A Cuppa with The Con Versationalist

Doctors told him that he shouldn't have lived!  Shot 14 times in less than 5 seconds from a semi-automatic weapon, he lay bleeding for 3 hours before he could be rescued.   As if this is not unbelievable enough, he  returned back to FULL duties within 2 1/2  years.
On this episode, I chat with former Elite Star Force officer, Derrick McManus.  He shared his harrowing story and how it lead him to a career as a renowned keynote speaker, trainer and founding 'The Centre for Human Durability' where his programs provide tools to go beyond resilience, to sustainable Optimal Performance.

We don't all face the prospect of being shot multiple  times in our working days but the lessons Derrick shared benefit managers, leaders and business owners to be prepared and perform at an optimal level.

Derrick spoke about:

• Proactively preparing yourself.  Having honest and open conversations with your family and your team.
• Analysing the event.  What could or should have been done differently.
• Resilience vs Durability
• Strategies.  The importance of preparation physically, mentally and emotionally.
• The 2 key principles that underpin Human Durability.  
  •  Open, Honest and confronting conversations with yourself and those affected by your actions.
  • Take responsibility for our decisions, actions and outcomes.  Good or bad.

Oh and don't miss his story at 10:30.........putting his thumb between a trigger on a pistol whilst wrestling with an offender!

To learn more about Derrick's story and his work, head to his website at https://humandurability.com.au/

Years of people pleasing, not living authentically and finally finding out, via an anonymous letter, his wife was having an affair, took him to the depths of despair and led him on a journey of self discovery where he is now dedicated to inspiring hope and a love of life.

On episode 45 of 'A Cuppa with The Con versationalist'  I chatted with Inspirational Keynote Speaker and Empowerment Coach, Sava Politis.

Sava educates, guides, and helps people live in self-love, focusing on "Agape," the highest form of love. Living true to yourself with integrity, positivity, and self-awareness. 

His inspirational keynotes and personal coaching help people reconnect with themselves, empowerment of courage, confidence, and resilience. 

In corporate environments, he is transforming and building powerful engaging teams and positive culture that promotes growth and success and via personal 1-on-1 coaching, he helps you become the best version of yourself.  

Sava's personal journey fuels his belief that you have the power to be an outstanding human being, which he shares with the world.

2:00  The beginning of his journey, the people pleaser.
5:30  Losing contact with the most important person, you.
6:15  The moment that changed his life, the letter divulging the affair and his biggest lesson.
9:55  The 4 key components we all have within our hearts, faith, Love, Hope and Forgiveness.  Forgiveness is not about forgetting, it's about releasing.  It's a daily process.
15:00  The current relationship with his ex wife and the roles and responsibilities we have as parents.  How do your children view you?
17:40  The role of spirituality in life and work and the power of faith.
20:00  Integrity and positivity, what are they?
22:40  Can you relate to these challenges?  Losing your job you see as your identity and broken trust.  Sava shares one of the biggest fears beyond 50......I don't want to die alone.
28:40  Creating peace in your day/life.  It's not about making time but understanding the value of your time.
31:30  Boom, Crash Opera....what happens when you get home?
34:10  Culture in the workplace.  The 2 biggest challenges and the importance of vision.
39:20  Leadership is about actions with integrity.  Sava discusses mental well being and emotional resilience.
42:20  Sava shares his top 3 tips live a life true to yourself with integrity, positivity and self awareness,

To learn more about Sava's work, head to his website at https://savapolitis.com.au/    or reach out to him by email at [email protected]

On this episode we shower you with a big dose of optimism and get you to look at your cup, not as half full or half empty, but overflowing!

Victor Perton is the Chief Optimism Officer at The Centre for Optimism. 

The Centre for Optimism is 8000 people in 82 countries and asks people “What makes YOU optimistic?” and “What makes YOU feel Optimistic?” 

Prior to taking on the optimism mission, Victor was a barrister, 18 years a member of the Victorian State Parliament, Trade Commissioner in North and South America; and senior adviser to the Australian G20 Presidency. 

Victor is a Board Member of Yarra Valley Water and Vicwater.  

The foundation for the formation of The Centre for Optimism was a two year “Australian Leadership Project” which concluded Australian leadership was pretty good so why the negativity in Australia? 

Victor’s Eureka moment came in 2017 – the problem was not the problem of leadership but the fog of pessimism.   His book, “Optimism: The How and Why”, sums up that journey. 

As a speaker, Victor promises his audience they will leave laughing or singing or both.  All the links to the exercises and resources are at the bottom of the show notes.

