Testimonials

Ran Paenga – Modwell

For me, already having a full- time business and personal life, I required extra motivation in targeted aspects of my business plan. I found some of the homework and actions were simple and some were challenging, however, these all were needed to be done and were all achievable . The programme had adaptable, scheduled sessions, and workload given fitted with my work and time commitments. Debs also gives some great advice, tips and techniques that helps you manage your time personally and professionally. I found the sessions were delivered in a friendly and respectful manner.

As an overall assessment, I felt the Business Coaching & Mentoring Programme was friendly, effective, adaptable, communicative and in a handy location providing some great contacts for me to progress the setting up of my new business.

The key points I took away was how to plan ahead and document a ‘to do’ list effectively.

The most useful strategy for me was being given great time management skills.

What I liked most about the programme was being given relevant actions to complete between each session.

The programme made a huge difference for me in that it took incomplete business plan and applied the appropriate advice and direction towards the launch of my new business.

They key skills I gained during the programme were: To Do List; Time Management; writing things down to action i.e. To Do List; prioritising; getting stuff out of my head onto paper; gained confidence; changing mindset from negative to positive.

 

iMA Seminar – Quinovic Riccarton

Excellent seminar- thank you

The most usable strategies and tips I learned were:

  • Not to take anything personally and the difference in personality types
  • Knowing my iMA colour, my work colleagues and family iMA colours
  • Being and staying present and active listening
  • Understanding how each other ticks and thinks
  • To listen more and be understanding of my colleagues
  • Tailor conversations around the person’s iMA colour

Key Takeaways:

  •  Quick steps to identify the different ‘colours’ of personality
  • Being more aware of others
  • Communicating with people as per their iMA colour
  • Understanding others and their thought processes and WHY they think like that
  • Take time to really listen to others

Testimonials / Recommendations:

  • Very insightful on how to get along with others in all aspects of life
  • Everyone should attend so they too can be more aware
  • Attending the seminar helps to understand yourself and those you interact with
  • It’s great to know who you are working and dealing with; iMA helps the way the conversation goes
  • Very beneficial and informative especially being able to identify ones’ personality traits
  • Definitely would recommend as it’s very beneficial to and for a team
  • Very well presented and a fun seminar that would benefit any business
  • I would recommend this seminar to others as the session was non-confronting or judgemental – all were included and valued
  • The seminar was enjoyable, interactive and with a very relaxed equal opportunity to express their feelings and learnings etc
  • I found the seminar very informative
  • It was very easy to listen to and informative and interactive

Teena Anderson FMG – Speech Coaching Business Programme

An excellent programme – 10 out of 10!

Debs was recommended to me because of my fear of public speaking, I still don’t love it but with your advice I do now put my hand up to formally speak whenever possible to normalise it.

The tools you have shared will help me in my role to deliver key messages and PowerPoint presentations, I am excited to share what I have learnt with my Team Leaders so they can also deliver more powerful messaging.

The most usable strategy for me was the mind mapping tool along with speech structure and know your audience.

The key thing I go out of participating in the programme i will use in the future is using pics and less words in PowerPoint presentations, seeking feedback on presentation learnings from audience and keep telling myself I can do this and breathe through the fear.

I would recommend this programme. Knowledge is confidence. I had a true fear of public speaking before attending. I still get nervous but having tools to deliver speeches and give presentations professional, I can keep my nerves under control.

Thanks Debs for delivering such an amazing speech coaching programme.

Speech Coaching Business Programme – ENATEL

ENATEL had five participants who attended the Success Factor Speech Coaching Business Programme and here’s what they said.

The most useful tip and tool I gained from the programme was:

  • Being aware of things to improve on
  • Being aware of gap fillers and not using them
  • Being self-aware of my presentation skills
  • The importance of voice projection and eye contact
  • Getting feedback in a positive way

The key thing I got out of participating in the programme was:

  • Looking around at each person in the audience and pausing to improve engagement
  • How to give a more effective presentation to an audience
  • Being more self-aware of what I’m doing and how I am coming across to the audience
  • The difference of presenting to different audiences
  • Be prepared before you present

I would recommend this programme to others because:

  • It gives you more experience giving speeches and presentations
  • I would definitely recommend this programme to others – gained heaps
  • It helps you to greatly improve your presentation skills
  • Most people will have presentations to give and need to improve their skills
  • Great to build your confidence in your presentation skills

Testimonials:

  • Getting constructive criticism on speeches given is very useful to help improve speaking skills
  • It’s a great programme to build your speaking and presenting skills
  • the programme was very informative and pushed me out of my comfort zone
  • Gained loads of confidence in my presentation skills
  • Speech Coaching Programme was great. Different to what I expected and learned so much. I feel much more confident
  • Excellent programme – learned lots

iMA Team Seminar – G&T Catering

Excellent seminar – gained a greater understanding of other team members.

Excellent – gained an understanding of each of the team members colours and how they might respond.

Very informational and helpful the team understanding of each other.

Learned how others might feel and respond so I can work more cohesively my team and be more understanding.

I liked the breakdown of what happens under stress.

My biggest takeaway was to take time to listen and delivery communication appropriately.

I was able to take time to learn about each member of the team.

I learned that all iMA colours make a team, and different colours for specific roles.

Learned how iMA colours depict the way people are and so know not to take offence.

I gained a better understanding of the people I work with.

Understood more how to manage my reactions with other staff.

Understanding others’ communications styles will help me improve my communication and time management skills.

Very informative and interesting learning about communicating better and differently.

I learned a lot about myself and how I can communicate and do things differently.

The session made me more aware of other people’s personality types.

It was interesting to learn about everyone’s needs going forward.

Great team-building session.

Charlie Crummett – Speech Coaching Programme

I felt the Speech Coaching Programme was excellent and consisted of ways to make speeches more interactive.

