trying to be perfect and be worrying forever because we’re never going to get
[00:20:08] Josh
there. And people just need to accept you for who you are if you want to. If
[00:20:14] Josh
a comment is not spot on or people take it wrongly,
[00:20:18] Josh
then of course you just need to open through what you meant. But it’s so important
[00:20:25] Josh
as to be there for people and engage and you never know when someone may need you
[00:20:31] Josh
in a moment. So yeah, Thank you
[00:20:35] david
absolutely agreed.
[00:20:37] Josh
So with your, with link mate, how did you, I guess, strategized that,
[00:20:43] Josh
that was going to be impactful and appropriate and, you know, be helpful to people.
[00:20:51] david
Great question.
[00:20:54] david
I had no experience prior to launching any adventure or business or project or sort of impact project.
[00:21:07] david
So I immediately asked myself the question, where can I get help?
[00:21:16] david
And I think one of the biggest lessons that I’ve learned from my journey and
[00:21:23] david
certainly hinges on the entire lincolnite model is always, always ask for help. So there are
[00:21:32] david
a number of things I did. One I reached out to every role model.
[00:21:39] david
Every amazing,
[00:21:41] david
successful driven change maker found a leader in the field in the field of entrepreneurship in the field of mental
[00:21:52] david
health that I could find. And I asked for their help whether it was a cold. I mean,
[00:21:59] david
most of them were just cold messages on LinkedIn. I’m working with
[00:22:04] david
a number of coaching clients at the moment as well, who have benefited from this because no,
[00:22:12] david
not. I don’t see too many people doing that and it can be really valuable when you
[00:22:16] david
position what you’re doing. And coming from a place of admiration for the other person,
[00:22:25] david
for what they’ve achieved and accomplished. And then just asking for their help.
[00:22:31] david
You know, if someone comes to you for help, how does that feel right?
[00:22:34] david
You feel needed. You feel You feel like you’re valuable. And it’s, it’s really, it’s really helped me
[00:22:45] david
a lot. So I got to speak to some really amazing inspiring people.
[00:22:51] david
And
[00:22:53] david
a part of that led me to asking for more help through different competitions,
[00:23:01] david
incubators, accelerators, which really taught the fundamentals of building a business from the ground up. Because I didn’t know that,
[00:23:09] david
right. Like I could watch motivational video after motivational video on YouTube. And I did,
[00:23:17] david
but it wasn’t really Helping me move the needle forward On, on link my it. So I’m, I’m,
[00:23:27] david
I first applied to an innovation competition that the National Society of high
[00:23:34] david
School scholars was running. So that’s an organization in the States founded by the
[00:23:41] david
Nobel prize family. And they invited me to be
[00:23:47] david
a part of the community after I expressed an interest in studying abroad in,
[00:23:53] david
in the States. Whilst I decided not to do that in the end,
[00:23:58] david
they still extended an invite to this innovation competition. And this was around
[00:24:04] david
the same time when I think it was starting to take
[00:24:11] david
shape. And I applied and we won, we won ten thousand US dollars, which was incredible. I mean,
[00:24:21] david
I was just in awe and incredibly tired. I was sort of pitching at like two
[00:24:27] david
AM our time. And the only Aussie out of a sea of American students.
[00:24:36] david
But you know,
[00:24:37] david
it just taught me that we have something here, you know,
[00:24:41] david
people believe in the mission and they can see the value in this,
[00:24:46] david
in this approach in this, in this, you know,
[00:24:50] david
philosophy about product and that seed money was just exactly what you know
[00:24:56] david
what we really benefited from to start spreading the word to, to, to build out
[00:25:03] david
a team. And to continue doing that, I still didn’t have all the answers,
[00:25:08] david
but I applied to other incubators, like Melbourne accelerator program,
[00:25:13] david
run operating accelerator. Again, you know, if you’re in this journey now, he’ll listen and I want to start
[00:25:21] david
a business. Not sure where to begin. Now. Highly encourage you to reach out to
[00:25:28] david
people on LinkedIn. Like I did to coaches, to mentors, and to incubators,
[00:25:33] david
accelerators. These are wonderful initiatives. Designed to support early stage founders and the velocity program was such
[00:25:44] david
a memorable experience for me. This was still during covid. So we were for the most part,
[00:25:50] david
doing it virtually. But I got to meet other people like myself who had an idea and
[00:25:57] david
they wanted to make it real and they want to bring it to market. When you bring
[00:26:03] david
together a community of like minded You know, really driven people like that. It’s just build so much accountability and,
[00:26:12] david
and inspiration and motivation and discipline. And I learned so much from the others. I learned so much from the,
[00:26:20] david
the mentors and the leaders that ran different sessions for US on business models and you know, customer discovery,
[00:26:30] david
product market fit and all the rest. And so that really not only helped me get
[00:26:41] david
You know, learn the fundamentals of, of building this out and making it a commercial reality,
[00:26:45] david
but also managing to the pitch and win more funds to, to grow it. So that’s, that’s,
[00:26:58] david
that’s what I would say are just the most helpful helpful
[00:27:05] david
things that I did to just start and gain some early momentum and I would boil it
[00:27:11] david
down to asking for help more than anything else.
[00:27:16] Josh
Well, I think that’s great advice for listeners who are looking to go on
[00:27:20] Josh
a journey of support and making a difference in whatever field,
[00:27:25] Josh
whether it be mental health or any area of Community support or even the business
[00:27:31] Josh
that you say great, great ideas and great,
[00:27:36] Josh
great great help. So that’s the beginning of the journey for me. How many
[00:27:43] Josh
people do you feel that you impacted and have impacted over the journey with their mental health?
