Golden Key Asia-Pacific Conference 2019

Written by Kevin Tuyau (Co-Vice President of Golden Key Swinburne)

Chapter President Phillip Nguyen, former chapter President Justine Hall and myself (chapter Co-Vice President Kevin Tuyau) represented the Golden Key Swinburne chapter at this year’s Asia-Pacific Leadership Summit in Adelaide. At the conference we were excited to receive four awards between us for the great work our chapter had done over 2018.

Being a member of Golden Key meant that I was eligible to apply for a travel grant to attend the conference, and I was lucky enough to receive one. It helped with paying for my airfare and conference registration. Being on the committee also meant that I was able to receive chapter funding, which covered my accommodation during the conference. This is an opportunity open to all Golden Key members and I highly encourage you to take advantage.

This year the conference theme was “Challenge Your Thinking”, and there were many workshops and motivational speakers to help us to challenge our thinking.

Pratisha Purohit

Pratisha (Work Connect New Zealand) held the workshop called “Losing Your Inhibitions”. I found this to be the most emotional and it challenged my thinking. I realised how important it is to focus on family and your health, rather then material possessions and status.

Pratisha had a successful career. She previously worked for Christian Dior as a brand manager. Her unique sense of smell meant she was able to test all the perfumes and select the ones that would be a success. She was able to tell what perfume a person was wearing just by smelling them. This talent also had a downside. She began to judge people by how they smelt. If they were not wearing the right perfume, she would think less of them.

One day her life changed for ever. Nine years ago she was travelling down a road in India and had a motorcycle accident. There was severe brain damage and there was uncertainty that she would live. She did survive but her life would no longer be the same.

The brain injuries had unexpected consequences. For a long time Pratisha could not speak, but fortunately she was able to regain her speech through therapy. She also lost her hearing but now has hearing aids. The most devastating affect though was losing her sense of smell.

Her accident meant that she could no longer have the career she had built herself. It also meant that her income, social circle and status were gone. It left her wondering what would she do with her life now. Finally the answer came to her, move to New Zealand.

Pratisha studied a masters degree at University of Waikato and passed with a grade of 93%. She also was accepted into Golden Key and became a committee member.

The experience has changed Pratisha. She is now longer the person she was 10 years ago. She was reborn. She learnt to love herself, take up new challenges and appreciate who she is. Before she would judge people based on their perfume and the clothes they wear. Now she looks at people in the eye and has gains a greater connection with those who she comes into contact with.

Stelarc

The Australian performing artist was definitely the most controversial speaker at the conference. His niche is combining humans and machines to create an artistic analysis of the human body and identity. The most common performance is connecting himself to a robot and letting random people control his movements through the internet. He also showed us his latest performance. He has been growing an ear on his arm! It was quite a surprise to see this. He also showed a video of himself getting hooks put through his back and being hung from the ceiling.

Kerri Pottharst

Kerri is most famous for winning a gold medal for volleyball at the 2000 Sydney Olympics. She began her career at 15 years old but had to stop due to a knee injury. Fortunately she was able recover in time for the 1996 Atlanta Olympics. She now tours Australia giving presentations at various events. Kerri is a great presenter. She was a great story teller and motivational throughout her talk. Afterwards we got to take photos with her.

Justine Hall

Our former chapter President Justine was a co-presenter of the workshop titled “Chapter Leadership 101”. Micheal McGuinness (former chapter President Griffith University) and Anisha Ravindran (Golden Key Council of Students member) were also presenting. The audience were given the opportunity to ask the presenters for advice to run their Golden Key chapter.

The key tips were:

• Remember to delegate tasks instead of doing everything yourself.
• Start with small events and build experience.
• Plan and schedule everything ahead.
• Be constant with your marketing and build your brand reputation on campus with the publishing of positive news stories.

Overall, the Asia-Pacific Leadership Summit was a great event that I recommend all members attend. It is an opportunity to meet awesome people while travelling to cities around Australia and the world. Keep checking Golden Key websites, newsletters and Facebook pages for the date of the next conference and how to apply for a travel grant.