Opinion Pieces
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Family rifts: The path to reconciliation starts with us
- July 17, 2024
As much as 30 per cent of Kiwis have experienced the painful reality of family estrangement, often between parents and children or siblings—it can last decades and is sometimes never resolved—but it is also a problem that can be solved if at least one party is willing to confront their own emotions. Simone-Ellen Keller, founder of Genius You , says that one person's behaviour can significantly impact the entire family for better or worse," says Keller. "By changing how we respo...
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Is NZRB turmoil indicative of a broader Kiwi boardroom malaise?
- June 13, 2024
The recent New Zealand Rugby (NZR) boardroom wars highlight how difficult it is to inject fresh thinking and new blood into the governance status quo countrywide and how this can trap organisations in a cycle of ‘two steps backwards’ and stagnating innovation. Adrian Packer, director of a specialist innovation leadership consultancy, IMS Projects (which works with some of New Zealand's top organisations), warns that now is not the time for boards to default to the ‘same old’ cost-cutt...
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High achievers search for greener grass a sign of deeper issues
- December 22, 2023
For many high achievers—up to 20% of the workforce—the search for the 'next big thing' is a familiar narrative, but it masks a deeper issue which invariably results in the discovery that the grass really is never greener on the other side. Simone-Ellen Keller, personal transformation strategist and founder of Genius You, puts it down to the inability of high performers to understand and work with their intrinsic motivations. "It's a common misconception amongst high performers ...
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Workplace conflict: High performers acting out or misunderstood?
- October 18, 2023
A more polarised society and shifts in personal and work values, much of it triggered by the COVID pandemic, are finding their way into the workplace, with reports worldwide of a sharp increase in workplace conflicts, including how staff engage with each other and with the organisation--a situation exacerbated by the disconnect between the working styles of high performers and your so-called typical workers. Recent research highlighted a concerning trend: over a third (36%) of individua...
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Like fake news, the rise of fake website reviews preys on vulnerable consumers
- September 5, 2023
Writing fake Google reviews and buying 'likes, as some Australian companies do, coupled with the rise of manipulated content by Artificial Intelligence (AI), may make it increasingly difficult for consumers to distinguish authentic businesses from those that are not. Irwin Hau, the founder and director of Chromatix Web Design and Australian tech SaaS start-up ConversionCow, is calling for better enforcement measures to counter fake trust factors like reviews, testimonials, case studies a...
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Don't blame the job when it's all in your mind
- August 15, 2023
High-performing Kiwis face burnout and dissatisfaction which results in a tendency to move between jobs--on average job turnover in New Zealand is as high as *39 per cent a year—but a significant contributor other than the workplace itself may include an inability to understand how the mind functions. Simone-Ellen Keller, a personal transformation strategist and founder of Genius You believes that high performers consistently strive for excellence, but without the right framework to unders...
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Late in life ADHD diagnosis, just the beginning
- June 28, 2023
Adults diagnosed with ADHD later in life are being urged to see their diagnosis as only the beginning of a journey to address years of false and destructive beliefs about themselves. Simone-Ellen Keller, a personal transformation strategist and CEO of Genius You, was also diagnosed with ADHD later in life and sees it as part of her mission to help those who learn of their ADHD well into adulthood because the diagnosis is not the end of the journey, but the beginning. Keller—whose consult...
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SMEs hitting the election year pause need to think again
- June 13, 2023
Anybody in business can tell you that a customary but inexplicable inertia and indecisiveness infect New Zealand SMEs in an election year, and it's not good for business and the economy. Assia Salikhova, the Managing Director of Wellington business development agency Smarketing Lab, says she is dumbfounded by the election year phenomenon, which anybody who has been in business for four or more years can attest. "There's no excuse for it," says Salikhova. "While there may be pressures and u...
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ChatGPT vs. human copywriters: Who wins in the end?
- June 7, 2023
AUCKLAND, New Zealand—As a writer (copywriting, public relations and fiction), I am excited by the advent of AI as a tool, but I am also scared. Will I and other writers be surplus to needs in four or five years? Is this the end? The Writer's Guild of America thinks so, as evidenced by ongoing writer strikes in the US. It begs the question: Is AI good enough to generate your website copy, blogs, press releases, case studies and other collateral? Plagiarism Google sa...
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Could lack-of-know-how be at the root of burnout?
- May 16, 2023
Burnout, including among New Zealanders, is currently at an all-time high--according to a Future Forum global survey--a nasty trend that is the result of overworking to achieve lofty ambitions that ultimately fall short. Hard work alone is not enough to help a person achieve the heights they aspire to if they do not have a mechanism or process that informs them how to get there. Simone-Ellen Keller, a personal transformation strategist and CEO of Genius You—a consultancy that teaches p...
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How to check emotional outbursts that get you fired
- April 6, 2023
Current and former Government Ministers Kiri Alan, Stewart Nash and Marama Davidson are not the first politicians to get into trouble for expressing anger and frustration, but neither will they be the last until they learn that a rule book and sheer willpower are the wrong tools for the job. Simone-Ellen Keller, a personal transformation strategist and CEO of Genius You—a consultancy that teaches people how the mind works and how to use it to uncover their brilliance by using emotions const...