[00:27:54] david
Thousands and Thousands. And you know what, what I would want to add as well, you know, this,
[00:28:06] david
the thing is about like when, when starting off,
[00:28:10] david
especially if you feel like you’re lacking in a specific skill set, you know,
[00:28:17] david
whether it’s sales, whether it’s marketing, software development, whatever it might be,
[00:28:24] david
go out and find people that can complement that skillset or that you know, fill, fill that gap in your,
[00:28:34] david
in your fill that gap where you might be lacking. So I think so for me
[00:28:42] david
initially I thought, you know, I have to try and do it all myself. And I think
[00:28:46] david
a lot of people get stuck in that mentality. So I wanted to share this
[00:28:53] david
because it’s, it’s an important reminder that What you know,
[00:28:58] david
what I’ve learned is when I play to my strengths and I found others to address my
[00:29:05] david
weaknesses and let them play to their strengths. You know, we gained
[00:29:10] david
a lot of momentum and for me that was Warren,
[00:29:15] david
I’m really grateful for him. He and I worked at the same company
[00:29:22] david
in the early stages of LinkedIn. And he is a software developer by trade. So when I, you know,
[00:29:30] david
I created an app I, you know,
[00:29:35] david
I’m grateful to have met him and helped to work with him and leverage his skill
[00:29:42] david
set and talents to make it a reality. Because I wouldn’t touch codes with
[00:29:48] david
a ten foot pole. And I still probably wouldn’t so yeah,
[00:29:54] david
I wanted to share that because it can be tempting to try and be the hero. Right.
[00:30:00] david
And do it on your own. But I learned that there’s this power and in asking for help.
[00:30:08] Josh
I think sometimes we’re afraid to ask of help for help. Not only because maybe we
[00:30:13] Josh
feel that we’re not good enough or people will see weakness. But also we’re afraid
[00:30:20] Josh
to ask for help because we don’t want to burden people. And we want to put our own
[00:30:24] Josh
problems on the people, but I think you touched on it. David,
[00:30:29] Josh
there are people who are waiting and wanting to help because it empowers them,
[00:30:33] Josh
Gives them joy in knowing that they’re contributing to something or someone
[00:30:41] Josh
or both. Now you may think marriage really quite stretched across the globe, hasn’t it? What are some of the,
[00:30:50] Josh
how far reaching is linked linked link made and what are some of the achievements
[00:30:57] Josh
or the regions that you’ve been able to obtain? I’m proud of. Yeah.
[00:31:06] david
Wonderful question. And you know, Firstly again, I think, you know, you brought up something really important, Geoff, around that,
[00:31:14] david
that feeling of burdening others. And I can relate to that because I used to do,
[00:31:18] david
I used to feel like Sharing my feelings with others would be a burden.
[00:31:25] david
And frankly,
[00:31:30] david
If, if someone feels burdened, but if someone felt burdened by my feelings,
[00:31:38] david
then I would give them this space. And I would try again with
[00:31:45] david
someone else. Ultimately, you know, we can’t always be expected to,
[00:31:51] david
to hold space for others. We all have our own challenges. But more often than not,
[00:31:56] david
I do believe that there is good in each of US and that we do want to be of service
[00:32:02] david
in some way, shape or form. So no one ever has said to me, you’re
[00:32:08] david
a burden. Something I can’t you know,
[00:32:11] david
I can’t talk to you. I think we often suffer more in our imagination
[00:32:19] david
Than in reality. That’s. That’s not a my quote, but it is
[00:32:24] david
a great quote by someone. And yet in response to your question, Geoff,
[00:32:33] david
What I, one of the things I’m most proud of is the research that we were able to generate
[00:32:40] david
and put together that supported link mice approach. So, you know,
[00:32:45] david
one of my dearest friends Freya works as a, as a, as a, a tutor,
[00:32:54] david
a lecturer at rmit. And she is another gem of a human,
[00:33:02] david
a passionate about mental health and teaches that to the students and
[00:33:09] david
the various intersections around gender as well. And when I came to her with the
[00:33:14] david
idea, she said, we’ve got to do some research around it as, as a you know, passionate academic would,
[00:33:23] david
will likely say.
[00:33:24] david
And I was so grateful for that because when we did, we got together Sort of
[00:33:32] david
a pool of students. Some were trained to provide peer
[00:33:39] david
support and others access the app for support. And we found that
[00:33:47] david
Those participants in the study felt closer to others. More confident tackling that,
[00:33:54] david
tackling their problems and more optimistic about the future as well after using
[00:34:01] david
the app. And that, that is something I’m particularly proud of because it,
[00:34:07] david
it just demonstrated the impact that we can have and solidified it, I guess,
[00:34:14] david
through research. Beyond and above and Beyond that just being able to expand
[00:34:23] david
it to universities. So we worked with you know,
[00:34:28] david
we’ve worked with Key guilds for supporting students at the Queensland University
[00:34:33] david
of technology. Because I know what it’s like to to, to struggle at uni. In fact,
[00:34:41] david
that was when I experienced the heaviest and darkest struggles,
[00:34:47] david
so that targeting and supporting and serving this particular segment was really
[00:34:53] david
important to me and to our team. So being able to do that is something I’m
[00:34:59] david
certainly proud of working with, with corporates as well and running emotion resilience workshops. And I remember
[00:35:08] david
one specific One specific workshop that we ran
[00:35:14] david
on how to support colleagues in the workplace at the end of the workshop. One of
[00:35:21] david
the senior partners at the firm stood up and bravely
[00:35:28] david
shared his own struggles with mental health and how it impacted him and his family
[00:35:33] david
and his work in front of a sea of you know,
[00:35:38] david
superiors and peers and direct reports in front of the entire time in the workplace,
[00:35:47] david
I’ve never seen that ever in my life and the fact that we were able to do that and
[00:35:52] david
say, you know this, this leader role model, really just amazing qualities of,
[00:36:01] david
of courage strength and authenticity was beautiful. And I’m really, I’m still really touched by that and proud of it.
[00:36:13] Josh
Yeah, I think I think what that showcases also, David is that, I mean,
[00:36:19] Josh
must understand that people, if people react to something, it might be for
[00:36:25] Josh
a reason, something that we’re not aware of, you know, everybody in
[00:36:29] Josh
a workplace personally has their own associated problems. They may have
[00:36:36] Josh
something that has not gone well before them got to work and we don’t know about
[00:36:41] Josh
that. So we just need to understand that a reaction from someone is not
[00:36:46] Josh
a personal thing on US. And I think we need to look internally and
[00:36:53] Josh
be happy with what makes US happy. We were able to make others happy. So don’t take
[00:36:58] Josh
things personally from someone. Just look internally for what’s,
[00:37:04] Josh
how we feel about ourselves and then be happy with that. And if we do that,
[00:37:10] Josh
I think in part that’s kind of say, well, okay,
[00:37:13] Josh
well maybe I’m not taking it personally. It’s probably something that’s happening
[00:37:19] Josh
with them that we maybe can help in. So rather than being taken in front of
[00:37:25] Josh
insulted or thinking negatively about that person, we could say well in another moment, how you doing is,
[00:37:35] Josh
I think is good. Just trying to subtly check on their well-being and not make
[00:37:42] Josh
it a personal thing on their well-being.
