Since completing The Mana Moana Experience, where have you journeyed?
My vaka hasn’t stopped since The Mana Moana Experience, if anything it has sped up! Highlights have included: Being part of Pacific Women Leaders, run by the US Embassy to New Zealand; joining a core group of Maori and Pacific small business owners to explore how entrepreneurs could assist Ministry of Social Development with capacity building; receiving the Pursuit of Excellence Award by the Otara Papatoetoe Local Board, allowing me to take a collection of designs from my Pacific Fusion Fashion Show to Hawai’i Fashion Week 2018; starting my modelling agency, The Swann Modelling Agency.
To top it off, I was chosen by Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade to represent Pacific fashion as a delegate on the Melanesia Mission to Solomon Islands and Vanuatu. Travelling with our Deputy Prime Minister in the NZ Air Force plane was definitely a highlight!
In what ways have you found your ‘voice’ or shifted your perspective via the Experience?
I am no longer thinking if this is the right thing for me to do, but how are my choices going to impact Pasifika people. It’s challenging when you’re an entrepreneur because you’re trying to maintain a sustainable business and at the same time, you’re thinking about your community, so you have to find the balance.
What skills acquired through the Experience have helped you tackle challenges to date?
When you run your own business, all you’re doing is hustle, hustle, hustle. Mana Moana taught me to take the time to switch off, reset and relax. It allowed me to go into retreat mode.
What skills did the Experience offer that you have used to create value for your organisation/industry?
A lot of the Mana Moana concepts refer to the ‘collaborative’ and I have found this to be very useful. I now work with organisations who value what I offer for communities.
2019’s theme is Daring Leadership. What does this mean to you?
Going into unknown territory with all your anxieties and fears and doing it anyway because the outcome outweighs your current feelings. It’s fighting for the underdog and challenging the status quo when you know what is right in your heart.
As a creative leader, if you had one piece of advice for future leaders, what would it be?
Use your creativity and natural innovative thinking to get ahead. Creatives think and act differently to other leaders and we have the courage to try new things, when it’s successful – it’s magic!
Nora Swann is Fashion Stylist, Mentor and Director - Dressed in Confidence and The Swann Modelling Agency
Did Nora’s story resonate with you? This is one of many courageous, enriching and impactful journeys on The Mana Moana Experience.
Are you a mid-career Pasifika leader who cares for the future of New Zealand? Do you know someone who is?
APPLY NOW for THE MANA MOANA EXPERIENCE 2021: https://www.leadershipnz.co.nz/mana-moana-applications-faqs