The programme gave me more confidence and found it really helpful.

The programme took the myth and unknown aspects of giving speeches away with practical tips and suggestions and helped me become more interactive with my audience.

I would highly recommend Debs for this programme to help you with your public speaking.

Julie Hassall – Fabric Fusion & Sycamore Sewing School – Business Coaching & Mentoring Programme

I thought the Business Coaching & Mentoring 12-Session Programme was excellent and scored it 10 / 10.

It has been really beneficial to have your support Debs to coach and mentor my business ventures.

Debs provided me with some great tools for planning my direction and workflow. Which has really helped me to have a clearer focus and manifest my goals

What I found most interesting was the importance of networking, having coffees with the right people has really opened doors for me and provided opportunities that I dreamed of. Your personal introductions have fast tracked me towards the right people, thank you.

What I liked the most was the flexibility was great you were able to pivot to which ever area I need coaching or mentoring in.

The Business Coaching & Mentoring Coaching Programme made a difference in that it gave me support to confidently make the connections and changes I needed.

I would recommend Debs at Success Factor and I believe everyone can improve their business skills and practices.

Debs is a great Business Coach and Mentor. She is really supportive and helps provide useful tools to elevate your business direction and practice.

Due to her vast experience in business and wide sphere of contacts she is able to connect you with the right people, which can lead ultimately to achieving your goals and manifesting your dreams.

A huge thank you for your business coaching and mentoring services, your advice and guidance has been invaluable.

PRESENT Seminar – ENATEL

Testimonials / Feedback:

  • This was an eye opener to what techniques are available to help presenting more natural for all involved
  • Good to know the skill of creating and presenting a PowerPoint presentation in a way that comes to life
  • I got loads more confidence and felt better to present afterwards and realised that just small things can make a big difference
  • The way you present can make a massive difference to how the audience receives it
  • Excellent seminar – thank you!
  • 10 out of 10!

The most useful strategy was:

  • The mind map
  • The content and description in a presentation is so important
  • Less means more
  • The doing, feedback, strategy and then the redoing

The reason I would recommend the PRESENT Seminar to others is:

  • It will help you improve and identify things you didn’t know
  • It will provide a massive improvement in a short time
  • It was very good and very effective

The key thing I got out of participating in the PRESENT Seminar is:

  • Posture, timing of the pause and eye contact
  • Pausing, as well as the psychological and positive thinking aspect
  • ALL of it!

Effective Communication and Conflict Resolution Session – Building Unit – Waimakariri District Council

Excellent seminar thank you!

Great subject matter; enthusiastic presenter; real life applications

Well organised, thoughtful and challenging

Simplicity of the iMA communication tool and concept in terms of understanding it and applying it in practice

iMA is helpful and easy to understand

Great depth of knowledge shared

What I learned the most was not making assumptions

The most usable strategy was understanding the difference between listening and hearing and how we deal or not with conflict

Ian Walford – Business Coaching & Mentoring Programme

I would give a 10 out of 10 for the business coaching & mentoring programme.

This programme has given me more self confidence in myself and given me better skills at looking inward at myself and my strengths and weaknesses, likes and dislikes.

The key points I took away having completed the programme were:

  • Positive thinking
  • Affirmations
  • Working to your strengths

The most interesting and useful strategy I gained was the affirmations. It was an effective positive method to quell the negative thoughts.

I was impressed with Debs’ ability to read and clarify what I was saying and her ability to re-align the various parts of a conversation into positive perspectives and tasks.

The programme made a difference to me in that it gave me the confidence to move to another job. It promoted self-reflection as to what is important to me and what I want in a career.

I would recommend Debs’ business coaching & mentoring programme. I feel that Debs took time to listen to me and the various issues that I was dealing with and was able to give me small but simple strategies to help overcome many of the hurdles I was facing.

The biggest thing that I have found with this programme is I have had the ability to talk about many issues and problems that have been troubling me for many years. It gave me a chance to download, reflect and analyse these from a different perspective, and make meaningful progress to deal with and overcome these obstacles. I appreciated Debs’ attentive demeanour and her ability to listen and make meaningful suggestions every session.

Malvern Kahui Ako in Canterbury – Seminar: Understanding our What & Why – Determining our How & When

A group of 12 principals from Malvern Kahui Ako in Canterbury participated in the Success Factor seminar entitled: Understanding our What & Why – Determining our How and When

The most usable strategies were:

  • Understanding my why
  • Acton brainstorm sheet
  • Vision, values, goals – everything
  • What’s in my backpack
  • Everything was interactive and instructive

The key thing I got from the seminar was:

  • Self-reflection
  • Clarity of vision
  • My mindset is the key to change
  • Thinking what I need to unpack from my backpack
  • Positive – setting systems up for success
  • Looking after me, taking time to reflect

Summary of Testimonials:

  • Excellent seminar – great to reflect
  • A well-presented, informative and meaningful topic; very good seminar – relevant and important
  • Would recommend this seminar to support your own wellbeing as a leader; hugely recommend this seminar for wellbeing for leaders with a focus on why you are doing what you are doing and setting a vision
  • Excellent seminar and great for leaders to focus on themselves and their wellbeing
  • Excellent seminar, great for anyone who wants to take time out for yourself to realign and restructure where needed

Shaun Denholm – Personal Life Coaching

My overall Assessment of the programme was that I found the personal  life coaching sessions valuable. I learned a lot about how to deal with negative issues that come up in my life. I struggle with a lot of negative thoughts and these sessions have helped a lot with that.

My key takeaways were don’t make assumptions about what others are thinking; everyone is not out to get you; your thoughts do not define you; bad things may happen from time to time but they will pass.

I loved the SAVERS (Hal Elrod) Debs introduced me to – Silence, Affirmations, Visualisation, Exercise, Reading, Scribing which I now do each morning.