[00:37:45] Josh
That probably doesn’t make a lot of sense, but I think, you know,
[00:37:48] Josh
we look outwardly and worry about what other people are thinking and now they’re
[00:37:54] Josh
treating US rather than inwardly matter how we feel. If we’re happy then we can
[00:37:59] Josh
treat other people well and not take things personally and react to this really.
[00:38:05] Josh
Okay. I know I didn’t do that very well, but hopefully it makes some sense.
[00:38:11] david
No, it did. And I think this is really important because almost every single person I
[00:38:18] david
talk to has, has suffered or struggled with this. You know,
[00:38:22] david
this idea and this worry and the rumination about what does this person think of me?
[00:38:30] david
And I’ve been there as well, right?
[00:38:31] david
And it’s, I think it’s, it’s common, I believe it’s a product of our ego,
[00:38:38] david
potentially trying to protect US in some way. What I’ve learned though,
[00:38:44] david
is everyone’s having these thoughts. And it’s called the spotlight effect where, you know, you walk into
[00:38:53] david
a room at an event and you’re worried about what everyone’s thinking of you. But more often than not,
[00:39:00] david
everyone’s thinking the exact same thing. So and think about when you think of
[00:39:06] david
someone, you know, you might only just think about them for
[00:39:10] david
a moment or two. And then you start thinking right back to, you know, you know,
[00:39:16] david
your worries, the stresses or your wins losses,
[00:39:18] david
whatever it is. And there’s this great quote, I’m not sure who said it,
[00:39:24] david
it’s what you think of me is none of my business. And I
[00:39:31] david
love it. And it’s helped me.
[00:39:35] david
It’s helped liberate me from any
[00:39:38] david
worries about what other people think along with that sort of spotlight
[00:39:45] david
effect philosophy where know we’re all we’re all thinking the same so yeah, just focus on yourself.
[00:39:53] Josh
Well, I think you’re right, it’s none of your business,
[00:39:55] Josh
but also it doesn’t matter. As long as I’m living. Well, being me,
[00:40:02] Josh
that should be enough. And I guess to the point you might have had your work in the
[00:40:06] Josh
roof and the room and everybody’s feeling the same. You’re quite right. So if we do
[00:40:13] Josh
not think about US and we give that smile that we would normally do,
[00:40:17] Josh
then it’s probably going to ease twenty other people that say it and then they’re
[00:40:21] Josh
going to be relaxed. And so it might have
[00:40:23] Josh
a multiplying effect to is and common room rather than being put in
[00:40:30] Josh
with an old person and thinking, oh, you know,
[00:40:33] Josh
I’m worried about what everybody’s thinking and what to say. So I’m just going to
[00:40:38] Josh
look nervous and worried and compounds. The problem and the site and think that
[00:40:42] Josh
everybody else is thinking and you said, and I think that is
[00:40:45] Josh
a real valuable comment that you made. So be said I’ll be outward and if people don’t like it,
[00:40:53] Josh
it’s not my business. And it doesn’t matter because I’m just being me and that to
[00:40:58] Josh
me is enough. I’m thinking that way.
[00:41:01] david
Yeah. And just what I would add to that as well,
[00:41:04] david
Jeff is what has helped me and is what I think you do really well from what you
[00:41:09] david
said earlier is focusing on others focusing on how you can serve others. Right?
[00:41:16] david
Like when you say, are you going to the barista who serves you coffee or you know,
[00:41:21] david
you smile at a stranger as you pass them by on the street. You know, you’re,
[00:41:27] david
you’re wrapped up in making someone else’s day special. You’re focused on serving
[00:41:34] david
and that’s where your attention and your energy is,
[00:41:36] david
is going and flowing. So there’s no reason to get wrapped up in what other people
[00:41:43] david
think and your own ruminations when all you want to do is just be of service.
[00:41:50] david
So, you know, I think that’s helped me
[00:41:53] david
a lot in terms of dealing with social anxiety and having those worries and thoughts.
[00:42:00] david
And I think Alison has yet to learn a lot from your approach, Jeff. Because I think it’s really Yeah,
[00:42:10] david
it’s really Noble.
[00:42:12] Josh
Well, I think selfishly too David, is that in return you get
[00:42:17] Josh
a great satisfaction of Helping someone. So it’s giving but it’s also taking that
[00:42:23] Josh
person does say Thank you you just made my day. Gives you the greatest joy to carry
[00:42:29] Josh
you through the day and into weeks and months and years ahead. Knowing that you
[00:42:34] Josh
impact that someone.
[00:42:35] Josh
So it’s the giving that is the taking and the getting back,
[00:42:39] Josh
the happiness and joy that you get of doing that. And and how it goes into
[00:42:46] Josh
social impact impact plays a big part in linked by doesn’t it had
[00:42:51] Josh
a social impact on mental health in entwined Mhm.
[00:42:58] david
Yeah, that’s a that’s an awesome question.
[00:43:00] david
I am, I believe in many ways that mental health is
[00:43:07] david
a social justice issue. You know, everyone has the right to
[00:43:18] david
To having good mental health and having access to supports which bolster and maintain good mental health. And if there
[00:43:32] david
are barriers, If there are challenges, costs That interfere with someone’s ability to uphold their
[00:43:46] david
rights to good mental health, then I think that becomes a social justice issue and it becomes
[00:43:54] david
a social impact opportunity. So I think that’s, that’s where the intersection is. It’s, it’s, it’s, it’s a social issue,
[00:44:08] david
I believe, and certainly impacts everyone on the planet. Because at some point in everyone’s life,
[00:44:23] david
they will experience some concern, some challenge that will impact their mental health that will impact the social and
[00:44:34] david
emotional health. I
[00:44:36] Josh
mean, touched on it earlier when you talked about the work you do in the workplace, and it’s
[00:44:43] Josh
a big part of why you won your award. Is the work that you do in the workplace?
[00:44:48] Josh
And you do. And you have collaborated with experts to implement initiatives to
[00:44:55] Josh
foster a psychologically safe environment at work. Can you tell US a little bit about that impact?
