A couple of weeks back I posted a blog covering some of the learnings and experiences from a recent trip to a conference in Hanoi.

This week, I thought I would share the key messages from some of the other presenters.

Overall, the presenters that spoke at the conference were amongst the very best in the world. With the financial services sector in Australia weathering a rather torrid storm at the moment with the Royal Commission, having a conference that focussed on trust and the way forward was very timely.

Just on the topic of the Royal Commission though – some really dreadful practices from trusted brands have been aired for all to see. As a long-time participant in the financial services sector, I find this personally very disappointing.

My fear is the profession as a whole is being tarnished, rather than just those who participated in some questionable practices.

Every day, I work with financial planners. Overall, these are good people who run their own businesses and work tirelessly to help their clients achieve their goals and aspirations. Like any industry, there will be a few ‘bad apples’, but let’s not destroy the livelihoods of those good, honest and ethical advisers who put their client’s interests first and make a real difference to the lives of everyday Australians.

Anyway, returning to the conference:

Author of ‘Inspired Leadership, How You Can Achieve Extraordinary Results in Business’ Kevin Gaskell, was the first keynote speaker of Day 3. Kevin recounted his time working with a number of leading brands, particularly in the automotive industry and spoke of the need for business people to out-think their competitors in order to succeed.

He reminded us of the need to have a ‘vision of success’ and to embrace the ‘1,000-day plan’ – that counts down on a daily basis. Kevin is an inspiring leader.

It was around 20 years ago that I first met David Penglase. David is an author, behavioural scientist and conference speaker.

Not only was David the conference MC, but he also delivered a keynote address on the ‘the science of trust’.  David speaks about how intention is the foundation of trust. ‘Our actions and our behaviours are our morals shown in conduct’. With the turmoil the industry is going through at the moment, David’s message was a timely reminder of the steps we all need to be taking to rebuilt trust.

Peak performance researcher, Dr Adam Fraser bought the conference to a close with a very thought-provoking look at mental illness. Apart from exploring good and bad brain chemicals and the effects they can have on our health, Adam reminded his audience of the need to take regular time out. He explained his ‘burnout recovery pyramid’ that sees us taking out time on a regular basis - daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly and yearly, to allow our brain and body to recover.

We were reminded that we change our life by new behaviours, and not simply by changing thoughts. We have 60,000 thoughts each day, and many of them are negative. If we wait for negative thoughts to pass before we start progressing, we won’t progress. Adam provided some very useful techniques for recognising negative thoughts and feelings, acknowledging them, and them move on. A very practical and worthwhile presentation.

After three days of intense activity, it was time to return home to Australia or, for the lucky ones (those who planned ahead!) – it was time for a holiday. I am sure that Mark will be sharing some of his and Donna’s experiences as they cycled their way from Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh City.