What I liked the most was having the freedom to do the sessions when it suited me. I liked just sitting down on the couch and essentially having a chat. I liked being given some direction and suggestions as this is something I struggle with.

The programme made such a difference to me personally. I feel I get less stressed at work, and when I do get stressed or down on myself, I can come out of it a lot quicker than in the past.

I would definitely recommend Debs, Success Factor as I think a lot of people have struggles in their lives that life coaching could help with.

Before starting my sessions with Debs, I was struggling with my mental health quite a lot. I didn’t know what I would get from these sessions, but as I walked out the door after my first session, I knew I was going to find some benefits from them. Each session, Debs would check in with me to see how things had gone since the past session. If anything had gone wrong (which usually was the case), She would work through these scenarios and give me different techniques to try next time something similar arose. Not everything worked but most techniques helped out in some way. After six sessions I can say I feel much better in my head. I still get stressed, and down on myself; however, in the past these feelings used to last for days, weeks, and months, and now last for only a short period.

Ewan Hall – Business Coaching & Mentoring Programme

The Business Coaching & Mentoring Programme was great to get clarity on yourself and what you want to achieve.

The key thing I learned that I would use in the future is using iMA at work to best approach and talk to fellow workers.

The most interesting aspect as that iMA gave me a better understanding of people’s behaviour and why they are the way they are and the best tools to work with different personalities and their opinions.

What I liked most about the programme was the personable approach that was given at every session.

The programme gave me a better understanding of myself and helped me get direction in my career.

I would recommend the business coaching & mentoring programme.

The programme has given me a whole lot more self-belief in myself and the direction I am taking in my career is the ‘right’ one.

P-R-E-S-E-N-T Seminar – Enatel

Excellent seminar!

I learned that mindset is very important as well as prepare, prepare, prepare!

I thought the seminar provided a great opportunity to practice presentations in a safe environment and receive tips and tricks on how to work on improving your presentations.

The most useful tool I took away was the use of the speech template and eliminating ‘filler’ words.

I would hugely recommend this seminar who wants to learn valuable information to help improve their presentation skills. The content was great, seminar informative, full of great tips!

I learned how to handle ‘filler’ words and how to quickly plan presentations.

So many useful tips!

My biggest takeaway was making the presentation more of a conversation than a speech as well as less is more on PowerPoint i.e. using bullet points and talking around them, and how not to use ‘filler’ words!

A very valuable and informative seminar helping with both preparing and executing a presentation.

The seminar provided great practical advice and information for preparing presentations as well as effectively presenting them.

Excellent seminar with my useful strategy being not to learn script to present, how to avoid fillers and not to be afraid of pauses

I would definitely recommend this seminar to anyone who wants to be clear on how to improve their presentation skills and have fun at the same time!

Philippa Murphy – Babycues

It was great to have the space each week to download my business, and sometimes personal concerns. I loved the accountability and felt that the sessions became more productive as the weeks went on. Debs has a great way of ‘seeing the wood for the trees’ to help you decipher your next strategy and goals, along with setting up some great organisation practices.

My overall assessment of the Business Coaching & Mentoring Programme was that it has been most helpful and got better as time passed and Debs both learnt more about me and my vision of what I needed from her, and I about how she worked.

The key areas I took away from completing the Business Coaching & Mentoring Programme was the organisational skills for tasks. Being more proactive about asking for what is required and making sure the instructions are clear and favourable to me, not always following what the other person puts in front of me.

The most useful strategy I received was the weekly meeting and check-ins on progression, and the iMA Personal Consultation colours as these helped me understand myself more which gifted me a little freedom within my self-talk, and my partner, thus teaching me more ways to interact and work with him. Very valuable.

There was an opportunity for feedback halfway through the programme where I made one comment about Debs being more direct with communication with me so we can get through the lists and achieve more together, and Debs responded beautifully to this with me from that point and that’s when I began to feel we were getting through enough to make it financially worth it.

What I liked most about how the programme was delivered was meeting Debs and having her support.

The programme has kept me going on the task through a very busy and transformative time of my life. The accountability has been a life-line and will continue to be as I learn to have confidence that I can keep on track with Debs. Personally, it gifted me more perspectives and awareness.

I would definitely recommend Success Factor Business Coaching & Mentoring Programme as with guidance, others will know how to get the value out of the investment.

www.babycues.info

Barb – Speech Coaching Business Programme

I’ve just completed the Success Factor Speech Coaching Business Programme which consisted of five personalised one-hour sessions.

After being advised by management, I was to present a 10-minute informative, educational speech to management and my peers on a given subject which they had chosen.

I went into panic mode, and I thought ‘oh no’! how am I going to do this? I need some help to do this in a professional confident manner.

Guided by Debs’ training, I was able to present a well put together professional speech by forward planning with the use of my newly learned tools, which included mind mapping and the use of a speech template. I was learned how to consider where I was doing the speech, my audience and my environment.

As a result, I’ve enjoyed the whole experience and I’m really looking forward to the next challenge.

Thank you Debs

Ms P – Business Coaching & Mentoring Programme

The programme has a solutions-focused approach which requires you to take action and work towards your goal. Debs makes you accountable to reach your goal which is done in a very professional way.

My overall assessment of the business coaching & mentoring programme was that it has a solutions-focused approach which requires you to take action and work towards your goal. Debs makes you accountable to reach your goal which is done in a very professional way.

Debs worked on so many different areas starting with the iMA Questionnaire, giving me an increased confidence to spread my networking far wider in my job search. I’m looking forward to the next stage of my career.

The most useful strategy I learned was for interviews, for example, when in an interview situation use the STAR technique. Having prepared for different questions with this technique, I feel more confident in my approach to an interview. I’ve also enjoyed revisiting the book The Secret and adapting these strategies.

