About Me
A journey that started with choosing the less conventional path, leading to places I never imagined possible. From building businesses to Arctic expeditions, from training fitness professionals to developing systematic mental training - each step has been about understanding what happens when we stop avoiding what terrifies us and start mapping the geography of who we're becoming.
The Foundation Years
I've always believed in following paths that make your soul feel alive, even when they don't follow conventional wisdom.
Back when I was about to start my masters in psychology, I also won nationals for gymnastics.
My father's advice shaped everything that followed: "Whatever you choose, we'll support you." I chose the less conventional route, eventually representing South Africa twice at world championships. That decision set the tone for a journey that would weave together business creation, human development, and systematic performance training.
From the health and wellness industry - where I qualified people to become personal trainers and exercise scientists - to building and running my own businesses, each role taught me something crucial about what it takes to perform under pressure.
Twenty-three years of working with people across extreme challenges taught me that whether you're an executive facing board pressure, an entrepreneur building something from nothing, or someone navigating major life transitions, the same mental framework determines success or failure.
The geography is different - boardrooms vs wilderness, spreadsheets vs survival - but the internal terrain is remarkably similar
Arctic Laborites
The first time I set foot in Svalbard, something clicked. Twelve years later, the Arctic has become my ultimate testing ground - not just for personal endurance, but for understanding how the human mind operates when everything's on the line.
These aren't adventure trips. They're living laboratories where mental frameworks get tested under conditions that reveal truth quickly. When you're crossing 540 kilometers of Greenland's ice sheet, your mind either serves you or it doesn't. There's no middle ground at -40°C.
The upcoming Greenland expedition represents more than personal challenge - it's my white whale journey, the ultimate test of everything I teach. The same systematic mental training that works in Arctic isolation works in high-stakes business decisions, creative breakthroughs, and life transitions. Because pressure is pressure, whether it comes from ice or expectations.
The Geography of Performance
Through formal studies in psychology, coaching, and human behavior, combined with years in the health and wellness industry, decades of business creation and leadership, and ongoing Arctic expedition research, I've developed what I call the MAPC Method - a systematic approach to upgrading how your mind operates under pressure.
We all have our own internal geography - places we've been, spaces we avoid, territories we're afraid to explore. The geography of missing: all those moments where we should have been present but weren't. The geography of joy: discovering that wonder and difficulty can occupy the same coordinates. The geography of coming home: learning to return to yourself with new understanding.
This isn't about positive thinking or motivational quick fixes. It's about recognizing that your mind runs on outdated software - mental patterns developed during childhood, crisis, or past trauma. These default responses might have protected you once, but they're limiting you now.
Whether you're a CEO facing critical decisions, an entrepreneur building something that matters, a creative pushing boundaries, or someone navigating major life changes - you're all dealing with the same fundamental challenge: how to think clearly and perform optimally when everything feels uncertain.
Beyond Traditional Coaching
Most coaching assumes your mind is fine - you just need better strategy. I know that strategy without mental strength is like building a house on shifting ground. Pretty plans, inevitable collapse.
I don't optimize your external approach. I upgrade your internal architecture.
The MAPC Method emerged from a simple recognition: the same mental framework that keeps you functioning in life-or-death Arctic conditions works in every high-pressure situation. Resilience, Agency, Positivity, Gratitude - four pillars that, when systematically developed, create automatic mental strength rather than conscious effort.
Every interaction I've had - from training fitness professionals to guiding expeditions, from building businesses to coaching executives - has been about one thing: helping people discover what they're truly capable of when their minds work for them instead of against them.
Living Laboratories
The Arctic expeditions continue because they provide something no classroom can: real-world validation of mental training under ultimate pressure. When I take select groups to Svalbard or prepare for solo crossings in Greenland, we're not just having adventures - we're testing systematic approaches to mental performance in conditions that demand they work.
These experiences inform everything I teach. The boardroom executive learning to stay calm during hostile takeovers and the expedition member learning to function at -40°C are developing the same mental architecture. Different applications, same systematic foundation.
The Mindset & Performance Collective represents the evolution of this work - moving beyond individual coaching to create a comprehensive platform where systematic mental training becomes accessible to anyone ready to upgrade how they think under pressure.
The Work That Matters
I believe there are only two versions of ourselves we typically focus on - who we were and who we want to be. The real transformation happens in the space between, in the present moment where growth occurs. That's where the work is. That's where systematic mental training makes the difference.
Someone once told me I'm exactly the same person online as I am in real life. In a world that often rewards performance over authenticity, being genuinely yourself isn't just important - it's essential. Whether I'm preparing for Greenland, coaching a CEO, or developing the MAPC Method, my goal remains constant: demonstrate what's possible when we stop managing pressure and start mastering it.
The Arctic expeditions became the laboratory where everything I'd learned - formal psychology training, athletic mental preparation, business building, guiding under pressure - crystallized into something systematic. The MAPC Method isn't theory. It's what actually works when your back's against the wall and thinking isn't enough.
Looking Forward
Some geographies can only be explored when you're ready to be honest about where you actually are and where you actually want to go. The hardest part isn't making the change - it's admitting you're ready for what you're truly capable of.
This is why I do this work. Not because transformation is easy, but because it's systematic. Not because I have all the answers, but because I've developed a framework that generates them. Not because the path is clear, but because the mental tools to navigate any path can be systematically developed.
The question isn't whether you'll face pressure, setbacks, or uncertainty. The question is whether you'll face them with outdated mental software or with a systematically optimized mind that turns every challenge into fuel for growth.
Work With Me
"Growth rarely follows our prescribed paths. The courage to acknowledge this - to let your journey be as complex as it needs to be - often marks the beginning of real transformation. Your challenges are unique. Your path forward should honor that truth."
Whether you're an executive, entrepreneur, creative, or someone navigating major transition - the mental framework that creates breakthrough is the same. The application adapts to your world.
Sometimes the hardest path leads to the best views. But you don't have to map that territory alone.
Qualifications:
- Bachelor of Arts Honours in Psychology - RAU
- New Insights Life Coaching Certificate - New Insights
- Exercise Science Course - Institute of Fitness Professionals
- Personal Fitness Consultant - Institute of Fitness Professionals
- Pilates Instructor- Institute of Fitness Professionals
- Level 3 Trails Guide - FGASA
- Wilderness First Aid Course - Systematic Medical and Response Training
- Digital Photography Course - New York Institute of Photography
- Wildlife Photography Course - Wildlife Campus
