Get Inspired for 2018
30 Epic Kiwi Business Quotes from Our Very Own Backyard
Here’s a selection of thirty quotes to inspire you to do more and be more as we head into 2018.
I’ve been fortunate enough to meet some amazingly talented New Zealand CEO’s and business owners in 2017 with many from right here in my home region of Hawke’s Bay.
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1. Belief
“It is our beliefs that are the fuel for our practice. We believe that you need a cohesive team with the same approach so that you’ve got an anchor.” Kimberley Crisp — The Nest
2. Capability
“You’ve got to understand who we are as New Zealand’ers. We’re not some passive group of people that simply accepted adversity as being the thing that should always be our existence. Typically when we’ve had really major challenges, we’ve come up with world-breaking solutions.” Pat Snedden — Manaikalani Education Trust
3. Practice
“You need to take photographs for yourself and set goals and challenges to yourself so you can learn from each picture, whether it be good or bad, you can learn something.” Richard Brimer — Photographer
4. Leap
“My view really was to start and see and learn as we go. Property development as a business is a lot more common now, but back then it wasn’t.” Jonathan Wallace — Wallace Development Company
5. Collaborate
“You can look ahead and do research and find out what you’re going to come up against, but in reality you face new challenges pretty much on a weekly or monthly basis and you just have to figure them out yourself or talk to other people who have been through start-up businesses and get some help.” Chris Ormond — Giant Brewing Co
6. Training
“I think, for me it was all about make training very difficult so the competition is easier. From a business side it is no different. Be well prepared, work hard and then the luckier you seem to get.” Nigel Avery — CEO Sileni Wines
7. Alignment
“Do what you do, and love what you love and then one day if you do it for long enough money will be a by-product of doing a good job.” Damian Smith — Allegiance Academy
8. Passion
“I believe that if you’re passionate about doing something that you are going into business about, the chances of success are hugely increased over what they would be if you didn’t care about the product.” Gareth Hughes CEO Dub Pies New York.
9. Regret
“I don’t want to get to 70 or 80 and say ‘I wish’. If I see something and I think we can do it and we’re in a position to be able to do it, we’ll go for it if it gets me excited.” Steve Nathan — CEO Time Hub
10. Fear
“It makes me feel nervous now, anxious to think about what we were doing at the time and actually doing it and putting your balls on the bloody chopping block and actually quitting your job and doing it is a big deal, it was pretty nerve wracking.” Benjamin Fernandez Georgia on Tennyson.
11. Patience
“I think patience, because you can only show somebody so much. If they want to learn, it comes from being very patient on themselves.” Jeremy Rameka — Pacifica Restaurant.
12. Mentality
“Mentally, that’s probably the biggest aspect for people involved in business. If you’re stressed, you have that flight or fight response. Taking that time out for yourself is probably one of the biggest things.” Brandon Campbell Training
13. Self Awareness
“Know what you’re good at and knowing what you’re not good at.” Vicki Lawson — PwC Partner
14. Originality
“What you do is original because you are original by default. You don’t have to find originality by cleverness or by gimmicks.” David Trubridge — Designer & Artist
15. Capability
“Often when people at their very worst they are at their very best and I think in there is the lesson. Live your life, enjoy it.”
Shann Longley CEO — Terry Longley & Sons Funeral Directors.
16. Guarantees
“Our main priority is customer service and quality of product. We generally only deal with suppliers who stand behind their product.” Angus Thomson — CEO Thomson Suits
17. Values
“We follow a values driven philosophy through an unwavering commitment to honesty, integrity and loyalty.” Nick Stewart CEO Stewart Financial Group
18. Teamwork
“We all sign off. There’s not any friction. We trust each others judgement and it just works like that. Maybe for some reason it just works for us.” Emma & Kate Bradshaw — Maison Therese
19. Ideas
“Having a good idea doesn’t give you a viable business. When people laugh at you, sometimes they’re not laughing because of the idea, they’re laughing at your complete lack of understanding or appreciation of what actually is involved but that’s the part I like the most.” Sarah Irvin CEO Real Exchange
20. Contribution
“The business fell out of my passion to help more people. It was really only in the last couple of years that we’re sitting back and saying wow not only is there an opportunity but there is a huge need.” Ben Warren CEO Be Pure
21. Opportunity
“It wasn’t so much a niche in the market, it was a bloody great canyon.” Gerard Barron — Common Room
22. Connection
“We have to make it super easy for a customer to say ‘I want, who want’s me?” Jenene Crossan CEO Flossie.
23. Family
“This business can benefit my family and maintaining good relationships it can benefit a whole lot of people.” Melaina Newport-Karaitaina CEO Aroha & Friends
24. Contrarian
“We’ve been doing the opposite of what everyone is doing we need to make sure that we can survive if everyone else to not make garments in New Zealand anymore.” Melissa Williams CEO KILT Clothing
25. Potential
“There’s so much untapped potential there. It’s just a matter of working out where you can grow. They want to see that you’re planning to grow not just tick over so it makes the brand a stronger brand.” Jonathan Viljoen — CEO Subway Hastings
26. Solutions
“It was purely out of a problem we had and coming up with an innovative solution for that problem. The reason it was a standing desk if we’re completely honest, was so that we didn’t have to design a chair.” Fraser Callaway CEO Refold Standing Desks.
27. Messaging
“Keep your message on target and you keep supplying products that people love, it will do it for you.” Catherine Hawkins CEO Pureborn Organic.
28. Sincerity
“You want to create something that people want to connect to. How you do that in a marketplace that as coming as saturated as ours you do that through points of difference. You do that through engaging your community, engaging your audience through all the various means of social media but you do it with sincerity and you do it with integrity.” Richard Corney — CEO Flight Coffee.
29. Co-operation
“Our model is is a co-operative model and it’s about people helping people and it’s based on that philosophy and so what it means is that when you open an account with your credit union, you become an owner as well.” Gavin Earle CEO NZCU Baywide.
30. Relationships
“It’s about building relationships not just relationships with our clients but relationships with our team as well and then our team building relationships with all the other team members so it’s a very strong emphasis on empathy and compassion and also treating everyone as equals.” Kylie Berry —CEO Kiwitax
Get Inspired for 2018
Over this holiday period, subscribe to listen to any of the 100 CEO Interviews on the iTunes Podcast here or on Soundcloud or subscribe on YouTube and get the videos too.
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