Nancy Youssef is a finance broker, a mentor, an author, a philanthropist, a keynote speaker … and a powerhouse. Nancy, the 134th person I've met on my quest to have lunch with 500 strangers, has achieved so much in her career. She’s built two successful businesses, Classic Finance Group and Classic Mentoring & Coaching. She’s twice [...]
If life had turned out differently, I would never have met Daniel Talbot for lunch – because he would’ve been in Peru instead. Dan, the 133rd person I've met on my quest to have lunch with 500 strangers, moved to Lima in 2018, with his Peruvian wife. Dan has years of corporate experience in the ICT [...]
Since I began my quest to have lunch with 500 strangers in five years, I’ve noticed something: chatty people tend to be better at talking than listening. What struck me about Georgia Giannaros, the 132nd person I've met, is that she’s not only a great conversationalist, she’s also a great listener. That’s probably why I quickly [...]
If you look at Nathan Lovett’s business card, it says he’s the CEO of the National Indigenous Culinary Institute. But Nathan, the 131st person I've met on my quest to have lunch with 500 strangers, sees himself not so much as an executive but a people person. Nathan has been building relationships and developing talent throughout [...]
Steven York is the 130th person I've met on my quest to have lunch with 500 strangers – and probably the most fascinating. Steve spent 19 years in the NSW Police Force, including a decade in the hostage negotiation unit (which he commanded for three years). Good negotiators are good listeners and communicators, Steve explained. You [...]
When Dan Sofo, the 129th person I've met on my quest to have lunch with 500 strangers, suggested we meet at Pocket Pita in Neutral Bay, I thought it was just another restaurant. But it turned out Dan owns the place. Dan has a property business, Unicorn Buyers Agents. His background, though, is in hospitality. When [...]
Cathy Morcom, the 128th person I've met on my quest to have lunch with 500 strangers, is exceptional in three areas. First, Cathy is an exceptional businesswoman. Cathy runs a consulting business and has 25 years of senior management experience, including serving as CEO of Scouts Australia and holding important roles at KPMG, NAB, Westpac and [...]
Getting divorced is tough for all sorts of reasons ‒ emotional, financial and even practical. Katrene Halteh, the 127th person I've met on my quest to have lunch with 500 strangers, has experienced divorce from two different angles. Katrene is the founder of Urban Family Lawyers, which she started last year. She’s also a mother-of-two with [...]
Julian Brown, the 126th person I've met on my quest to have lunch with 500 strangers, might have more personality than the other 125 combined. Julian is delightfully eccentric. He talks quickly and laughs often. His conversation is peppered with an engaging mix of dad jokes and movie quotes on the one hand, and sharp observations [...]
You're feeling disconnected and unfulfilled as an employee. But you’re nervous about launching your own business. So what now? Call Carole Issa, the 125th person I've met on my quest to have lunch with 500 strangers. Carole was once like you – a frustrated employee who felt uninspired in her job and wished she had more [...]