2:00  Victor turned the tables on me and asked me "what makes me optimistic"

2:43  Why and where does all the optimism originate?  Hear is fascinating history which goes back to pre Russian revolutionary Czarist Russia

4:17  His grandmother always said she always wanted to outlive communism.  Hear her amazing tales of hardship and persecution whilst never losing hope.

7:22  Optimism is a state of mind, not the state of the world.

10:43  The boarding house with rats in Richmond, the stench of burning rubber and the peering possum.  The migrant life.

13:40  Why Victor entered politics

20:00 The Tax Commissioner and Victor's mum.

23:30  Victor was the first politician in Australia to have a website and his foresight into the future of communication

29:00  The power of laughter. 

30:00  The changing face of politics and the 24 x 7 news

35:00  Changing 1 life at a time, a powerful chance encounter in jail and  a perspective changing question we can all ask.

42:00  The power of gratitude and a very simple exercise which for many, is better than anti-depressants.

46:00  The catalyst for The Centre of Optimism.

52:00  Enjoy some 'Optimistic Exercises'

55:30  Ultimately, Optimism is a choice

59:50  You make your own memories.  Very few of us have an accurate memory.  Our memories are re cast in the stories we re tell.  The memories adapt to the stories dependant on how we recite the memory, be it in a positive or negative light.

1:01:00  Victor's interesting perspective regards the media and the news.

5 Minute Survey – What makes you Optimistic?  https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/Optimism2023 

What is Optimism?  https://www.centreforoptimism.com/whatisoptimism 

My Best Self https://www.centreforoptimism.com/your-best-possible-self 

My Optimism Superpower - https://www.centreforoptimism.com/superpowers

MONEY, MONEY MONEY.  On this episode I chatted with Daniel Marshall, Financial Coach, Speaker and Entrepreneur.
After working in the Steel & Mining industry as a Mechanical Engineer for 10+ years, Daniel decided to take a leap of faith and follow his passion. 

Daniel combined his love for personal development and personal finances and created his dream career. 

Daniel is now a Financial Coach, Speaker and Online Entrepreneur who works with millennials to help them build habits that will set them up for long-term financial success.  Daniels contact details are at the bottom of the notes.

5:25  The connection between finances and personal development.  The gift from his mum which started his journey.
8:35  Our financial habits, it comes down to what our parents taught us.
10:00  Buy Now, Pay Later.....a recipe for disaster.
11:00  The book which should be taught in school.  'The Richest Man In Babylon'
11:35  The danger of the 'Microwave Mindset'
14:25  How to build good financial habits
16:35  The importance of goal setting.
18:10  The Passive Income fairy and the ugly truth.
22:00  Creating a side hustle is not an option, its a must.
26:30  Mindset controls everything.  Money is 80% psychology and 20% mechanics
29:00  The 2 most powerful words in the english language and how they effect your wealth.

Email          [email protected]
Website     https://danielmarshall.com.au/

My guest on this episode is known as the Queen of Joy.

Cindi Cohn is the author of the bestseller More Joy and a motivational speaker.

After facing her own struggles with her mental health, Cindi climbed her way out and found joy along the way. She now helps other women who feel stuck in their circumstances transform their mindset so that they can live a life of freedom and joy.

Cindi holds a Master’s degree in counseling and education and as a counselor of addiction, she has helped thousands of families overcome and transform their life situations.

Cindi can be heard as a regularly featured guest on numerous television stations, podcasts and radio shows spreading messages of joyful living. She can also be seen spreading joy on numerous stages, from churches, corporations and schools. Cindi leads workshops and trainings which have included large companies and nonprofits from Michaels to Wounded Warriors, and Fortune 100 companies such as Amazon and TikTok. 

3:00  From depression to the road of joy.   One toe at a time.
4:30  The importance of journaling and how it led to the book.
6:30  Joy, becoming a global movement.
7:30  The more joy you give out, the more comes back.  It works the same with negativity.
8:34  The morning ritual sets your day.  Your productivity and your mood.   Cindi shared her morning routine.
9:30  Cindi shared THE most powerful story of forgiveness.   Definitely provides perspective!
11:43  Avoid your phone as long as you can in the morning and regular tech detox.
14:30  The power of reframing your circumstances.
16:20  Organisational Cultural toxicity and burnout.  People want more than a job, they want purpose.
21:00  Children, bullying and social media.  If you are not giving your kids attention, they are going to get it elsewhere.
25:00   Bring more joy to your family.  'Protect your peace'  You must make it a priority.
29:50  Mental health suggestions for business owners.  The importance of a support network.
33:50  Cindi's top 5 tips to create more joy in your life today.

