Fidelity Life has sponsored five Kiwi financial advisers in honing their leadership skills through an Outward Bound outdoor education course.
According to Fidelity Life, more than 45 advisers applied for the opportunity to attend a five-day Outward Bound professional course, which will be heavily subsidised by Fidelity Life, after it was announced earlier this year.
Fidelity Life head of distribution Mel Beattie (pictured above) said the submissions demonstrated an eagerness from advisers to continue pushing themselves to learn and grow.
“I really want to thank all those advisers who registered,” Beattie said. “We had so many great entries and a wide range of reasons for why advisers were keen to take part – from wanting to connect with the outdoors to improve their mental health, to ticking off a personal bucket list item, to wanting to build better leadership capabilities – which made for a very tough selection process.”
Following the month-long selection process, the following advisers were selected:
“We’re always looking for ways to better support advisers and being able to offer such a unique experience with one of our sponsorship partners makes it even more meaningful,” Beattie said. “We hope advisers attending the Outward Bound course find long term value from this transformative experience and can apply their learnings to both their personal and professional lives.”
Robinson (pictured directly above, back row, third from right), one of the selected advisers, shared his experience after he completed his course in late November.
Robinson said he made some drastic lifestyle changes earlier this year and rediscovered his love of fitness and the outdoors. This led him to apply for the programme, which he believes will further enhance his journey to health and self-discovery.
“Initially, I felt like I was waiting for an ‘ah-ha moment’ or for a certain intensity to kick in,” Robinson said. “Once I let go of that expectation, I felt really present and focused on each moment. As the days went by, observing myself, our group, and our approach to things, it dawned on me how much time and energy we often put into the ‘noise’ of life.
“I’ve come away with greater clarity and focus, lessons, and insights that I can apply in my life; and a deeper understanding of myself and others. This experience has enabled me to understand people from the perspective of who they are without preconceived notions and really helped me recognise the reasons for their behaviours. It altered my filter from judgemental to receptive, which has no doubt helped me be a better adviser to my clients, a better leader to my staff and a better support to my family.”