What I enjoyed most about the delivery of the programme was that the theory behind what we discussed was provided and then a strategy to use. The weekly actions then worked towards the strategy. I liked the transparency of this approach.

The programme has made a difference to my personal and professional role in that I was able to get back on track with my career search and the renewed confidence that has come with this.

I would definitely recommend Debs as she knows her area of expertise and is extremely professional in her mentoring of this.

Name requested to be withheld

Roberta McIlraith – Ocula Optometrists Merivale

I found the Success Factor Business Coaching & Mentoring Programme very helpful.

The programme showed me how to manage my time, delegation skills, conflict resolution skills, both internally and externally.

I felt the programme was relaxed and organic.

The programme improved my confidence in business and management skills.

I would recommend the Debs, Success Factor Business Coaching & Mentoring Programme – it really builds confidence in developing and utilising your own strategies and it provided great guidance.

Thanks Debs!

https://www.ocula.co.nz/christchurch/merivale/

Phil Hunt FENZ

Excellent service and very insightful; it has given me a better understanding of how I react in situations and strategies to reduce negative reactions / interactions.

The three biggest points I’ll take away for me are, what hat am I wearing here and now, what is in my ‘backpack’ – what’s in yours, and ‘can I get back to you’; not every situation requires an immediate response.

The most useful strategy I learned was to take a pause to collect myself. Saying to a person “I will get back to you after I have had a think about …” giving me time and space to digest and formulate a response without the emotion.

I like the relaxed and natural flow of the sessions; I knew what I wanted to discuss, and I think most people know what’s bothering them and if not, the situations we discussed Debs was able to identify talking points from her experience.

I liked that the programme is not formal, and we were able to use everyday language, some of this higher level of thinking can be off putting for people and I enjoyed how examples of situations where a strategy was used made it easy to understand.

The coaching support allowed me to understand different personalities and how they interact and what baggage we all carry and how that influences our day-to-day interactions and to develop communication methods that reduce conflict and encourage understanding.

I would recommend Debs, Success Factor. Having an independent voice to bounce ideas off is important. I feel at times we are driven by the heart in business and that approach clouds judgement and decision making. My age and experience have provided me with plenty of examples of good leadership and bad leadership, mentoring has provided a framework to apply the good traits and tools to develop my leadership style.

A mentor is like a coach of a professional sports team or athlete, you have one because you want to get better at your sport or game. Business is like that as well, your coach helps develop your game plan, strategies, and helps to identify aspects of your performance that need improvement so you can be the best version of yourself at any given moment.

Robyn & Graeme Paget – Challenge, Oxford

My overall assessment of the Success Factor Business Coaching & Mentoring Programme was that it gave me the techniques and guidance along with reassurance.

The key points I took away was the importance of communication have good systems.

The most useful strategy I gained were the useful tips on staffing issues.

What I liked the most was Debs’ honesty and knowledge and receiving support.

I would wholeheartedly recommend Debs at Success Factor – we can all get stuck in a rut and the programme gives you encouragement and strategies.

Michal McCracken – Petschool Academy

I gave 10 out of 10 to Debs for the Success Factor Business Coaching & Mentoring 12-Session Programme. I would definitely recommend Debs at Success Factor to help you grow your business.
My overall assessment of the business coaching & mentoring programme was that I was so glad I did it!
The key points I took away having completed the business coaching & mentoring programme that you will use in the future was having a coach who has a different perspective to discuss things with and brainstorm with is the best way to build a business. Also, I liked learning that people don’t buy what I do but why I do it.
What I found to be the most interesting as a useful strategy, was doing the competitor analysis because I’ve always done my own thing and not looked around as didn’t want to be influenced or intimidated by what others are doing. If I feel less than, I panic and fall into my old habit of wanting to be further ahead than I am. I found this exercise really helpful because I learned we are all different and it doesn’t matter what others are doing. It also helped me realize that I really don’t want a massive business that’s purely dog training. I also enjoyed doing the personal values and having space between coaching sessions to reflect and revise and try new things.
What I liked the most about how the business coaching & mentoring programme was delivered was the flexible sessions, spread out so I had time to reflect. Loved meeting via Zoom as this saves heaps of time.
The business coaching & mentoring coaching programme make a difference to me in my business as it sped up the process. I was very stuck when I reached out to you and now, I have a business that I understand and can work on building. I was stuck and confused and frustrated before and now I feel good about where I’m at and curious to see what happens next.
Working with Debs gave me so much clarity.
When I engaged her as a coach I was a bit frustrated and confused by my business www.petschool.academy
Through multiple sessions (with time in between to reflect and revise) I figured out what I want and have a plan in place to get me there.
It was awesome having someone in my corner, who wanted the best for me cheering me on.

Debbie Albrecht – So You! Boutique

Debs is friendly, understanding and very approachable. I’d highly recommend her as a business coach to everbody. Love the homework she gave me!

What I felt about the Success Factor Business Coaching & Mentoring Programme can be said in just one word – Awesome!

The key points I’ve taken away from it was developing my personal values and business vision, purpose, mission, and core values.

The most useful strategy was I got to know aspects of my business that required attention straight away and the ones I should let go.

What I liked the most is that the sessions were face to face, personal and professional.

Working with Debs has made a difference in giving me more time, positivity and outlook.

I would definitely recommend Debs, Success Factor if you are really wanting to have a successful business with life balance you need to work is a business coach.

Debbie – Soyouboutique.co.nz

Beyond Accounts – Sarah and Sharon

Debs has helped us at Beyond Accounts immensely. She has an amazing knack of teasing out ideas that you never knew you had!

Debs has helped us to think outside the box. We have new tools for managing our business.

The key points we will take away are the development and completion of our vision, purpose, mission and core values.

The most interesting and useful strategy was coming up with ideas and teasing out information and combining it.