[00:45:05] david
Yeah, absolutely. So yeah, Firstly, I want to preface this by saying that I’ve had no I’ve had
[00:45:16] david
no teaching education certification in mental health. I only have my limited experience. So in order to put together these
[00:45:28] david
programs in order to put together this research to run workshops,
[00:45:34] david
I could not have done it without you know, amazing time. You know,
[00:45:40] david
we had an advisory board of people with the requisite qualifications
[00:45:47] david
in psychology and counseling. I want to shout out the name,
[00:45:51] david
there is one of the leading one of the leaders in the mental health field right now.
[00:45:58] david
And I’m really blessed to have had him as
[00:46:00] david
a learning and development advisor to really steer the direction of these
[00:46:06] david
initiatives to make sure that they’re evidence based and up to date
[00:46:14] david
and our entire workshop facilitation. I am comprised of, of Collier and Nicole, Grace Adam and Liv.
[00:46:31] david
So everyone has had their own lived experience and they’ve also done work in peer support and they’ve,
[00:46:38] david
they’ve had the training and the education to create impact. So being able to
[00:46:46] david
go into the workplace and run these workshops and help colleagues, employers,
[00:46:52] david
employees alike, learn how to comfortably ask for help, confidently support their peers and future proof. Their mental health through
[00:47:02] david
healthy conversation was, was our aim was always our intention and it, it meant that I think it was
[00:47:14] david
a data point. So over, so not over ninety four percent of our workshop participants felt confident or,
[00:47:26] david
or very confident reaching out for help. After attending the workshop and I think
[00:47:32] david
a big part of that is due to the fact that we really
[00:47:40] david
normalised the conversation about mental health and presented it in
[00:47:45] david
a way that made people feel like they could relate to it. Because Ultimately,
[00:47:51] david
I think one of the most powerful things that anyone can do to
[00:47:58] david
help someone else feel comfortable opening up is just to relate to what they’re
[00:48:02] david
going through. When you relate to someone,
[00:48:05] david
they feel like you get it.
[00:48:07] david
They feel less alone. They feel more deeply connected
[00:48:12] david
to you and they’re likely to open up and to liberate that burden.
[00:48:17] Josh
And so train. You also do a lot of self-empowerment coaching for young professionals and budding founders and business owners.
[00:48:28] david
Yes, yeah, that’s right. You know, as you know, as we’ve talked about so far, Jeff, I’ve just got,
[00:48:37] david
I’ve learned so much on this journey with length,
[00:48:39] david
but more so than I have in any degree in any job that I’ve ever been
[00:48:47] david
or that I’ve studied. So I feel, I don’t know,
[00:48:54] david
I just feel called to give back because I know that there are a lot of you know,
[00:49:01] david
young working professionals that struggle with self-confidence that struggle with those, you know,
[00:49:09] david
worries about what other people think that we talked about You know,
[00:49:14] david
may not have healthy habits in place to bolster their mental health
[00:49:21] david
because I know what it’s like to go through that and I know how damaging it can be,
[00:49:27] david
especially when you have, you know, ambitions and goals like starting
[00:49:33] david
a business like like making an impact in some way. And so what I’m doing at the
[00:49:39] david
moment is really working with these young professionals, budding founders, even early stage entrepreneurs to help them develop mindfulness. Firstly,
[00:49:55] david
which I really value strengthen their self-discipline, build their self-confidence in themselves, self-confidence in themselves. And,
[00:50:07] david
and get a clear step by step, plan and direction on launching their business and understanding what,
[00:50:15] david
where to direct their energy to get you know, the first clients and to make an impact as well,
[00:50:22] david
to change lives depending on what business they’re in.
[00:50:26] Josh
And I will ask you in a little while, how people can get in touch with you,
[00:50:31] Josh
should they want to share your story with their teams, their workplace. But you also started transgender Wellness
[00:50:43] Josh
workshops and retreats. Can you tell US about those?
[00:50:47] david
Yes, yeah, that’s right. So trans India is the pivot of,
[00:50:56] david
of link made based on challenges in resource thinking. We’ve
[00:51:03] david
had to try to pivot and I’m quite excited by it because what we’re
[00:51:10] david
doing is really tackling what’s constantly my,
[00:51:14] david
my partner and I as being the core challenges at work. First is a tension, like we are living in
[00:51:23] david
a Destruction epidemic right now. Officially we have a less, we have
[00:51:31] david
a shorter attention span than goldfish which is eight seconds
[00:51:36] Josh
you talking about me? Yeah,
[00:51:39] david
everyone. Not just
[00:51:43] david
But, but yeah, I mean it’s, it’s a real issue, right. Like, thanks to things like social media it’s,
[00:51:49] david
it’s only made our Destruction run even more rampant and in the workplace that
[00:51:55] david
leads to a huge cost you know, continuous interruptions, distractions actually,
[00:52:03] david
you know, not only leads to loss of productivity, but it leads to a loss of lo,
[00:52:09] david
in your work, now when you, when you’re in flow and you make progress that leads to fulfillment,
[00:52:14] david
so people aren’t feeling fulfilled. Destruction is
[00:52:17] david
a big part of that. What’s more is well-being in the same way that we addressed
[00:52:23] david
well-being in the workplace through late by the challenges of stress burnout.
[00:52:31] david
Right. And they’re on the rise as well. You know, I think working from home arrangements and trying to,
[00:52:38] david
to make them work and opting for flexible arrangements and seeing
[00:52:45] david
how not as many people are in the office like it’s just, it’s really, it’s really being and,
[00:52:52] david
and certainly the culture as well. Right. Like the culture that we
[00:52:58] david
experienced perhaps that you experienced For those listening before covid is
[00:53:06] david
potentially quite different. Very different to what you’re experiencing now. So what we’re doing at transcend yeah, is running talks,
[00:53:16] david
workshops of retreats Designed to enhance concentration. Firstly, to block out Destruction through some evidence based practices and protocols to
[00:53:29] david
improve well-being through a series of mindfulness techniques,
[00:53:36] david
strategies as well as peer support to bring together and unify tribes to
[00:53:43] david
be able to have the same experience that you know, that senior partner created. But by Sharing his,
[00:53:51] david
his journey with mental health, so, so bravely. Because when teams can do that,
[00:53:57] david
when people can actually share their personal challenges and share any concerns at
[00:54:03] david
work without fear of being judged without fear of being treated differently. That
[00:54:09] david
builds a whole New level of trust, which leads to collaboration,
[00:54:14] david
which leads to fun like work should be fun. I believe in,
[00:54:18] david
in many ways since we spend so much of our time doing work,
[00:54:24] david
we want to make it fun. And I think when you have great friendships and meaningful relationships that work,
[00:54:31] david
then you can trust each other and you can depend on each other. You operate from
[00:54:36] david
a really strong foundation and that’s what we’re hoping to to achieve through transcend yeah,
[00:54:42] david
we’re running retreats at the moment and expanding into the workplace.
