In this episode, I chat with Lillia Tarawa about growing up in Gloriavale, a religious cult on the West Coast of the South Island in New Zealand.

We discuss what it was like dealing with the oppression of a religious cult, some of the trauma she experienced growing up, how her family escaped the cult, the challenges of building a completely new life in the outside world, and the learnings she has had along her journey.

Lillia is now a sought after speaker whos Ted X talk has amassed over 10 million views online, she is a writer who helps people find their personal power, she authored the book 'Daughter Of Gloriavale', and she uses her story, learnings, and unique wisdom to help others find liberation, courage and purpose.

Lillia has been through so much in her life and yet she has managed to create a powerful and fulfilling new reality for herself. She shares a lot of valuable insights on happiness, dealing with trauma, finding your freedom, overcoming adversity, and living with a full expression of self.

To learn more about Lillia and her work visit https://www.liliatarawa.com/

Connect with Lillia on Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/c/LiliaTarawa%20

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/liliatarawa/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/liliatarawa

Connect with Jamie on Social Media:

Follow Jamie on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jamieodonnell.me/

Follow Jamie on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/imjamieodonnell/

Follow Jamie on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCgguLOrzs0w5U-6I-5mU_lg?view_as=subscriber

In this episode, I chat with former WBO Heavyweight Champion of the World, Joseph Parker.

We chat about Joe's career in boxing, the journey from being a young kid growing up in South Auckland with a dream of becoming a world champion, to actually becoming the first Heavyweight World Champion to ever come out of New Zealand or the Pacific Islands.

We discuss his future goals and upcoming fight with Junior Fa, the lessons he has learnt through boxing, fighting Anthony Joshua, winning the world title in front of his family, and some of the things Joe is most proud of in life.

It's an interesting look behind the scenes with one of New Zealand's most successful sporting stars.

Enjoy.

In this episode, I chat with serial entrepreneur and creative leader Pat MacFie. Pat is the Co-Founder of Manaaki, the Co-Founder of Indigo, and the Co-Founder of Chooice.co.nz. In his previous role, Pat was the Global Director of Media for Xero and is internationally recognised in innovation, brand and digital strategy.

In the past 6 months, Pat and his team have launched Manaaki.io, a platform designed to support small businesses in New Zealand by connecting them with leading industry experts to provide the support and guidance needed to navigate and survive the current business climate. They have helped 10's of thousands of small businesses across the country and recently launched Chooice.co.nz, an online marketplace dedicated to helping small businesses promote and sell their products online.

We chat about doing business in 2020, the learnings from the past 6 months, Pat's advice for small business owners around the country, how entrepreneurship can be used to tackle major world problems, and we dive into Pat's journey through life and entrepreneurship and the challenges, adversities, and mindsets that have enabled him to grow into the person and businessman he is today.

It's a fascinating and honest insight into the mind of a great Kiwi Entrepreneur and creative leader. Pat's battled poverty, beaten Cancer, overcome failure, and developed a passion for using his entrepreneurial and creative talent to do meaningful work with businesses that are driven to make a difference in the world.

He's a very smart, humble and inspiring dude and this is a fantastic conversation that draws the curtains on what it really takes to be a successful entrepreneur.

To learn more about Manaaki or to get support and advice for your business visit https://www.manaaki.io/

To learn more about Chooice visit https://chooice.co.nz/

To learn more about the work Pat and his team do at Indigo visit https://weareindigo.co/

Follow Pat on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/pat.macfie/?hl=en

Follow Jamie on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/jamieodonnell.me/?hl=en

In this episode, I chat with serial entrepreneur, coach and Australian fitness business expert Travis Jones. Travis founded RBT Gyms and has grown the business from a start-up with $0 revenue through to a 16 gym empire doing around $10 million annual revenue.

Travis is also the founder of Fit-Pro formula where he has coached hundreds of fitness professionals and helped them grow 6 and 7 figure businesses in the fitness space, and he is the founder of Keystone app, another fitness-related business providing personal trainers with the platform needed to service their clients to a high level online.

We talk about Travis's startup journey with RBT including him living in the gym with his dog because he couldn't afford to pay rent. We discuss the growth of RBT, the challenges, the failures, and we tap into the mindset that has allowed Travis to not just create success in business but also has allowed him to create a huge impact with the thousands of people who have been a part of RBT Gyms around Australia.

This is a really inspiring conversation with a guy who has grown himself into a very good entrepreneur and an unstoppable force. His drive, passion, attitude and desire to serve people is incredibly inspiring and Travis shares openly and honestly about the up's, down's and key learnings from his past 10 years in business.

To learn more about Travis or RBT gyms you can visit https://rbtgyms.com/ Connect with Travis on:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/travisjonesentrepreneur/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCl7SdkiNdo4yKMS2lggRgRQ

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/travisjonesentrepreneur

Subscribe to the Life Livers Academy Podcast on:

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3CZL1H0zwrKqRC0fePtUY3?si=21Sf13_eSs-K2EapY2bCPw

Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/nz/podcast/life-livers-academy/id1514320795

In this episode, I chat with leading mental performance coach and speaker David Niethe.