We liked that the programme was fluid and not completely structured so if we had ideas or questions, we could work on them.

The business coaching & mentoring programme has helped us to grow in confidence to build and manage our business.

We would thoroughly recommend Debs as she can always help you to grow and improve regardless of what stage your business is at.

We would highly recommend Success Factor for business owners that are wanting to strengthen and grow their business.

www.beyondaccounts.co.nz

 

RYLIB – Speech Coaching Business Programme – 2 day

Debs was a great teacher, fun, engaging and support.

I would recommend this programme to others because if you do regular public speaking the benefits would be immense.

The key thing I gained that I will use if the future was structuring a speech and trusting myself more that I know my stuff!

Debs took us out of our comfort zone and we learned how to structure a speech very easily.

Great programme and gave me the confidence to speak with minimum notes.

I would recommend this programme to help build confidence in public speaking.

The most usable success strategy was being able to reduce the use of notes and being more able to speak to an audience more confidently.

Kendons Accounting – Business Advisors – Developing a Dynamic Elevator Speech

  • I really enjoyed the structure of the seminar
  • Excellent seminar – thank you Debs!
  • I would recommend this seminar to others – Debs is great!
  • I felt the seminar was clear, understandable
  • Debs is such a great facilitator and willing to help you do better
  • The seminar made me think more clearly about communicating better
  • The key learning for me was keeping it short and listening afterwards
  • Great way to build words together for elevator speech
  • Great way to reflect on what and why and how – not just doing or saying the same thing!
  • Excellent seminar!
  • The most useable aspect was the conciseness of speech, painting a picture for people to associate with
  • I learned that having a pre-planned ideas and speech that can be changed for the audience is more effective
  • Great seminar!
  • Would definitely recommend to others
  • A great way to learn how to tell people what you do in an interesting way
  • I learned not to focus on services we do but what that means
  • Really helpful seminar for personal growth
  • I learned how to promote my business and skills without losing my audience
  • Great seminar – to the point and awesome format to develop the elevator speech
  • Learned to keep the ideas clear and concise
  • Would definitely recommend to others, as then I wouldn’t have to listen to other people’s bad elevator speeches!
  • More aware to focus on the why more than the what we offer
  • I learned to keep the elevator speech brief and focus on what potential client is thinking
  • Made me think about what we do specifically offer our clients
  • Great seminar as brings the focus back to how to talk to potential clients
  • I felt that working through the elevator speech beforehand is a great way to compare our services to others
  • Learned it’s best not to ‘wing it’ but to think a bit more about the initial speech first
  • Loved the 10 – 8 – 6 – 4 process
  • Learned that I need to be smart and to the point to keep and gain interest from others
  • Well led and had everyone interacting
  • Biggest learning was the how to express work in an interesting way

Creative Wellness & Positive Changes Seminar – Williams & McKenzie

  • Loved the introduction of the SMART goals
  • Opportunity to listen to what staff want
  • Very good seminar, and would definitely recommend to others – great way to receive honest feedback
  • Great way to hear others’ fears, issues, feelings and joys for now and the future
  • The key thing I gained was the importance of communication
  • Great opportunity to acknowledge that others’ viewpoints may be different to mine
  • Helpful to know my actions or in-actions will affect my work mates
  • I learned that communication and cooperation are key
  • I would recommend the seminar to others as it was useful to hear about my work mates’ views
  • The exercise I enjoyed the most in the seminar was the part where we all did a drawing and then talked about it
  • Excellent seminar!
  • Really enjoyed getting together as a team and being honest with each other – this was very useful
  • The key takeaway was being and feeling able to speak out, and be confident to offer ideas and solutions in the future
  • The seminar was great!
  • Debs was a great presenter
  • Good topics covered
  • The seminar was very good and has made me think about broadening my knowledge
  • The seminar provided a great opportunity to get to know my colleagues better
  • I learned that sharing things with my colleagues was easier than expected

Sonia Karaitiana

I participated in the Business Coaching & Mentoring Programme with Debs at Success Factor. Overall I felt the programme was life changing. This programme works and opens doorways of possibilities.

The key areas I will take away are belief in my self-worth. This unveiled keys to empower my way forward and led to an area of gaining a sense of pride. Seeing I can be of service to people, businesses, community, and the environment revealed direction, which is why I can now enjoy the journey.

The most interesting and useful exercise I undertook was writing the Nirvana Letter.. wow! this was powerful!! Why this was significant is simply because it gave me my WHY in Life, the values behind that WHY, and the passion to live my WHY.

This programme is invaluable and is accessible to everyone!

I particularly liked the manner of the delivery. This was welcoming, kind, constructive, efficient and professional.

The programme made a difference to me in different ways. Personally there was a shift inside my being, a gentle wake up / revelation I needed. That in turn gave me the push to get things done and I can now see my business is part of my WHY!

I would absolutely recommend this programme to anyone – the holistic approach changes lives.

It’s ALL About Time Seminar – 28 July 2021

A great start for time management

You’ll get new ideas and learn about the importance of being self-aware in your tasks

It’s a great opportunity to find and mitigate the blocks to success

Helps you get more out of time

The opportunity to be look at what I do objectively and make room for me

This seminar has something for everyone

Learned I need to structure my day, plan and keep things visual

Debs is clear and speaks in my language

Good interaction – being able to step back and review our methods

Loved the participation and learned how to identify urgent and non urgent tasks

Learned the importance of writing stuff down and making sure the right stuff is on the list at the right time

Identified urgent and non-urgent tasks

Enabled me to think of how I work ina critical yet positive manner

Would recommend to everyone – we are always learning

Learned the importance of week planner, planning generally and structure

Understood the important of planning my whole week and breaking tasks down for overall projects

Reiterated what I already knew and help me understand how to get more out of my time

Implementing a 12-week plan and goal plan

Would definitely recommend – face what blocks your efficiency

I learned how to set big then small goals to get to big goal and be clear on goals big and small

Would recommend this seminar to others – kept me accountable and Debs is very personable and non-judgemental! Very professional

Understood the importance of doing the hard stuff first when I have most energy

Andy Pender Plan and Protect

I had the pleasure of being the participant of the Success Factor Business Coaching & Mentoring Programme.