On this episode, I chatted with business powerhouse, Simone Douglas who shared her many years of business wisdom and dropped a ton of golden nuggets!

Simone is the Publican & Licensee of the Duke of Brunswick Hotel & The Port Admiral, Executive Director for BNI Adelaide North, CEO of Digital Marketing AOK, Owner of the cafe -  dob on King William and a best-selling author with her books "Seriously Social" and “The Confident Networker”.
 
 She also sits on the branch council for the Australian Hotels Association SA Branch and is co-founder of the Hospo Owners Collective. Her businesses have garnered more awards than can be comfortably included in a bio, and her passion for supporting business, community, and industry is well known. Simone's down-to-earth attitude makes her someone that people feel comfortable around and she loves supporting others to be successful. 

1:37  Where did her entrepreneurial streak come from.  At a very early age she learnt she could do whatever she wanted.
3:10  When is enough?  She is fitting as much as possible into this short life.
4:50  Simone's recipe for self care.  Work/life balance is rubbish, its work/life harmony
6:52  Reward psychology.  the importance of small and regular rewards.
9:00  Recruitment and retention of staff in bare talent pool.   Do you position yourself as an employer of choice?
14:20  Keeping and attracting customers in the current challenging environment.   They key is building community and going beyond the transaction.
18:11  Businesses 2 biggest challenges beyond 2023.  The importance of community.
23:35  The key attributes to her success.  her responses will surprise you.
26:50  What Simone looks for when acquiring businesses.   "I was looking for office space and I bought a pub!"
33:00  Simone's 'why?'  What's yours?  Her strategy for for when she has had enough and wants to go home.
35:30  You can't change the circumstance but you can change your response.
37:15  What advice would Simone give her 20 year old self?  "Your worthy...do you and don't worry about others" 

AI, Artificial Intelligence is taking the world by storm!  Whether we like it or not, it is here to stay and grow.   It's evolving at a  geometric rate.   So how is it affecting business and how can we use it to our advantage. 

On this episode, I chatted with IT expert,  Dave Demczuk, founder of Atria Systems.  Dave is a seasoned IT professional with over 25 years of experience in the industry. His interest in AI systems began in the early 2000's with some of the first publicly available generative learning algorithms.  His expertise lies in demystifying complex technological concepts, particularly in the realm of small business. Dave has a unique ability to translate the intricacies of AI into layman's terms, making it accessible and understandable for all. 

Dave shared his knowledge and experiences, offering listeners a fresh perspective on the practical applications of AI in the business world with a focus on ChatGPT and upcoming Microsoft features for business professionals.

All the sites mentioned and more are at the bottom of these notes.

2:25    You'll be surprised to know, AI has been a part of our daily lives for many years already.
4:00   AI has exploded, particularly Chat GPT
4:26  What is Chat GPT?
5:35  How is Chat GPT impacting our business?  It reached over 100M users in January.
7:30  What AI wont do (at the moment!)  Wont replace physical activities
8:22  AI and creative tasks.  What tools are available for creating images and PowerPoint.  This is massive for anyone who produces content.
12:30  AI's impact on the 4 day week.  Amazing for productivity.
15:00  What businesses are currently best served by AI.  Who are the early adopters?
20:36  AI, The Terminator and Skynet.....how far can this be from reality?  This is a scary story.

    | AI Platform           |          Type of AI                 | Address
| OpenAI's ChatGPT  | Natural Language Processing (NLP), Conversational AI  |                                                                                                                     OpenAI
| Microsoft's Copilot  | Code Completion AI  | Microsoft Copilot

| IBM's Watson  | NLP, Machine Learning, Conversational AI  | IBM Watson

| Midjourney  | Text to Image Generation  | https://www.midjourney.com/

| Runway Gen2  | Text to Video  | https://runwayml.com

| Text-to-Video-Synthesis-Colab  | Text to Video Synthesis  | GitHub Repository 

US air force denies running simulation in which AI drone ‘killed’ operator | US military | The Guardian 

Youtubers that give good AI information: 

AI Revolution - YouTube 

Matt Wolfe - YouTube

In this powerful and entertaining episode, Eli Scheier shared his fascinating journey of self discovery from being an institutional day trader on Wall St to a jail cell to being a shepherd in the Middle East to studying Yoga and Meditation in India to eventually finding his way to Tulum, Mexico where he established 'I Am Love' Meditation and Workshop Retreats.

