Goodlife Collective

"What would you do in this time, if you truly believed in yourself and those around you?" ~ Jon Alexander From time to time, new ideas come along that tectonically shift collective thought for the better. Jon Alexander has created such a shift with his must-read book, 'Citizens - why the key to fixing everything is all of us.' He is also Co-Founder of New Citizen Project. So it was a highlight of 2024 to host Jon last week at our inaugural #ExploringtheNew event, a collaboration with ThinkPlace - WāhiWhakaaro, with support from Voice of Aroha 🙏 The goal for this series is about re-igniting community, hope and agency - three things that Jon has basically written a book about! Another advocate for community, hope and agency is Laurie Foon, the wonderful Deputy Mayor of Wellington City Council. Thank you Laurie for opening the evening with uplifting wisdom and examples of good citizening in communities around Poneke Wellington. 🙌 With his signature enthusiasm and generosity, Jon shared ideas from his work, and engaged us all in dialogue around those. A key concept is the idea that the problems we face today are less about human nature being broken, and more because the story of society we're living within is deeply broken. #CitizensNotConsumers Huge gratitude to everyone who came along. The energy and warmth in the room confirmed our hypothesis: people are awesome, and that - together - we can do this. Thank you Digby Scott for the best feedback we could have hoped for: "I didn't know that was the evening I needed until I was in it. I'm inspired and my brain is sparking." Goodlife Collective stands for the idea that, when we lift others up, we lift ourselves up, words that are echoed in Jon's book: "Invite people in, and create new ways because we know the old will fail." Thanks to co-facilitators Emilie Fetscher Jade Tang-Taylor and Jim Scully! And extra kudos to Jim for deftly driving the technology that bought sound and picture together from 3 locations and 2 timezones 💖 ☎ A big thank you to expert scriber Rachel McPhee who captured the talk in a beautiful sketch below. Not one but two (too many to choose from) inspiring quotes to end on: "The fact that no one knows what the future holds is why it’s always worth acting to shape it." ~ Jon Alexander "Citizenship is a muscle you flex, not a cup you fill" ~ Stephen Greene CBE 💪

The work of Nicholas Janni is a beautiful and much-needed bridge between worlds; Between inner and outer Between head and heart Between self-leadership to unlock true leadership potential As within so without.

Thank you James Souttar Thank you Lee Chambers 🙏 Let’s normalise allyship in ‘25 and beyond..

A soul-nourishing opportunity next Saturday 10:30am… join Della Duncan for a conversation exploring definitions of success, and how redefining success deeply in our minds and hearts, may just be a loving shift for the whole world 🙏

How do we create the conditions to thrive? Maybe there’d be a whole lot more thriving if we got out of our own (& natures) way?

This two-minute gem of wisdom from Jon Alexander, is a vitamin-pill for your faith in humanity. Jon generously beamed in to NZ from 18,000km away to dialogue with Goodlife Collective, sharing ideas from his book CITIZENS (highly recommended evidence-based read for a boost in your faith in humanity 🌏) What does it mean to be a citizen? How do we best show up when it's all a bit uncertain? What is the role of a leader or of the community amidst uncertainty? Enjoy this beautiful 2min's of Jon describing a concept derived from Barry Mason's paper, 'towards positions of safe uncertainty'... its not too much of a stretch to see how a concept from family therapy might relate to a general collective setting (particularly from an indigenous cultural perspective) "Holding the question with people, of, 'how do we go forward together?' invites people into a really generative state of mind, rather than telling them what to do or fix it for them." Thank you Jon - the good ripples continue...

Have you often felt like a realist of a larger reality? That your soul carries the flicker or flame of a world where we are a kinder collective? Ursula Le Guin's words may resonate with you x "We live in capitalism.  Its power seems inescapable. So did the divine right of kings. Any human power can be resisted and changed by human beings. Resistance and change often begin in art, and very often in the art of words. I think hard times are coming, when we will be wanting the voices of writers who can see alternatives to how we live now, and can see through our fear-stricken society and its obsessive technologies, to other ways of being. And even imagine some real grounds for hope. We will need writers who can remember freedom: poets, visionaries—the realists of a larger reality. Right now, I think we need writers who know the difference between production of a market commodity and the practice of an art. The profit motive is often in conflict with the aims of art. We live in capitalism. Its power seems inescapable; so did the divine right of kings. … Power can be resisted and changed by human beings; resistance and change often begin in art, and very often in our art—the art of words. I’ve had a long career and a good one, in good company, and here, at the end of it, I really don’t want to watch American literature get sold down the river. ... The name of our beautiful reward is not profit. Its name is freedom." ~ Ursula K. Le Guin

Join a beautiful fireside chat book launch tomorrow evening, Tues 5:30pm at NOLITA 🧡🍕📙 203 Cuba street in Wellington 🌎 Goodlife Collective is honoured to co-host the launch of ‘One Year, One You, One Planet, a gorgeous book by Susan Wills and Rose Challies, produced by the Terra Nova Foundation. Join us to hear for a short talk and Q&A with co-author Rose Challies, connect with professionals interested in a thriving planet, and enjoy great company and food! Hope you’ll pop along, this will make a lovely Christmas gift 🎄 From the OYOYOP website: What can I do to help the planet? What's the link between personal wellbeing and planetary wellbeing? And how can one person make a difference? One Year, One You, One Planet offers answers to these questions. This book is designed to empower you to help yourself and the earth, through earth-positive actions summarised in digestible daily bites. Each day outlines an action, why it’s important and how it’s impactful. For every day of the year, there's an action that improves the wellbeing of you and Earth. Press pause on tote bags; nurture your sense of awe; borrow from your neighbour. Each day will nudge you out of your comfort zone and lead you to adopt new micro-habits, let go of old unhealthy routines, reduce eco-anxiety and reconnect you with the natural world. This joyful book builds community, personal and planetary wellness – and hope. It’s one you’ll want to share and return to, over and over again. One Year, One You, One Planet was a team effort from the beginning. Despite living at opposite ends of Aotearoa, Susan and Rose were connected through change initiatives as part of the environmental charity Terra Nova Foundation. Both are big advocates for living in synchronicity with Earth, and passionate about empowering other people to take positive action through connections to ourselves, each other, and nature. They both wanted to share impactful actions that truly make a difference, remove barriers for people to get involved, and help everyone understand how truly meaningful individual and collective actions can literally change the world. Over a cup of tea, they discussed how they could bring the idea to life, and One Year, One You, One Planet was born

Wellingtonians - a call out to you! Come to the joyful celebration at Nolita vegan restaurant on Cuba Street Tuesday (3rd Dec) at 5.30pm. Goodlife Collective is honoured to be co-hosting with Terra Nova Foundation as part of their One Year, One You, One Planet book tour. Enjoy fine company, short talks and a Q&A from Rose Challies (co-author and CEO of Terra Nova Foundation) and insight from inspirational changemakers, while you enjoy great vegan Kai! Come after work, bring your friends and colleagues and have fun taking #climateaction. Bookings are on a first come first served basis, so call Nolita today and get your table https://nolita.co.nz/ Books are available to buy and we're giving 10% off on the night - it makes a great gift for all ages ;) #oyoyop #terranova #climateaction #nurtureearth #earthfirst #vegan #greatfood #joy #wellbeing #positivefuture #positivechange

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