In 1992 I was a bored chartered accountant who was responsible for auditing big publicly listed companies. I felt that there had to be more to life than this, and had an inner drive to go and discover more. So I left the safety of the secure yet anaemic career in accounting and set off on an adventure to see what was possible.

Over the coming years I worked all over the world including running a ski rental shop, slaving as the commercial salmon fisherman, taught windsurfing, went busking with my favourite guitar, grew my hair out, embraced the 90s and got that earring (that I was incredibly proud of at the time).

Eventually I realised I needed to re-engage my brain and ended up in London working for a major recruitment company getting jobs for accountants in big investment banks.

I ran away wanting adventure, to buck the system, to find out what’s possible, but then I ended up working back in the same big old corporate system again.

After a couple of years and realising that London wasn’t my long term game, I set off on more travel and eventually landed in New Zealand. I was offered the opportunity to become the National Manager for a multi-national recruitment company and my ego said “YES!”  Being relatively inexperienced and without a lot of support, I ended up burning out big time after only a couple of years.

This lead me to an early mid-life crisis at the age of 30 where I was forced to really examine what I was about and what I really wanted out of life. That period of introspection and exploration lead me on the path that I’m still on today, 25 years later.

Back then, I thought I could only have one or the other:

1) Be the REBEL – the untamed lone wolf, true to myself, an individual thinker so I could buck the system or;

2) Be the PREFECT – be responsible, agree to the rules of the game, be a team player and become part of the system so I could influence it.

Of course, I chose the Rebel path. I went out on my own and built a thriving coaching practice, helping those still in corporate-land find their own mojo as leaders inside the system. Though working with thousands of leaders, I learned that I love working with a particular type of person: the ones who dream big and are willing to go for it to make an outsized difference to the world. Following my energy and curiosity, I've landed in a very cool place...