[00:54:47] Josh
So any size business could be involved in workshops and retreats. Are there particular
[00:54:55] Josh
locations you go to for your retreats that I set or is that flexible?
[00:55:02] david
So it is flexible. That’s a, it’s a good question. We’ve run an urban Retreat. We had our first one
[00:55:10] david
a couple of months ago here in Melbourne. We have our next one in beautiful bull
[00:55:16] david
Gola, which is in the northern beaches of New South Wales and you know,
[00:55:22] david
as we grow we’ll move to some exotic relaxing, rejuvenating locations overseas, no doubt as well. And yes,
[00:55:35] david
it’s not so open to businesses of any size that are, you know,
[00:55:40] david
willing and open to to, you know, improving the productivity, the wellbeing and the culture.
[00:55:50] Josh
I’ll ask you again a walk away on the subject where a lot of people get
[00:55:56] Josh
a hold of you. What’s the best thing about to hold a workshop or a Retreat?
[00:56:00] Josh
Retreat. Amazing. Where would someone get hold of you most easily?
[00:56:08] david
So my email address is, is a good a good place to start. So that’s David at
[00:56:16] david
D and T dot care already.
[00:56:24] david
So Dame, TMI initials, David Michael to tell US the personal coaching Service
[00:56:33] david
that I offer at the moment can be found at the Dante experience. Dot com that I do.
[00:56:41] david
And for those who are feeling interested or open to exploring what
[00:56:50] david
a workshop or retreats might look like for that business transfer can be accessed at transcend Beyond dot A. You
[00:57:01] Josh
Right? Well, hopefully you get lots of interest because it sounds amazing and really important
[00:57:07] Josh
more and more importantly, important. Just heading in a slightly different direction for
[00:57:13] Josh
a moment. Going back to the seven years young achiever Awards gala presentation
[00:57:19] Josh
dinner, which was earlier this year and hosted by Mike Moore from seven news,
[00:57:24] Josh
the weekend presenter.
[00:57:27] Josh
What was the Key takeaway for you from the event? What inspired or what
[00:57:32] Josh
a memory you have of the event.
[00:57:37] david
The conversations with the other nominees, finalists, winners. Those really stood out to me because
[00:57:49] david
It, Well Firstly, it made me feel less alone in my journey because this,
[00:57:56] david
this journey of going out on your own and doing your own thing can be quite
[00:58:01] david
isolating. It has been for me. So to have those conversations and to meet others who are You know,
[00:58:13] david
trying their hand at building out a project or a venture or initiative and creating impact with it was amazing,
[00:58:25] david
you know, inspired me. As I said, it made me feel less alone. And it sort of just
[00:58:36] david
opened a lot of doors for a collaboration in the future. And I got to learn about what
[00:58:45] david
drives people and, and I think what stood out to me and it’s,
[00:58:52] david
it’s a bit of a cliche, but it’s a cliche for
[00:58:54] david
a reason. And it’s something that every single person I spoke to said,
[00:59:03] david
which was chasing your passion. Right. I think everyone has something that they’re
[00:59:09] david
really deeply interested in and in love with an activity or a hobby,
[00:59:16] david
or an interest or an idea. But for whatever reason,
[00:59:19] david
they may not choose to pursue it. That was me for
[00:59:24] david
a while. But hearing from the attendees at the gala
[00:59:31] david
event and seeing how they have pursued that passion and you know,
[00:59:36] david
come alive Whilst doing it was just very reaffirming for the path that I’m on very inspiring and energizing.
[00:59:46] Josh
You hear that? I hear that
[00:59:48] Josh
a lot actually from people saying one of the Key things. Key takeaways is to know
[00:59:53] Josh
that you’re not alone in your journey. Any journey can be really tough. You’re trying to create something,
[01:00:02] Josh
trying to achieve really important outcomes for,
[01:00:06] Josh
for issues that are big and real. And you can feel isolated as you said,
[01:00:13] Josh
and lonely in that journey because it’s tough. But to know there are others out
[01:00:18] Josh
there, striving to achieve something special is, is really important and Empowering. So yeah, that is something that I hear
[01:00:27] Josh
a lot that is important.
[01:00:28] Josh
And it must have been great validation for your work too,
[01:00:31] Josh
to have to be acknowledged in that way.
[01:00:35] david
Absolutely. Yeah. Look, um, recognition was always really special for sure.
[01:00:45] david
And I think those, those conversations are valuable and thanks for, you know,
[01:00:50] david
just acknowledging that just because you were saying before you’ve been doing,
[01:00:55] david
you know, running these Awards for thirty five years. And that’s some, that’s
[01:01:01] david
a journey in and of itself. And I wonder,
[01:01:05] david
I’m wondering if you’re open to Sharing as well, like what, what sort of,
[01:01:09] david
what would you say inspired you to take the life and what’s sort of kept you going for this?
[01:01:18] david
This is like the time as well.
[01:01:21] Josh
Yeah, well that’s a good question right back at me. Well, I think initially, I’ve always been passionate about making
[01:01:29] Josh
a difference and trying to help people. Right from
[01:01:32] Josh
a young age. I remember I was nearly twenty one. I was in Kmart in
[01:01:39] Josh
Adelaide, in our local area. Was close to Christmas. I had to buy
[01:01:44] Josh
a present know the pain. So I’m running around looking for this present,
[01:01:49] Josh
worrying about the worries of the world that are on my shoulders,
[01:01:53] Josh
which were quite small and in the scheme of things when you think back. But I was
[01:01:59] Josh
that day at the chick check out.