I found the programme was of high quality, informative and beautifully adaptive to the attendee’s needs.

Debs scheduling prowess, prioritising skill and mainly a heap of self-improvement techniques was pretty awesome particularly when I thought I knew it all already!!

The recommendation to read ‘Know Your Why’ by Simon Sinek and ‘The Secret’ by Rhonda Byrne was most interesting.

What I liked most was the adaptive nature of the sessions and also how it was as much about the body and mind as it was business.

The programme made a difference to me by giving my mind a rest that it’s all going to work out and techniques to stop my mind racing at 1000rpm.

I would highly recommend Debs, Success Factor to anyone in self-employment, as everyone needs a wing-man or woman.

Debs has a wide set of skills to assist in a heap of areas which for me was hugely beneficial.

Thanks Debs, you’re a gem!

www.planandprotect.co.nz

Brian and Paula Wildsouth Discovery

Our overall assessment of the business coaching & mentoring programme was it was an interesting series of exercises which encouraged us to think outside the square which was very useful to help us make decisions about how to proceed with our business plan i.e. what to do and what not to do.

It enabled us to dissect and to really get a clear picture of all aspects of our business and to evaluate and compare with other similar businesses. It gave us a clear picture of our strengths, weaknesses and how we could improve.

The most interesting exercise was creating our vision, mission, purpose and core values; something which we were not totally aware of and struggled with. Introduction to the Gantt Chart was also beneficial.

We loved the way Debs summarised each session and the timely emails. Always a friendly and encouraging relationship with Debs. She guided us to explore a lot of thought-provoking areas of our business, relationships and principles.

Debs showed us ways to ‘think outside the square’ and look at issues from different angles. Her training and experience in psychology was a definite benefit for us.

Debs has shown us how to look at issues and break them down using tools that we were previously unaware of, or knew but were prompted to utilise.

We were enabled to examine every aspect of our business and to progress through developing our new website.

Debs helped us to make decisions, especially when we were working in the ‘collaboration’ we were part of. She showed us how to analyse situations and break thinks down so that it was obvious what we had to do next.

Thank you Debs.

www.wildsouth.com

Nicola – Coaching & Mentoring

Business Coaching and Mentoring

Thank you Debs so much for the opportunity to have you as a business mentor. I have certainly learned a lot and know the work we have completed is going to help me move my business idea into being a reality.

I am also very grateful for the guidance I received during my coaching sessions at a very challenging time in my career, the tools and strategies gave me the confidence to make empowered and impactful decisions which have resulted in a better career opportunity and an overall happier me.

Nicola

PRESENT Seminar – ENATEL

A great group of five participants from Enatel attended the PRESENT seminar which enabled each participant to present their presentation and receive feedback from Debs and their peers.

This is what they had to say:

  • Excellent seminar, learned a great deal, thank you!
  • Great help with practical tips
  • Able to reduce gap fillers
  • Great to practice presenting with constructive feedback
  • Found out how best to give better eye contact
  • Interesting and helpful
  • Gained confidence in presenting to an audience
  • Learned how to better interact with the audience to increase engagement
  • Gained useful insights in my presenting ability
  • Learned how to be more animated
  • It was absolutely great receiving feedback from everyone
  • The ‘live’ coaching was great
  • The value of pace and pauses when presenting and the benefits of slowing down my speech and feeling confident to do this
  • Learning how to project my voice – I’m soft spoken
  • Great concise session with instant feedback
  • Gained practical tips and advice in a non-judgemental environment
  • Learned how to treat my presentation like a conversation
  • Gained tricks to appear more relaxed and learn how to incorporate gestures

Koller & Hassall Accountants

Participants in the Developing Your Business Purpose Seminar

Really enjoyed burrowing down on the WHY we do what we do

The key thing I learned was how the Vision, Purpose, Mission and Core Values are created

Understand why we do what we do

Great to develop clarity of our business purpose

Have a better understanding for the reason of our existence as a business

Great presentation and seminar which made what can be a painful process enjoyable

Excellent seminar – helpful in developing our business purpose

Mark and Jayne Fall – Swift Mobile Locksmith

Overall assessment of the programme – insightful.

Key Takeaways were CEO meetings, future plans, advertising plans, the way that we communicate with clients to name but a few!

The most useful strategy – the creation of a pool of resources we have created e.g. advertising plan. The creative drawings were very useful to help us understand the full picture.

Debs is a very good communicator; the programme was good timing.

The programme made a difference to use personally i.e. helped us work better together

The programme enabled us to give direction to our business

Something in the programme for every business

Mark and Jayne Fall

Swift Mobile Locksmith

www.swiftmobilelcoksmith.com

Margot Korhonen – Spruce Design & Marketing

Felt the business coaching & mentoring programme was excellent, very worthwhile.

Key takeaways were time management, mindset, organisation skills, strategic thinking, productivity, planning

Most interesting and useful strategies were time management because I truly didn’t think I could do any more with the time I had available to me

What I like most was that Debs is so friendly, understanding, flexible and approachable.

The programme made a difference to my personal and professional role in every way! 😊 Money, time, energy, positivity, productivity, outlook, passion and love!

I would recommend the programme to everybody! I loved it!

Working with Debs is wonderful! She’s engaging and open-hearted. She took the time to really understand my business and my restrictions (as a single mum). I now feel so confident and happy with not only work but my whole life!

