During May 2025 I had the opportunity to take a road trip through Gippsland, Alpine National Park, Cooma, Wollongong, to Sydney, then (after a quick flight to Brisbane and back again) continue down the NSW South Coast through Ulladulla and Batemans Bay to Pambula Beach. I stayed for 2 days with a good friend there, before driving home…
A New Chapter: Empowering Community-Based Organisations and Disability Service Providers For years, I’ve been deeply immersed in the world of community-based organisations and disability service providers. I’ve seen first-hand the incredible impact these organisations have on people’s lives, empowering individuals with disabilities to live with dignity, independence, and purpose. But I’ve also witnessed the challenges they face—tight budgets,…
Deep work (a term coined by Cal Newport) is when you banish distractions, focus your consciousness, and exercise your brain like a weightlifter straining to achieve a new Personal Best. Deep work is when you make new discoveries, synthesise information, discover new insights, and reach fresh mountaintops from whence your horizons are expanded significantly. In an increasingly distracted…
The status quo has changed. You used to keep up with the Joneses. If they had a new car, you bought two. If they renovated their house, you did your house and garden. But now, the cool thing is to have freedom - not be tied down.
We recently made another international trip, this time travelling with just our one year old son and leaving the other kids at home with family. Each trip we take is slightly different, and we again learned a few tricks from our sojourn to Singapore. Our trip entailed an overnight stay in Manila so that we could easily catch…
Choosing the Best Airline for Young Families My partner and I have two boys under two years of age. Just. The older boy will be turning 2 in just over a month — and we are planning to be back in Australia at the time. But for the return leg ticket to Philippines after his birthday, it begged the question — what…
I knew I would love living in Asia. My job as Business Director of an Innovation Lab in Cambodia was a dream come true, and I had lived the majority of my childhood in Asia so developing countries were nothing new to me. I’ve had a long-running love affair with Philippines, so I wasn’t expecting any real culture…
No Change? Yesterday I asked Sid to print ten copies of a flyer at the local ‘Xerox’ copy/print shop. He took a ₱1000 note with him. The total cost of the 10 copies was ₱150 and the shop couldn’t provide change. Last week I walked up to the local ‘sari sari’ (variety) store and wanted to purchase two…
The Philippines has a new President. Rodrigo Duterte was today sworn in as the 16th President of the Republic of the Philippines. And for once, it’s not just more of the same. Duterte is certainly a departure from the string of Presidents preceding him who have succeeded only in maintaining the status quo and making the rich richer…