[01:02:03] Josh
And the bottom was quite long and you know,
[01:02:05] Josh
we all get frustrated that personal problems and having to wait ten minutes in
[01:02:09] Josh
a line and a defining moment of my life, this particular checkout person,
[01:02:16] Josh
the young girl. I don’t remember particularly how old but young looked like she had
[01:02:21] Josh
the worries of the world and this person in front of me was complaining about how
[01:02:26] Josh
long I had to wait and nothing was right. And this particular product was not good
[01:02:31] Josh
and look the, you know, the covers damage and I wanted a discount and blah, blah,
[01:02:37] Josh
blah. That’s again, first of all, problems and this particularly young lady was looking very stressed and emotionally
[01:02:45] Josh
drained and well, when she came to me,
[01:02:52] Josh
She looked like she was ready to crack. I don’t exactly remember the conversation.
[01:02:58] Josh
I stopped and I thought, yeah, my problems has zero. So I just said to her,
[01:03:04] Josh
you had that so beautiful. You have a great smile and you know your customer service is exceptional and yeah,
[01:03:12] Josh
she helped here and said Thank you so much. I was just and you know,
[01:03:17] Josh
we just spoke from a moment of the other people were queuing,
[01:03:20] Josh
but at that moment I thought my life has to be about Helping
[01:03:27] Josh
people. And I’m at that moment decided that I was going to try to pay five
[01:03:33] Josh
compliments every day of my life. Find five people to say something Positive to nice to whatever it was.
[01:03:44] Josh
So yeah, it’s something that I have daily from there and at nearly twenty one. As you can
[01:03:51] Josh
imagine, it was a very long time ago and I’ve tried to live by that philosophy of trying to
[01:03:58] Josh
pay five compliments every day. And I do try that every single day to,
[01:04:03] Josh
to be Positive and to help people in that way. So that took me on, on
[01:04:08] Josh
a journey thing. This particular job advertised I thought, Ah, this is it,
[01:04:18] Josh
this is going to be something that I can really contribute in
[01:04:21] Josh
a bigger way. So yeah, thirty five years later here I am still inspired to make
[01:04:28] Josh
a difference. I was in a judging process and we talked off affair
[01:04:34] Josh
a little while ago yesterday and as to
[01:04:36] Josh
a lot love getting around the country and hearing the stories of people making a difference organisations,
[01:04:42] Josh
individuals through the young achiever Awards time that I guess it helps me to keep
[01:04:48] Josh
going, knowing that there are so many good stories because you do get
[01:04:52] Josh
a little bit worn by all the negativity in the world and the
[01:04:59] Josh
small amount of people who are doing not so good things. But there are so many doing great
[01:05:06] Josh
that are being constantly reminded by that is really important.
[01:05:12] david
Just Thank you for showing my love that really means a lot especially, you know,
[01:05:17] david
hearing that what sounds like was
[01:05:19] david
a huge breakthrough in that moment when you comforted the the woman at the checkout.
[01:05:26] david
And that’s I just think such a really profound and selfless right to you
[01:05:36] david
know, to lead your life, to lift yourself and to help others,
[01:05:40] david
making that your mission every day is inspiring. I love that.
[01:05:44] Josh
But I can’t know how that impacted her at that time. But I know it impacted my side,
[01:05:52] Josh
and that’s where the selfishness comes in, you know, the giving,
[01:05:54] Josh
but also the taking. I get reward from Helping others. That makes me feel king of the mountain for
[01:06:03] Josh
a period of time. And I think that’s really critical for me. That’s the thing with
[01:06:07] Josh
making me happy makes others happy.
[01:06:10] david
Absolutely. Yeah.
[01:06:11] david
And you know, you’re right there is a lot of negativity in the world and I think there’s
[01:06:17] david
a news New cycles can, can propagate. A lot of that negativity,
[01:06:25] david
but the way I look at it like this achievement Awards that you’ve cultivated is basically like
[01:06:33] david
a news station that only shares goodness but only shares really, you know, Positive, uplifting, Empowering news,
[01:06:46] david
and elevating those stories. So I think, yeah,
[01:06:50] david
I think what you’re doing is really amazing. I’m glad to be a part of it.
[01:06:55] Josh
And we, we partnered with seven and seven news and you know,
[01:06:59] Josh
they have to tell stories that people want to hear and they’re not always Positive. But at the same time,
[01:07:06] Josh
to allow listeners don’t trust them because they are making
[01:07:09] Josh
a difference as well. They see the value of telling the good stories. And I have
[01:07:15] Josh
partnered with this they giving so a lot of air time,
[01:07:17] Josh
a lot of promotional opportunity to reach people. Because I do say that community
[01:07:24] Josh
impact is critical. So they are making the difference that we’re able to achieve through the Awards,
[01:07:33] Josh
which were extremely grateful for. And nominations actually are currently open for the seven news,
[01:07:40] Josh
young achiever Awards around the country. And why do you think it’s important to nominate someone diamond?
[01:07:52] david
It could be the thing that it could be one simple act which Gives them
[01:08:00] david
a boost of confidence to pursue their passion and completely change their life for the better for me,
[01:08:07] david
it was applying to that pitch competition which helped US secure funding.
[01:08:14] david
And that gave me the confidence to know that, you know, There is something,
[01:08:20] david
there is something here. And it’s something that’s worth pursuing. And people believe in it, especially since
[01:08:27] david
a lot of people might not believe in them in themselves by nominating someone else,
[01:08:34] david
you know, not only showing that you believe in them,
[01:08:38] david
which I think is really important. But you’re also giving them the opportunity to
[01:08:46] david
To Yeah, have, have a platform to, to showcase the amazing work that they’re doing and to get
[01:08:57] david
a boost that they might need from the recognition to, to build their own momentum moving forward and Ultimately
[01:09:11] david
learn that they can build their own self confidence from within
[01:09:18] david
I think that’s something that
[01:09:18] david
a lot of people struggle with and I certainly did as well when I got started,
[01:09:24] david
I think getting some accomplishments under my belt really helped me generate that
[01:09:30] david
sense of self-worth and self-confidence. So just knowing that you can always tap
[01:09:35] david
into that is important, a nomination can go a really long way as well.