I highly recommend Debs to anyone in business or at a crossroads in life!

Thanks Debs!

Margot Korhonen

Spruce Design and Print

www.sprucedesign.co.nz

Zoe Barry – The Very Green Gardener

Debs has greatly improved my business in all areas- from managing staff, to interacting with clients; streamlining processes and deciding which aspects of the business require attention and which should be dropped entirely! I found her very supportive and easygoing when it came to what worked for me and my business. I couldn’t recommend her highly enough.

Effective Communication and Conflict Resolution – Ironbridge

Debs is a great facilitator, everyone was engaged and learned a lot

Debs is a great personable speaker with lots of experience, stories to illustrate points

The seminar helped me to better understand communications and the role they play in conflicts

Informative and engaging and fun!

Informative, fun, engaging and great learning opportunity!

My biggest takeaway was the ‘toolkit’ of strategies and practices for resolving conflict

Very interesting and reinforced and validated current strategies as well as learning new strategies

I learned about communication and how to deal with conflict; loved discussing it as a group; felt great to learn some new things

I would recommend the seminar to anyone – it taught me that conflict is life and attending the seminar will give anyone the opportunity to learn new skills to deal with conflict

I learned the benefits of giving apologies and whilst hard necessary in many cases to accept our part played in any conflict

The seminar would be great for anyone who works with people and learn about how we act and assume things about others

I learned the importance of listening and hearing and that there is always a solution and another option

Great seminar – really enjoyed the process and had lots of tips to take away and use in future

Great forum to learn new things and helpful to form strategies of how to implement these in a conflict situation

I learned the importance of listening before reacting

Great insight to know how to resolve issues and how to see problems from the other person’s perspective and how to compromise

Everyone needs a reminder on how to solve problems and resolve situations – great seminar!

I feel happier and more confident having the tools to face future conflicting situations

I learned that conflict isn’t always negative, and each conflict is a learning opportunity

Learned loads of new tools which I can use in my daily life at work and in our personal lives

There was something for everyone in today’s seminar!

Great information and strategies; make us think about resolving issues differently and giving us tools to equip us for future conflicts at home and work

Learned some great new strategies to use for future conflicts

The seminar really made me think about how to handle situations better in the future whether at home or work

Received great ideas on what to do in a conflict situation to help me with better outcomes in the future

I learned that communication is key to de-escalate conflict

Business Coaching & Mentoring – Melissa Gardiner

The business coaching and mentoring I received was really helpful in learning to look at my business in an effective way, that is, stepping back and seeing the business and my direction forward from a larger perspective.

The biggest thing I got from the sessions was chargeable and non-chargeable hours; determining best service; obtaining ‘real’ figures; projection and planning; budgeting; setting goals and time management as well as the creative exercises which helped me ‘see’ how my business might or could look in the future.

The creative exercises also helped me to determine direction and ability to create goals and plan figures, so visually I could see how the plan may or may not work.

If someone is feeling a bit lost in their business or not sure what they’re up to, I’d definitely recommend Debs at Success Factor, as it was so helpful in gaining clarity and a larger understanding of business.

The business coaching and mentoring I received was of tremendous value and has given me important a useful insight into my business.

Debs is friendly, professional, punctual, and definitely knows her stuff! Everything Debs shared with me was relevant and along with the ‘homework’, has enabled and encouraged me to gain a larger perspective of my business.

I have some great tools now that I can continue to work with periodically to keep myself in touch with my business and aware and in touch with where my business is heading.

Heartfelt thanks Debs!

Melissa Gardiner – Manaia Yoga & Wellbeing

MainPower New Zealand Ltd – Speech Coaching Group – May 2018

Debs was supportive and encouraging and kept everything real. I appreciated her honesty and constructive feedback

Debs is very passionate and comes across very well. Really enjoyed the programme

I improved my self-awareness of use of fillers when speaking

I can now focus on keeping communication simple and not get carried away with all the details

I learned how to do delivery presentations more effectively

I will use the tools I have learnt to improve communication at meetings and delivery presentations

Mind mapping tool enabled me to better structure my speeches as well as reducing the need to use lots of notes

It has given me more confidence to be able to talk in front of people

I learnt people often don’t see your nerves; and having the confidence to talk in front of people

I learnt how to be able to say the right things with passion confidence and eye contact

I really really like the programme and the way it was delivered. Good to get information one week ahead of each session so it was not too overwhelming

It has helped me to be more confident in my delivery and think more about the structure of my presentations

I gained was confidence in my ability to deliver a speech and how to structure my presentations

I enjoyed all of it! Received really useful information which I see as being very useful going forward

The programme was excellent. I learned a lot of new skills

The programme was delivered very well with relevant and useful advice with feedback that was supportive and positive

The programme gave me more confidence and enabled me to reduce my use of notes

I found the mind mapping process really useful as well as learning how to structure a presentation to help me think more clearly about what I want to say

Developing Your Business Purpose Seminar – Grant Catchpole

Debs is a great communicator and makes you think about where your business is and where you want it to be then how to get there. Very professional and I thoroughly recommend going to one of her seminars

Business Coaching & Mentoring Programme – Alana & Chris Delury

Debs is one of those rare people who has a diverse knowledge and helped us professionally and personally take control and direction of our business and personal lives.

I highly recommend anyone who is thinking about having Debs as a mentor.

Thank you Debs

New Zealand Organisation for Quality – Mark Coburn

Canterbury Quality Day Risk-based thinking: The Communication pathway to risk-based thinking – giving communication the quality factor for today and tomorrow Workshop

Thank you Debs for a wonderful key note presentation to our New Zealand Organisation for Quality day in Christchurch.

It was a valuable start to the day and your presentation and activities on communication brought us all together and strengthened the day with your ideas and ‘scene setting’. In the many years we have held Canterbury Quality Day this year saw far greater delegate participation and involvement than ever before.

