Once in a lifetime

I’ve just returned from an extended weekend in New Zealand. Regular readers will recall that I joined the Entrepreneur’s Organisation (EO) in February last year. EO is a global business networking organization offering a range of benefits including access to talented business speakers, training content, and other invaluable resources.

The organization has chapters operating in major cities worldwide. The Sydney chapter has almost 200 members. Each local chapter is also divided into smaller groups of 6-8 members (called forums). Each forum meets monthly and organizes an annual offsite retreat to bond while sharing life and business experiences.

After some cajoling last October, I agreed to organize my forum’s annual retreat. I settled on Wellington as our chosen destination, in part because I was familiar with the city and in part because I could tap into a diverse personal network of potential speakers.

The brief for this event was challenging, to say the least. EO is big on developing the “whole person”. As a result, the group wanted to hear from people presenting on commercial topics, as well as speakers offering unique, or eclectic, perspectives on life. The group also wanted to include a “once in a lifetime” experience that elevated the event beyond that of another bulk-standard business conference.

 

After months of planning and preparation, I’m delighted to report that I successfully delivered an event that met the brief. Our retreat began on Thursday with breakfast in the Qantas Lounge (I took one lucky person for breakfast in the First Class Lounge). We then flew to Wellington and checked into QT hotel on the harbourfront. It sits opposite the national Te Papa Museum.

The forum kicked off our time in New Zealand by hosting a networking event with EO Wellington members before dining in a private room at Jano Bistro.  As the evening unfolded, we heard from my cousin Jennifer Parker. She spoke about New Zealand’s restorative justice program and how the program’s principles can be applied to business.

On Friday the forum came together for its monthly networking meeting. We then heard from two impressive business speakers including a local multi-millionaire who invited us to join him for drinks in his stunning penthouse overlooking the harbour. As the weather cleared, we finished the afternoon riding the Wellington cable car to Kelburn and walking back into town through the Botanic Gardens. 

Dinner that night was in a private room at Dockside where we heard from two speakers; Gary Scott, a New Zealand documentary filmmaker (whom I went to University with), and his defacto partner, Tracey Bridges a prominent Government lobbyist and entrepreneur. Tracey spoke on people's need for a sense of place and the challenge of integrating equity partners into a business. Gary reinforced her message about seeking a sense of place and shared how it often shapes his storytelling.

 

The weather on Friday morning was abysmal. Torrential rain and gale-force winds lashed the city for hours before finally clearing mid-afternoon. Our “once in a lifetime” experience was completely weather dependent. Hence I was relieved when we woke on Saturday morning to blue skies and calm weather.

The group was met by helicopter at Queens Wharf in the central city. We then set a course across Cook Strait, making our way to the Bay of Many Coves Resort. This exclusive boutique lodge is nestled on the shores of a picturesque bay in the Marlborough Sounds. You can only access it by boat – or helicopter. Our group was given a private dining room with expansive views across the water, including exclusive access to a shaded balcony. After a superb lunch, we flew back to Wellington in time to enjoy the sights and sounds of Homegrown, the city’s annual waterfront music festival.

 
The flights across Cook Strait were truly breathtaking. However, the highlight for me was seeing the notorious Cook Strait ferry sail through the Tory Channel headlands on its way to Wellington. I also got to sit in the co-pilot seat on return to Wellington. This gave me an enviable view of everything. A once in a lifetime experience for sure.

On Sunday I rose early to catch a flight to Tauranga. This allowed me to visit Mum on Sunday morning and again on Monday before catching a flight back to Sydney. On Sunday Mum and I enjoyed an alfresco lunch on the waterfront near the city’s renowned Hairy McCleary statue.

An inflight story

The Australian toy industry came together last weekend for the Australian Toy Association's Toy & Hobby Licensing Fair. It’s been three long years since the industry’s last trade show, thanks to COVID.

However, my favourite highlight from the show had nothing to do with the event. This month, Qantas published a two-page profile about Artiwood in its in-flight magazine. The airline sent out a request for submissions in September last year. As a former PR exec, I knew I could draft a compelling pitch.  

I was delighted when Qantas made contact in November. It selected six companies to profile between March and August this year.  I pushed for the March edition so that people attending Toy Fair would read our story. A freelance journalist interviewed me in early December, and a photographer spent half a day conducting a photo shoot in our showroom on 12 January. We finally saw a pre-press proof in late January while visiting suppliers in London.

It was a proud moment seeing the profile in print for the first time in the airport lounge last week. It’s hard to believe that passengers and crew on every Qantas flight worldwide are reading our story. How cool is that? As you can see above, the photo that opens this post fills half a page in the magazine. Here’s a link to the published article.

The story captures Artiwood's eco-friendly journey through four flights that our hard-working staff, Garry, and I have taken in recent years. If I'm honest, it's a little too PR-centric for my liking, but as the saying goes, "all publicity is good publicity." I'm still flattered Australia's national carrier wanted to share our story with the world. 

Aside from giving our business a tremendous profile, the story has reconnected me with a surprising array of people I've met and worked with over the years. Several people I haven't seen or heard from in decades have contacted me to say they’d seen the story. Each of these “out of the blue” connections is a special moment.

Renewing these relationships brings to mind some sage advice I once received. Put simply, I'm reminded that we should never say "no" to any opportunity. It may not align perfectly with what we're striving to achieve. However, the simple act of saying “yes” can pave the way for a life-changing sliding door moment.

I once said "yes" to restocking photocopiers and delivering internal mail at IBM. That nine-month contract opened the door for a role with IDC, which in turn kicked off a 20-year career in tech-driven public relations. It would be fair to say that replenishing photocopiers was never aligned with any of my career goals.