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Advice to parents: Disciplining defiant children is counterproductive.
- March 14, 2023
An openly defiant child who refuses a parent or teacher’s instruction can be confronting and disempowering for adults—most of us revert to some form of punished to get compliance—but another way is for adults to see it as an opportunity to learn how to use their emotions more productively. Simone-Ellen Keller, a personal transformation strategist and CEO of Genius You–a consultancy that teaches people how the mind works and how to use it to uncover their brilliance by using emot...
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Understanding the Shift Towards Local Production and away from China in Manufacturing
- March 3, 2023
In the past few years, I have witnessed a growing trend of businesses shifting away from Chinese manufacturing to other Asian countries or back here to New Zealand. Last year, this trend became even stronger. This begs the question, what should importers and manufacturers take into consideration when it comes to reducing their reliance on Chinese manufacturing? Business Strategy Businesses today are under immense pressure to remain competitive, and one way they can do this is by reducing manuf...
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Escalating disputes between digital agencies and clients bad for everyone
- December 6, 2022
Disputes between Kiwi clients and their digital marketing agencies will only continue to increase because the obsession with online data is creating unrealistic client expectations for services that are over-priced and devoid of basic marketing fundamentals. This year’s winner of the Westpac Auckland Business Awards 2022 (South & East) Excellence in Marketing, CEO and founder of the Auckland marketing agency Marketing Minds, Anne Casey, warned today that digital marketing and associate co...
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Why do we prioritise physical health over mental health?
- November 16, 2022
The top skill Kiwi workers will need to develop in the workplace now and in the future is a healthy mind. Simone-Ellen Keller, a personal transformation strategist and CEO of Genius You—a company that teaches people how the mind works and how to use it to uncover their own brilliance by using emotions constructively—is calling for New Zealanders to put the same focus on their mental health as they do on their physical health. “If you want a satisfying career. If you want heal...
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Hospitality workers on the frontline of social trauma
- October 13, 2022
The shortage in hospitality staff may be more a symptom of unwillingness to work in a sector suffering unprecedented levels of rude and intolerant customers. Former bar owner and now personal transformation strategist and CEO of Genius You, Simone-Ellen Keller, said it is unlikely that unfavourable working conditions like low pay, demanding working conditions, and even a drop in immigration, are solely to blame for growing staff shortages in the hospitality sector because those conditions hav...
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Timing and Productivity
- May 30, 2022
I came across this interview of Daniel Pink, where he shared some study results. About 20% of the variance in human performance is related directly to the time of day. Mornings being the peak performance periods when we are best doing analytic tasks, the afternoon is better suited to doing mundane administrative tasks (PS. because we are dumber 😊), while late afternoon and early evening, also referred to the recovery phase, is often when we are best at doing creative tasks....
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The Opportunity of Downturns – Preparing the mind
- May 23, 2022
It’s not just headlines, it’s true. More billionaires are made during the hard times than in the good times. While I checked the accuracy of this, I was equally startled to read that in China alone, in the last year they have produced a new billionaire every 34 hours! Why is this important to you? You know already. We are living through chaotic, uncertain times now, and the decisions that you make now will have long term effects on your future, and not necessarily money related eit...
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How to use influencer marketing
- March 9, 2022
What is influencer marketing? With the rise of more and more people becoming influencers by gaining huge followings of ‘fans’ on social media platforms, there is a great opportunity for marketers to invest in influencers. Influencer marketing is a type of social media marketing where influencers are paid to promote and endorse products. The reason it works so well says it all in the name, ‘influencers’. They are able to influence what their followers will purchase as they have esta...
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NFTs a minefield of scams warns cybersecurity expert
- February 28, 2022
New Zealanders are being urged to avoid getting sucked into the current mania around non-fungible tokens (NFTs) because scams are as common as promises of profit. Host of Radio New Zealand's Tech Tuesday and author of the book 'She'll Be Right (Not!) – a cybersecurity guide for Kiwi business owners – Daniel Watson says the completely unregulated NFT market is effectively one giant Ponzi scheme. "There's massive hype, much of it fuelled by paid advertising and social media campaigns pai...
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Premium ‘matrix-like’ gym launches despite gloom
- February 21, 2022
Pandemic restrictions and the struggles of the fitness industry have not deterred at least one business from taking a giant, future focussed step, with Snap Fitness Mairangi Bay just days away from launching New Zealand's largest million dollar high-tech – digitally connected – health club in a substantial two-level 900m2 facility. Co-founder of the new state-of-the-art health club, Lolesh Sharma, said that while some people may have questioned the founders’ sanity with the new venture,...
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How to Tell If You Are a Good Leader – Including a Free Self-Assessment
- January 21, 2022
Here are some valuable questions that will directly indicate how ready you are to lead others. Humans are social beings, even introverts are socially minded and would not last long on a trip to Mars without feeling isolated and lonely. Taking this on board, to what extent is your business environment truly social? I am referring to that open, comfortably vulnerable atmosphere where everyone feels safe to express their trials and tribulations. The challenge with most businesses is that...
