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Sebastian should be reading quarter of an hour a day said his teacher across the desk at his school interview...

What do Paul Henry, David Garrett, Tony Veitch, and ex New York Governor Eliot Spitzer have in common?

Public speaking and leadership roles can be daunting assignments for a blind person, but in taking on the leadership of her local BNI networking chapter, Dunedin blind woman Julie Woods discovered that the blind can lead the sighted - particularly when it comes to building strong relationships.

One of three major presures on a human being - along side ambiguity and over-busyness - is being-seen; those times when everyone is focused on you and assessing every word you say and move you make.

Have you ever noticed that no matter how hard you try to be 'positive', past beliefs come back to haunt you?

You might have already met the Night Terrorist. He might turn up after you’ve had a particularly busy day. You’re tired. Your muscles ache and your head is spinning. As the evening progresses you think longingly of your bed.

What a lemon has to say about what’s listening to the thoughts in your head, why it matters and how you can best make use of them.

My cloud came when I found myself sitting in the waiting room of the eye department at Dunedin Public Hospital on the 27th March, 1997. I couldn't have imagined then the life I am living now. Talk about being blind! In this article I share with you how I went from that day to the celebrations of my 10 years blind party.

I hear this over and over - “One Day, when everything is sorted…. then I will ......(live the life I really want to live…”) In my work, I meet a lot of men who are holding off from living the life they want now, and seem to think that there will be an ideal time, in the future … when things will be different in some way. I hear them say… When: • my finances are more secure.. • the children grown up and leave home • the house is paid off.. • I have a better paid job.. • I have time…

Let me share with you a 3-step formula I’ve been using for many years. It’s a formula I have also seen other people use in order to achieve the goals they want, anything from a simple goal, through to a major life achievement. It has helped me, for example, choose the right A level subjects, emigrate twice, become a national champion speaker, and win an international writing award.

I’ve heard many of my coaching clients tell me how they work well under pressure or how they’re good in a crisis, and they are. But it’s not just them, you can scale-up this adaptability and see how ‘stepping-up’ in a crisis is a very human trait. As the Christchurch earthquake hit and then unfolded on our TV screens, in pictures and footage you see everywhere people stepping up, not just managing the crisis, but leading through it.

This is tribute to the strength and courage of our friend Greer who passed away on the 7th of February 2010 from Cancer.

Why some goals never become reality and how to make sure they do! We use goals as a way stating our intention for the future and (by achieving them) shaping it. BUT goals gather dust too and many go no further than being just a good idea

Living passionately is about having a swing in your step, feeling great with high levels of energy, motivation and inspiration.

Do you have a book that's bursting to come out? Have you started writing stuff down in a private file somewhere but you're too scared to make it public? Well, if you've started writing your book and would like to get it ready for viewing then pull up a pew and read these nine tips on how to write your book.

When I went blind, I HAD to give up my notes. This was a shock to my public speaking system which had previously relied on reading. Following are the four things I recommend you do before any public speaking engagement to ensure your heart and head are in sync. Don't worry; going blind isn't one of them.

Waiting for the train I notice two still-smoking cigarette butts on the grass bank, the previous mid-fourties owners nearby chatting away. I found myself with an internal disconnect - how hard is it to join the dots between personal actions and the bigger picture.

Change your thoughts, change your life.

The short and simple answer? NLP is the study of Human Excellence.

what do you do to celebrate the great events or achievements that come into you life?  

The most important part to finishing a half marathon is to start it! You have to be in to win so start today by being in for the next half marathon in your local area. Make their date your date and start moving towards a great achievement. Here are seven ways to keep you motivated to finish:

Although 3 weeks of lying on the beach of a tropical island might seem like a great way to de-stressify yourself, sometimes that just not possible! So here are some quick, practical and easy ways to de-stressify, chill out and generally get back to feeling in control. AND, you can use them all year round.

What's the best book you've ever read? Hmmm .... ask me an easy one why don't you! That's up there with 'what's the meaning of life'. There are so many to choose from .... Barefoot Doctor's Urban Warrior .... Quiet Leadership by David Rock .... Lao Tzu's Tao Te Ching ... Mind Power by John Kehoe ...

I decided to chuck my fear of rejection out the window and ask Jo Seagar to write the forword for my book. Jo was a NZ tv cooking icon who gained her reputation in the 90's with a cooking show with a liking for the "easy peazy" approach. My book had a cooking bent with how I mastered "cooking without looking" as well as a recipe for my infamous truffles at the back of the book so - when I thought of who in the cooking industry I would like to write my forword she was my first choice.

There is a reason why we are here living in the world and it’s our responsibility that we tap into our inner core and be all that we are made to be. I remember striving hard in my career for financial gain to build that wonderful future I had been told about but it left my soul void of life, leaving me to ask questions like ‘What am I here for?’ and ‘What’s my purpose?’.

First, we'll discuss what consideration is not, because, as in the process of elimination, you can never truly see something, until you recognise what it is not.

I have learned that some things just can’t be resolved. True resolution of anything is very hard to accomplish, in fact full resolution only happens in about 5% of situations. You may think things are resolved, but there may be undercurrents, and unexpressed resentments which will not go away. Have you noticed how we work so hard to resolve problems issues and hassles in our lives, especially around relationships? What were you taught as a child, which compels you to try to make up?

Do you know how many times you or your family have had successes over 2011? Have you been involved as a parent, class trips, sports, conversation time? have you been interactive with your partner? Outings, time,gifts or acts of love. did you win a competition? did you get a new career? or do well in the one you have? did you qualify in something? have you been what you consider to be a good person, and citizen?

The program has been running with great results now. much to the relief of students and parents. STUDENT COMMENT: i gained so much more interest in succeeding well in my goals, learning about my abilities and career choices and knowing how to love myself which gives me a lot of confidence for my future. i also learnt how to control anxiety in stressful times like my exam times. Katie.

You’ve probably had times in your life where you’ve achieved a goal so easily that it seemed totally effortless. You established a goal and then it just seemed to arrive, as if you’d picked it out of a catalogue, placed your order and it was delivered to you at just the right time, all wrapped up and nicely packaged.

When we find things in our lives that we are not satisfied with, we often dwell on them, talk about them and generally try to figure out 'why me?".