[01:09:40] Josh
Yeah, Thank you. And if anybody wants to find out how to nominate someone or more about
[01:09:46] Josh
the nomination category, head to Awards, Australia dot com. I W,
[01:09:51] Josh
I do yes. Awards Australia dot com. Look at the young achiever Awards page. And
[01:09:58] Josh
you and your stage will show you what categories are open. And if you want to know
[01:10:04] Josh
more, can also email me at jft, double F, g, F at Awards,
[01:10:10] Josh
Australia dot com. I’ll be happy to help.
[01:10:13] Josh
And if you like to know about award
[01:10:16] Josh
category sponsorship opportunities and what your business you know, or your business would be interested, also drop me
[01:10:24] Josh
a line at Geoff at Awards Australia dot com. Now David, what’s something we might not know about you?
[01:10:31] Josh
? It could be a fun fact. A funny fact,
[01:10:34] Josh
or something more serious. What’s something that we might that’s putting you on the spot? I know,
[01:10:40] Josh
but what’s something we might not know about David that would would be of interest to US.
[01:10:48] david
Yeah. Look, I am I was going to keep this under wraps. But I think
[01:10:57] david
I think this is
[01:10:58] david
a really good opportunity to vocalize this vision that I have Is not what I do so you know,
[01:11:05] david
then everyone can hold me accountable. And
[01:11:10] Josh
listen carefully everyone. So
[01:11:14] david
most people know that I’m a huge fan and lover of Shrek and the you know,
[01:11:24] david
not only the very entertaining franchise and series of movies,
[01:11:31] david
but just the lovable character himself. Shrek, I think he embodies
[01:11:36] david
a lot of really Noble qualities of strength and courage, honor,
[01:11:43] david
You know, respect and love. And for, for one of my,
[01:11:54] david
for my thirtieth. And my vision is to organize a, an experience at Shrek, stomp,
[01:12:05] david
Shrek swamp is currently available to rent out as an
[01:12:12] david
Airbnb in Scotland. It’s a real thing. You can look into it, feel free to email me,
[01:12:19] david
and I can provide you with more details. But I tossed it around and as an
[01:12:26] david
idea, and I just, you know, I like
[01:12:28] david
like link my, when I tell people about it, I was like, okay, now I’m going to make this thing
[01:12:32] david
a reality. So I’m telling you all, because I want to make this a reality. And you know,
[01:12:40] david
I’d love to see their email me with any suggestions that you have for how we can
[01:12:47] david
make it even more Shrek tastic.
[01:12:49] david
And you know, I’m looking forward to making this, this thing happen.
[01:12:54] Josh
I got to take people on a journey to Shrek swamp. Was it?
[01:13:01] david
Yes. The swamp with Shrek live actually has the,
[01:13:06] david
the cottage laid out as it is in all the movies. You’ve said Chuck and
[01:13:12] Josh
Jeff. Yeah, well Yes, course. That’s right. Yeah. Yeah, absolutely.
[01:13:18] david
Yeah. So, so yeah, it’s got the same layout and it’s,
[01:13:25] david
it’s going to be fine. It’s going to be memorable. Yeah. What do you love more? I’m not sure.
[01:13:30] Josh
That’s amazing. So Scotland is the next journey for David’s fifth,
[01:13:35] Josh
fifteenth thirtieth. Don’t make any older than you need to be thirty, so anybody interested? Tell me friends,
[01:13:45] Josh
sounds like something to look forward to that David will give you all the detail
[01:13:49] Josh
can work together on making it bigger and bigger. Ben-Hur.
[01:13:54] david
I love that. Yeah, Thank you.
[01:13:55] david
When they decide what
[01:13:57] Josh
sounds awesome, what’s next for? For David.
[01:14:04] david
Great question. What’s next? Is continuing to Coach and mentor You know, really driven and ambitious people who
[01:14:20] david
have their own vision they could take could be an event
[01:14:27] david
like this strike experience. It could be a business, a career,
[01:14:30] david
its impact. And so I, what is next for me is Helping them make their, their vision
[01:14:38] david
a reality. Helping them build the belief in themselves and their mindset and their and
[01:14:48] david
a plan to make it happen. And continuing to grow,
[01:14:54] david
transcend the art to be able to create more meaningful experiences. Bring teams together, deepen connection in the workplace,
[01:15:03] david
normalize the conversation around mental health, and help people thrive, especially during
[01:15:11] david
a time when you know it’s been difficult to do so.
[01:15:17] Josh
Do you have any other Words of wisdom for our listeners?
[01:15:23] david
Words of wisdom? What I would say? What has served me in my journey is understanding and
[01:15:32] david
believing now that we are Ultimately just
[01:15:35] david
a product of the stories that we tell ourselves. And you know, we, we have
[01:15:42] david
a villain and we have a hero. You know, you know,
[01:15:48] david
it depends what voice you want to listen to. Do we want to listen to the interview?
[01:15:51] david
Do we want to listen to the coach that is Empowering and inspiring. Awesome. And really encouraging US to,
[01:16:01] david
to work towards our goals and to believe in ourselves for a long time. You know,
[01:16:06] david
I listened to the stories that other people told about me and, and, you know,
[01:16:13] david
they were hurtful. And I believe those stories to be true. And
[01:16:20] david
what I learned is that when you believe a story to be true,
[01:16:23] david
you start acting as though it is and that becomes your reality. So
[01:16:30] david
be very specific and conscious of what stories you tell yourselves and make them meaningful. Positive, uplifting. Empowering and
[01:16:46] david
watch what happens. Because for me it really changed my life for the better.
[01:16:52] Josh
It was Words if anybody would like to get involved in the Shrek experience, transcend the Camp David,
[01:17:01] Josh
talk at their workplace or whatever it may be.
[01:17:08] Josh
Please, please contact David and one of those contact details again, David.
[01:17:15] david
Yes, Thank you Jeff. So my email address is David at the end
[01:17:22] david
T dot care spelled C.A.R.E. You can learn more about my coaching and speaking services at the Dante experience,
[01:17:38] david
dot com today. You and more about the workplace. Wellness
[01:17:45] david
offerings retreats that we’re running at transphobia at transcend yard dot A year.
[01:17:53] Josh
Fantastic. So much value so much to learn. Please contact David is awesome. And
[01:18:01] Josh
a real superhero. David has been an absolute Pleasure to have you on the podcast.