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SEO for Small Business
- August 19, 2021
Search Engine Optimisation is one of those areas where you need to know some of ‘the stuff.’ SEO is easy to do but difficult to do well. Knowing how to optimise your website so that the likes of Google show your results on page 1, and strategically choosing your keywords for paid advertising should become a long-term asset in your business, especially if you have growth ambitions. SEO is something that I recommend you either outsource or develop internal expertise thr...
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What Olympians Teach Us About Business
- August 19, 2021
To my Kiwi readers, apologies upfront. I came across this article in Inc and it really resonated with me. Cath Bishop - 3 times Olympian now Business Coach - Team CultureThe story, more of a reflection of high-performance teams, comes from a 3 times Olympian from Great Britain. I am sure this would equally apply to many of our great Kiwi Olympians, but I have not found their story yet. This one is important as Cath Bishop is now a Business Coach and directly relates her experienc...
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How to tell if you are a good leader – free self assessment
- July 19, 2021
Here are some valuable questions that will directly indicate how ready you are to lead others. Humans are social beings, even introverts (me included) are socially minded and would not last long on a trip to Mars without feeling isolated and lonely. Taking this on board, to what extent is your business environment truly social? I am referring to that open, comfortably vulnerable atmosphere where everyone feels safe to express their trials and tribulations. The challenge with most busi...
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The #1 mistake that business owners make causes stress and anxiety in their staff
- July 8, 2021
Heard of the power of one? Like compound interest, just a 1 per cent improvement in 1 per cent of your business, made consistently results in spectacular performance improvements. Well, research has shown that if you fix this #1 mistake, expect to get at least a 10 per cent improvement in employee productivity. That’s mind-bogglingly big! I quoted the figure from a book I recommend: Wellbeing at Work: How to Build Resilient and Thriving Teams. Worldwide, about 50 per cent of employee...
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How to Budgcast
- June 1, 2021
Being a Generation X person myself I can reflect on my habit-forming school years and see some of the big gaps in education, in particular financial management. I have to wonder if this is a major contributor to the generally ‘lacking’ of financial management in SME’s today. Or is the problem originating from a mindset that this is boring, distasteful ‘chore-like’ tasks? If so, I get it, I really do. In the corporate world, it is normal to have an annual budget, which is then ...
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Conversations, Feedback, Recognition (CFRs) – Fuel for OKRs
- May 14, 2021
A few years ago, I read a book that had a big impact on how I understand and manage goal-setting. I recommend that you add this book to your top ten list: John Doerr, the author of the book ‘Measure What Matters.’ John quotes: ‘If you’re striving for high performance “Goals are very necessary things”.’ Seems like a no-brainer statement, yet so few businesses are effective in their goal setting. In his book, he shares the goal-setting system that is behind many ...
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Personal branding in SMEs - time to challenge the paradigm
- May 3, 2021
The average SME starts from the typical 'garage', i.e., the owner invests some dollars and leverages off their experience or training to start their business. Right in the beginning, they ponder on an ideal business name, and usually because their funds are limited, between themselves and their friends come up with a name. It is not uncommon for the business name to be that of the owner. The business either stays as a one-person operation, so the name sticks or the business grows or...
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8 powerful ways to market your business on a shoestring budget
- April 15, 2021
One of the top challenges for any business is getting the attention of your target audience. This all comes down to effective marketing. How do you gain traction in your marketing when you are on a tight budget? How do you compete with established competition or competition that have deep pockets that throw big dollars at their marketing? The good news for any business owners is that there are plenty of ways to market your business that’s light on the pocket. Leverage on t...
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YouTube, Vimeo & Self Hosting Videos: What Option Should You Use?
- March 31, 2021
Firstly there are several players in the market when it comes to video hosting and if you’re running a site that depends on videos then there are other solutions for you that are not mentioned in this post. This post is designed to help the average company who wants to put promotional, training or even testimonial videos on their website. YouTube is the world’s most well known and most used video streaming service behind Netflix. YouTube accounts ...
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Conversion Rate Optimisation Explained
- March 26, 2021
It does not matter whether you sell camping gear, financial services, or eco-friendly clothing, one of your main goals is to convert as many leads into sales as possible. This is what conversion rate optimisation is all about. Often shortened to CRO, conversion rate optimisation is something that no business can afford to overlook today. Not only does it help you to improve your bottom line, but it will save costs, empower your marketing team, and increase the efficiency and sales of multi...
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Why Work-from-Home is a Fad Doomed to Failure
- January 16, 2021
My first day of work in the home office, I dressed for the part – work pants, shirt, shoes. I was starting my own business, and I kicked off that first day promptly at 8 am too. I just didn't count on the lawnmowers ruining the mood: giant atmosphere killers, those lawnmower blokes. Then there's the dog next door that barks all day when the neighbours are at work and the fact that I had to park a heater virtually under my feet to stay warm. Working from home wasn't going to be as romantic as ...
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