Over the past 25 years, David has built a reputation as a leader in the area of mental performance and has coached many of the countries leading athletes including Lydia Ko, Israel Adesanya, Junior Fa, Brad Riddell, Kai Kara France, The New Zealand Breakers, and an extensive list of Olympians and Common Wealth Games Athletes.

We discuss mental performance and what that actually means, how to build unshakable confidence, how to reframe your experiences so you wire yourself for success, visualisation, and how to get the mental edge in anything you do.

Dave is a super passionate guy who loves what he does and is known for delivering exceptional results for his clients.

You can learn more about David and his work by visiting http://davidniethecoach.com/.

In this episode, I chat with airline pilot, Everest mountaineer, adventurer, extreme marathon competitor, speaker, and author, Mike Allsop - an ordinary family man proving that anybody can accomplish extraordinary things.

We chat about Mikes near-death experiences including surviving a plane crash off the coast of Hawaii and dodging avalanches on the worlds gnarliest mountains.

Mike is an ambitious guy who consistently sets big goals that stretch what he believes he is capable of. He has summited Everest in an unguided expedition, run 7 marathons in 7 continents in 7 days, completed the worlds highest marathon around Everest, a feat never before attempted, and has lived a life of extreme adventure where he has constantly faced fear and pushed his mental and physical limits.

We discuss the mindsets and mental toughness required to summit Mt Everest, the techniques Mike uses to control his mind under pressure, why passion is a key ingredient to actually achieving your big goals, how to create unstoppable momentum towards your goals, and how Mike thinks of fear and acts with courage even in genuine life or death situations.

Mike is a sought after keynote speaker and author who dedicates himself to showing that others too can achieve their dreams and ambitions by overcoming the fear of failure, building self-belief, and breaking each goal into a series of smaller steps.

This is a fascinating and inspiring conversation with a man who has tested himself against the limits of human endurance lived a life full of challenge and adventure.

To learn more about Mikes work you can visit his website: http://www.mikeallsop.co.nz/

Or follow Mike on social media:

Instagram: http://instagram.com/mikeallsopnz

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/777projectpage

Connect with Jamie on social media:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jamieodonnell.me

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/imjamieodonnell

Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/c/JamieODonnellNZ

Subscribe to the Life Livers Academy Podcast on:

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3CZL1H0zwrKqRC0fePtUY3?si=sk_HU6YuRA6sif3bfSfs5g

Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/nz/podcast/life-livers-academy/id1514320795

In this episode, I chat with the founder and owner of Engage Fight Wear and co-founder of AP Sports Management, Ash Belcastro.

Over the past 5 years, Ash has built Engage from an idea into one of the worlds leading fight wear brands, and a brand synonymous with some of the UFC's biggest stars.

On top of running Engage, Ash also manages current UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya, current UFC featherweight champion Alex Volkanovski, and upcoming stars Kai Kara France and Brad Riddell.

In this episode, Ash talks about the rise of both Engage and the City Kickboxing Gym and the journey they have been on as a team to conquer the UFC and make a mark on the world of mixed martial arts.

We discuss some of the challenges Ash has faced, the journey of building Engage, why passion is the key ingredient to their success, and what it's like to be part of a special team that is dominating the UFC.

To learn more about Engage or to check out their new range visit https://engageind.com/.

Follow Engage on Social Media:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/EngageInd

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/engageind/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCXReItU6Lp3HURvDWcgifhg

Follow Ash on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ash.james_/

Connect with Jamie on:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/imjamieodonnell

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jamieodonnell.me/

Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/c/JamieODonnellNZ

Subscribe to the podcast on:

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3CZL1H0zwrKqRC0fePtUY3?si=6vThmj1VT26xHzdRsRBQjg

Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/nz/podcast/life-livers-academy/id1514320795

In this episode, I chat with ultra-endurance athlete, mental toughness & mindset coach, speaker, author & entrepreneur, Lisa Tamati.

For the past 25 years, Lisa has competed in the world's toughest endurance events clocking up over 70,000km, racing everywhere from the Sahara, to the Gobi, to Death Valley to the Himalayas, Australia and Europe. She has pushed her mind and body to the limits, has both succeeded and failed and learnt many lessons along the way

She has also had to overcome many obstacles in her personal life from bringing back her mum after an aneurysm left her with major brain damage, to getting through divorce, financial ruin and rebuilding her life.

She knows what it takes to overcome obstacles, to chase massive goals and face your fears and now she lives to teach, coach and inspire people to reach their true potential.

Lisa is an incredible woman who really has walked the walk. She has competed at an elite level for 25 years in one of the hardest sports on the planet and she has some incredible insights and teachings on building mental toughness and unlocking your potential.

To learn more about Lisa visit https://www.lisatamati.com/

Follow Lisa on Social Media:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lisatamati/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lisatamati/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/lisatamat

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisa-tamati-a7b67820/

Connect with Jamie:

Follow Jamie on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jamieodonnell.me/

Follow Jamie on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/imjamieodonnell/

Follow Jamie on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCgguLOrzs0w5U-6I-5mU_lg?view_as=subscriber