[01:18:07] Josh
You are a true inspiration and a powerhouse, and very worthy of people getting in the workplace or going on
[01:18:17] Josh
a Retreat and Sharing some time with David. You will be so pleased
[01:18:24] Josh
that you too. Thanks. Thanks so much for Sharing your story with US. I hope you’ve
[01:18:30] Josh
enjoyed the experience as well.
[01:18:32] david
I’ve loved Jeff and I really want to honour and
[01:18:36] david
Thank you for Sharing more about your own journey as well. This is the first time
[01:18:42] david
we’re meeting. I’m so turned to get the opportunity to learn more about what has
[01:18:47] david
inspired you to build this amazing initiative that
[01:18:54] david
lets people like mine with the support of seven news and making and spreading
[01:19:01] david
a really uplifting news. You know, that’s, that’s really something that I’m just grateful for. Honoured to be
[01:19:08] david
a part of. And yeah, hopefully we can have a hit of tennis and a coffee soon as well.
[01:19:16] Josh
That sounds like a plan.
[01:19:17] Josh
I mean, I mean, I can’t promise that the tennis will be of high standard,
[01:19:22] Josh
but the coffee will be great.
[01:19:25] david
I love that. I’ll meet you halfway.
[01:19:28] Josh
Sounds good.
[01:19:29] david
Thanks Jeff. I have everybody else has
[01:19:32] Josh
enjoyed listening to David’s story as much as I have. And until next week everyone,
[01:19:39] Josh
please remember bekind because together we make a difference. Thanks David. Thanks Jeff. I can’t wait and keep in
[01:19:49] Josh
touch. I
[01:19:50] david
absolutely. And
[01:19:52] Josh
let’s you know, when this is going to end, she did mention that you wanted to, you know,
[01:20:00] Josh
to just have some control of when that went is I will do that. And so, but you know,
[01:20:06] Josh
to stay in touch with regard to that when it’s actually ready to go live and then
[01:20:12] Josh
you can chat too about when you feel that that would be appropriate.
[01:20:17] david
I really appreciate you both. Thank you, Annette. Yeah, Thank you Jeff. Not on
[01:20:22] Josh
the and that’s all she’s there online at the minute. All right, it’s on her. Hey her. What’s the word?
[01:20:32] david
Her zoom
[01:20:37] Josh
account. So what I saying. Sorry. Right. Sorry, dear, but I’ll pass on and you know, thanks to her.
[01:20:44] david
Yeah, Thank you. Yeah, Thank you for extending my gratitude and just for being such
[01:20:50] david
a wonderful host. You know, it’s it, it can be difficult in some cases, but you seem like
[01:21:00] david
a natural and I really appreciated the questions that you asked. And also just being open to,
[01:21:05] david
to Sharing and answering my questions too. And you know,
[01:21:12] david
that may have been slightly different. So I just appreciate you doing that.
[01:21:17] Josh
I think I’ve shared more about myself in this particular chat than in all of the other one
[01:21:23] Josh
hundred and fifteen put together so far.
[01:21:28] david
Well, that’s great. People need to hear about the man behind, you know,
[01:21:32] david
Awards Australia just as much as those who are winning the Awards. I think what
[01:21:37] david
you’re doing is really, really special. So yeah, Thank you for Sharing that. It’s a really beautiful story.
[01:21:43] Josh
Thank you. My Pleasure. Very passionate about what we’re doing because it does make
[01:21:49] Josh
a difference and talking with people like yourself inspires me and helps me to
[01:21:54] Josh
continue the journey. So as I and we are
[01:21:57] Josh
a family business and our son and it’s my wife and Josh
[01:22:04] Josh
is general manager. So he’s the future of the company he’s takes after
[01:22:11] Josh
his mum and his dad. He’s very passionate and a real people person, so
[01:22:18] Josh
He’ll certainly into the future lead the way and hopefully continue continue the journey and continue our passion.
[01:22:28] david
I love Josh. Yeah, I met him at the Awards,
[01:22:32] david
he helped with just coordinating the tables and all of that at the front.
[01:22:38] david
And
[01:22:39] david
we had a chat and he’s such a lovely, approachable guy knows how to grow an absolutely wicked moustache,
[01:22:49] david
which I’m jealous of silently. But yeah, just just a wonderful man,
[01:22:54] david
a wonderful human to continue with his legacy of yours.
[01:22:58] Josh
Yeah, we have two boys, Josh and REECE, both working in the business and yes, that’s a real family,
[01:23:05] Josh
but we have ten staff, but they are very important contributors and continuous of our
[01:23:14] Josh
work. So exciting future. Hopefully we can get through these couple of years of hardship and. Yeah,
[01:23:24] Josh
I reckon Karen well into the future.
[01:23:27] david
Yeah, no, I yeah, lots of faith in people and they’re sending in lots of um, you know, strength and,
[01:23:36] david
and support during that time. Because yes, as I’ve said, yeah,
[01:23:39] david
it can be difficult when you’re sort of teetering on the edge and just shock it’s
[01:23:44] david
a lot so um, so I can relate and yeah,
[01:23:47] Josh
I’m desperate and it’s not, it’s not easy change, but sometimes you have to make the right decisions,
[01:23:52] Josh
and I’m sure you have made the right decision for yourself as well as for everyone
[01:23:58] Josh
else and sounds like can you journey would be amazing.
[01:24:02] david
Yeah, I appreciate that. Thank you Jeff. Thanks for your time as well. You know,
[01:24:06] david
I know we went over what we did counted for. So just thanks for being gracious with your time. Pleasure.
[01:24:13] Josh
You take care and keep in touch as I reach out,
[01:24:16] Josh
if you need anything, we can help certainly do our best.
[01:24:20] david
Thank you. Yes. Well, rest of the
[01:24:23] Josh
take care
[01:24:28] david
The inspirational australian’s podcast is brought to you by Awards, Australia. We recognise,
[01:24:34] david
celebrate and share the stories of inspirational Australians through our Awards
[01:24:39] david
programs across the country. To find out more to nominate an inspirational
[01:24:44] david
Australian in your life, or to partner with our Awards, visit Awards, Australia dotcom. If you enjoyed today’s story,
[01:24:53] david
we’d love it if you could subscribe rate and review to make sure you don’t miss an
[01:24:57] david
episode. And to help our guests reach more people with their inspirational stories stories.
[01:25:01] david
stories. stories.
