What is my greatest passion in my work? Helping organisations and businesses become epicentres of connection and belonging as well as successful enterprises.
What is my greatest fear? Not being able to actively bring something good to this world.
What do I love most about my work? How it opens people’s eyes to their own stories, what they have to share that creates a web of connection and belongong, and how this changes how organisations operate.
What is my greatest pitfall? My own lack of confidence in myself.
What does the statement “Passion Never Retires” mean to me? Passion and a sense of purpose feed vitality. That creates the energy and belief it takes to continue.
What would I like to change about myself? I would like to be more confident in my own abilities.
What is my greatest professional achievement so far? In reality, I’ve achieved a lot across my various careers. But most recently, I think it building a successful self-employed practice.
Where would I most like to live and work? Hard question to answer. I love New Zealand where I’m based now and want to stay close to my 3 kids. But I’d love to go back to Ireland and the west coast of Scotland. I’d also like to live in Scandinavia.
What is my most distinctive characteristic? Again hard to answer. I think my perpetual curiosity and love of learning new ideas and perspectives.
What is the place outside my home where I get my best ideas? Anywhere in nature!
Which books have influenced my life and how?
The Philosopher and the Wolf by Mark Rowlands – both fed my lifelong connection with wolves and shared so many insights on life.
Come of Age by Stephen Jenkinson – deep wisdom from one of my teachers on the lost and deeply missed craft of eldering.
Underland by Robert Macfarlane – both a deep exploration of nature and a beautiful compendium of philosophy.
True Human by Samantha Sweetwater – Essential wisdom and reflections for living in age where our world is in collapse.
This One Wild and Precious Life by Sarah Wilson – personal vulnerability, deep compassionate wisdom and utter honesty from one of the most important voices of our times.
“You Only Die Once” — what music would I like to listen to on my last day? Anything by Christy Moore
Who is my hero or heroine in fiction? I don’t think I have one.
Who are my real-life heroes and heroines? Mac Macartney for his work in leadership, environmental consciousness. Nick Cave for his depth, honesty and wisdom. Agnès Callamard who leads Amnesty International for her courage in calling out what must be called out.
Which film would I recommend everyone to watch at least once in their lifetime? Love Actually (because I’m a sucker for happy endings) A Dog’s Purpose because it’s beautiful and I love dogs
What does the statement “I am the storyteller of my own life” mean to me? That I have agency over my own decisions and where they take me in my life. My happiness and fortunes are my own responsibility to caretake.
What role do stories play in my life and work? Stories and storytelling have been at the heart of shaping culture for humans for centuries. From gathering in the safety of caves to sitting around a fire. They preserve, entertain, teach and reveal. At the same time, imagination and creativity are core pillars of human wellness and connection. I read avidly and have particular interest in mythology and legend and what that shows us about our present world. In my work, I use stories to illustrate where we have come from, and to remind us of the neurobiological programming that still sits in our being where in a time of uncertainty, isolation, individuality and disconnection, we have a deep hunger for kinship and belonging.
Which project am I most looking forward to? The next assignment for my business Culturate where we help business leaders create a culture of belonging, reciprocity and kinship.
Who would I like Peter to invite to tell their Passion Never Retires story? Nick Cave
How can people contact me?
By email to jerry@culturate.nz or jerry@wolfstrategy.nz
Or via LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/jerrybeale/
Website: https://www.culturate.nz/