Eli has a master's Degree in Clinical Psychology of the Spiritual MInd Body from Columbia University and having studied the practice of Yoga, Meditation  and Stillness in India at Yoga Vidya Gurukul, Trimbal; Anand Prakash Ashram, Rishikesh and  Tushita Meditiation Centre, Dharamsala, Eli offers an abundance of knowledge from many teachers and cultures.

Highlights include:

1:20 Wall St to Mexico.  "There was a fork in the road, and I took the wrong fork"  Eli Scheier.  Was Wall St really as bad as depicted in 'The Wolf of Wall St'?
14:00  Spiritual path.
17:00  Spirituality meets Psychology.
22:00  Having presence and 'that' little voice.  It's either a track of love or fear.
25:40  The purpose of meditation
28:10  With our thoughts we create our world. The 4 keys, Intention, Certainty, Self Love and Super Power
30:20  Self Love.  If we can't love ourselves, how can we expect others to love us?
33:30  Where and how to start changing your life.
37:10  Within every culture and every religion, the #1 rule is Love Thy Neighbour as You Would Love Thyself.
38:50  Everybody you meet, you meet for a reason.  The universe is trying to send you a message. 
43:00  The importance of affirmations

For more information on Eli's work head to his website at https://iamloveretreats.com/



 

WHEN YOU USE THE POWER OF THE MIND, YOU CONTROL THE EXPERIENCE. 

Heather Sasaki experienced intense personal growth through surviving torture, child abuse and school bullying and Conny Cruz was on her own healing journey after many years in the jungle which is the New York Corporate Real Estate and Construction market.  Through their own personal journeys, both found Hypnotherapy and a deep desire to help others. 

Heather is the founder of ‘Heather and Hearts Healing’,  Certified Trauma Release Hypnotherapist, Past Life Regression Therapist, Rapid Transformational Therapist and has over 11,000 hours of Meditation Coaching.

Conny is the founder of ‘Deep Dive and Thrive’, Certified Hypnotherapist,  Rapid Transformational Therapist, Certified Time Line Therapy and NLP Practitioner and together they are the hosts of the popular podcast, 2 Naked Hypnotherapists 

On this episode of ‘A Cuppa with The Con Versationalist’, Heather and Conny shared their journey and we stripped bare to the naked facts and fictions of Hypnotherapy.

2:55  Heather's story of childhood abuse and torture

5:40  Chronic back and hip pain can be related to emotion pain and or trauma

11:24  What is Hypnotherapy and how it works

12:30  You are in multiple hypnotic states every day

17:00   Our subconscious mind is the root cause of all our limiting beliefs

18:50   What Hypnotherapy IS NOT and how our subconscious is running 95% of our behaviours

25:00   Why you cant be manipulated during hypnotherapy

32:30   The distinction between acute pain and chronic pain and how hypnotherapy can help

37:13  What is procrastination, why we procrastinate and strategies that help you now

40:40  The importance of our words and the impact in physical manifestations

44:00  The best times of the day to meditate, read your affirmations and the science behind it.

47:00  Why your subconscious is sabotaging your success

"WE ARE A COLLECTION OF PATTERNS AND HABITS"

Dr Gail Crossley-Craven, known as Dr CC, has an established and successful career. Gail is expert in leadership, human performance and professional development; the pillars on which she has built her career and by which she lives her life. 

Gail is founder of Crossley-Craven Consulting and has instructed and inspired people through writing, teaching, college and university lectures, training, business seminars, conference speaker, consulting to small business, personal counselling and educating clients all over the world 

She has a strong belief in life-long education and she truly ‘walks her talk’…hence her long list of academic and professional qualifications in education, psychology and business. She works to bring out the full potential of people and makes time for you when you need it most. .
The highlights of the program:
5:00  What is 'The Great Resignation' and the idea of 'group think'   The 2 areas we must all work on.
9:15  Professional Development vs Personal Development and the interconnection between the 2.
12:40  The million dollar question, what and how do I find my purpose and Gail's advice on maybe why you haven't found or cant find yours. 
18:53  Gail explored 'Victim Mentality' and why many people choose that.  Are we unconsciously supporting this in others?
21:00  Leadership, what it is and what it isn't.  It's lonely and isolated at the top.  Real qualities,  training, support, mentorship and the importance if communication.
32:00  Vicarious Trauma, what it is?
38:48  Validation vs Justification   

Gail is living proof of the benefits that ongoing personal and professional development, and determination has on people.  As one of her clients said many years ago, “Everyone needs a Dr CC!”