We were so privileged to share your knowledge.

Thank you so much – we look forward to working with you again in the future.

Business Coaching & Mentoring Programme – Lorraine Taylor

I had the privilege to connect with Debs through regular coaching sessions in 2019.

As a newcomer to the Canterbury area, I felt lost as to how to connect and engage with the community in which I would become an integral part of in the months ahead both personally and professionally.

Debs’ coaching style meant I was an active part of the process. She listens intently, is process oriented and motivates to move forward. Personal coaching is a necessity in a world that is moving through change.

Debs is an excellent coach to get you to the next level.

Business Mentors NZ – Therese Banks

As a Coordinator of a mentoring programme, I can see Debs’ extensive business background apparent in her mentoring. She has made a valuable contribution as a volunteer mentor, providing a real boost to mentees working through business issues. Particular strengths lie in assisting clients with business plans.

She is able to ensure goals are manageable, identify gaps, suggest solutions and assist with defining resources needed to achieve those goals. Most importantly she ensures clients measure results, adapting as appropriate.

Clients say Debs help them change thinking regarding business, and alter systems and processes. To quote: “It has been great to have someone to talk to about the background business as we have always been so busy working in the business that we haven’t had a chance to do this before.

We have always been ‘butterfly hoppers’ and jumped around as need demanded, instead of staying on task and reviewing progress as we go. Not only has her help been valuable in improving personal and business effectiveness, but we have really enjoyed working with Debs and are so grateful she has been willing to share her expertise.”

Business Coaching & Mentoring Programme – Emily & Bruce Chapman

We have worked with Debs for the past year. We had purchased a newspaper and went straight into the production side of the business, and had not really taken the time to focus on the actual business and how to run it effectively and how to grow it. Debs helped us to look at things in a completely different way and to make our business more robust and also work in a more efficient way. We so enjoyed our time working with her and would recommend her to anyone.

Business Coaching & Mentoring Programme – Mijburgh Beukes

Debs is a very personable, professional and knowledgeable business coach. She has been instrumental in helping me establish my business, as well as making it sustainable for the long run. It has been incredibly helpful having Debs as an accountability partner to keep things moving! If your business is stuck in a rut or hasn’t taken off yet, give Debs a call to help you reach your goals!

I have been a wage earner all my adult life and essentially got into business out of necessity. The phrase ‘like a fish out of water’ comes to mind! That’s where Debs stepped in. Having someone as knowledgeable and helpful as Debs to be accountable to has helped me in building a business that is sustainable. Her personable manner and shedload of experience have been key in building a trusting relationship. Although our time together is now at an end, in the words of big Arnie, “I’ll be back!”

Framework for Planning & Goal Setting Seminar Feb / Mar 2020

Thanks Debs I feel motivated to get cracking to plan and achieve as well as see results

Great to take the time out and reflect

Get the details of how we can better reach our goals

Go with an open mind and take on all the options

Definitely attend if you struggle setting your goals

Understood the need to be mindful of working to capacity and to work ON the business!

Great interaction with others heading and learning about each others’ businesses

It was great having more clarity on how to gain and achieve my goals

Debs is a highly smart professional and a warm and engaging facilitator

Learned lots to take away and implement!

Relaxed and informal as well as practical, easy to follow and beneficial

Debs knowledge and experience was totally relatable

Great to bounce ideas off of each other

Understood better the specifics of goal setting and planning techniques

Learned the importance of planning the outcome

Debs has a very down-to-earth approach

Great food for thought and great networking opportunity

Great opportunity to refocus ourselves

Gained clarify, focus and direction – it’s so easy to lose ourselves in the day to day stuff!

Understood the need for emotional benefit to achieve my goals

North Canterbury Women in Business – It’s All About Time! Seminar – October 2019

Twelve wonderful participants from the Canterbury Women in Business Networking group provided this feedback:

Excellent seminar – great self-awareness assessment

Awesome seminar! Thank you!

Debs is a fabulous presenter who offers practical solutions to everyday challenges that we are all faced with!

Great to be involved in an open, non-threatening discussion; comfortable environment; informative, practical and clear

Great ideas and tips – gave me hope and excitement!

A fantastic way to get really clear about how you are actually using your time, what’s not working and how to implement change

Got me thinking about options to manage and reduce non-productive time

Informative way of looking at what you are doing

Learned helpful tips about planning and prioritising what’s important and how to break these down throughout the day

Got me thinking about urgent and important activities

Great to challenge existing theories about time management

I learned I actually manage time on a daily basis quite well but there are always improvements I canmake

Good mix of reflection opportunity and actions were encouraged

Made me think about taking more breaks and reviewing if they make me more productive

Got me thinking about concentration time!

Having a time management plan and aiming for ideal!

Learned to honour myself and stick to what’s important for me!

Useful to review your activities both professional and personal

Learning the importance of reviewing what I do and sticking to my plan

Waimakariri District Council Speech Coaching Business Programme – October 2019

Five amazing participants: Tori, Donna, Dan, Sophie, Natalie

Here’s what they said:
EXCELLENT PROGRAMME
Very concise and practical
Gave me more confidence
A great natural progression on how to improve in a safe learning environment
I feel a more confident speaker
Improved my confidence
Understand how best to structure presentations
Made me more self-aware in how to deliver presentations providing tools to improve
Received great tips for preparing a presentation

Business Coaching & Mentoring Programme – Cathy Whitmore

Debs helped me look at all aspects of my business.
I got to know myself and why I procrastinate!
Made me accountable for my business decisions.
Helped me look at my health goals, something I haven’t done before.
Walked me through each step of my action plan.
Helped me with self-development and built my confidence.
Debs pushes you to know yourself and yourself better and makes you more accountable.
Thanks Debs! You are a pro and very caring!