Does adventure, content creation, travel, nature and the beauty of your own country appeal to you? Then todays chat with Nicole Eddy is definitely one you must stick around for. After studying a wide range of courses at university Nicole decided to give a career in youtube and vlogging a try. Nicole had spent some time travelling with other content creaters, and had picked up some valuable lessons that allowed her to pursue blogging and content creation of her own. Nicole has since amassed a following of 76k subscribers on YouTube and 120k on Instagram. She shares her journey, important tips and tricks and some important advice both technically and in a personal capacity for anyone wanting to get started in the Youtube world. We chat about nature, making an impact and doing what you can to make a difference in keeping this planet healthy and beautiful. I hope you enjoy.

Today I will be chatting to Matt a.k.a “A Slice of Matt”, A South African born Youtuber and Instagramer - The man has amassed over 130k subscribers and followers between his two channels We chat everything online and how things work in this digital industry. Everything from how he learned the tricks of the trade to the relationships he built that gave him Invaluable experience before pursuing his personal youtube channel. If making a living off of youtube and social media is something that tickles your fancy, give this one a listen. Matt shares some tips and on how to get started and lessons he learned along the way that may just help kickstart your venture into the world of youtube and social media as a profession. The man is a pleasure to talk to and there is plenty of healthy banter throughout this one. He also shares some valuable lessons about being true to yourself and how important that is when you enter the social media and youtube game. I hope you enjoy!

Today I will be chatting to Oupa Mollo, good friend of mine and someone who played a big role in my lifestyle changes over the last few years. Oupa is a qualified personal trainer, exercise specialist and combat trainer. He grew up in a small village in Limpopo, and after completing his schooling, Oupa headed to Stellenbosch University to study Medicine. He went from medicine, to a BSc and finally decided that Personal training was the way in which he felt he could truly connect with people in the way he envisioned. We chat the importance of using the gifts you have been given to uplift others and inspire them to do the same. We look at uncertainty that comes with moving to an independent income stream but the immense freedom and fulfilment it brings with it. Oupa shares his outlook on the way we as human beings should move and use our bodies as well as what we put in. We discuss one of my favourite topics, food, and how it is more than just a case of getting the nutrition your body needs. We touch on what it means to be truly inspired and Oupa shares some of the biggest lessons he has learned a long the way. I hope you enjoy.

Today I’ll be chatting to Nic Van Graan, he’s a UCT graduate with a Business Science Degree in Organisational Psychology. Nic epitomises the idea of doing what is necessary to feed your dreams. Despite being highly qualified and graduating with top marks, Nic set out to travel and find himself. While overseas he rekindled his love for music that fell by the way side relatively early in his childhood and he shares his thought process behind focusing his sights on developing a sustainable music career. With a fearless attitude to throw himself in the deep end, we chat about what it is that allows Nic to live without inhibitions and the rituals he carries out on a daily basis that keep him inspired. A deeply spiritual and seemingly relaxed human being, Nic’s outlook on life and how to live it is one of optimism and wonder. This coupled with self belief and determination are a definite recipe for success. The man knows what he wants and adjusts his circumstance in order to make it happen. I hope you enjoy.

Today I will be chatting one of South Africas biggest names in radio and fellow Rondebosch old boy, Nick Hamman. Nick has enjoyed a meteoric rise through the local radio scene. From graveyard shifts in 2011 at Stellenbosch University Campus radio, to being given the Drive Show on 5fm n May 2020 (the proverbial pinnacle of SA radio shows) we dive deep into nicks journey looking at everything from moments of clarity to relentless determination as well as an unwavering desire to speak the truth and to create unique content. With a deep awareness of the beauty of South African heritage, a love for the outdoors, and a selfless goal of uplifting and empowering the local music scene the man is a legend in the making and it gives me great pleasure to chat to him today. I was acutely aware of the massive gulf in our respective vocabularies so this was a bit of a “out of the comfort zone” moment for me too. It was great to hear Nick shares many beautiful insights and to reflect on his journey so far . I hope you enjoy.

In this episode of the How to build a parachute podcast, I chat to Sebastian a.k.a Bash Daniels. He is a former UCT student, where he was president of the Entrepreneur Society and graduated top of his class. He is also the founder of Ground Culture and Coffee shop blues. We dive into what it is that motivates this this man to reach such heights. We reflect on the invaluable role his parents played in his upbringing and the manner in which they shaped his views on the world. Seb reflects on how a year abroad after school and hours of hard work doing something he didn’t enjoy lit the fire in him to put his all time and effort into something he was passion about . We chat about his discovery of the incredible value that the informal economy in South Africa possesses and his on the ground research of inner workings of Stokvels, a powerful informal community loan system. This research and dedication to this topic saw him write his final year thesis on it which resulted in him receiving the class medal. He shares stories of how cross cultural collaboration opened his eyes and heart and shaped both his personal and business ethos of how bridging the gap between informal and formal businesses and entrepreneurs alike is a powerful way to unite people. The idea of social entrepreneurship, how you can create social change, but you can have a business model applied to it at the same time. To quote a line from Seb, “We built an ecosystem that was totally independent of corporate dominance that stood on its own, built connections and make that sense of unity much stronger” Seb shares some pearls of wisdom about his past business ventures, successes, failures and lessons learned along the way .

Evan Strauss: Today I’ll be chatting to Evan Strauss, a familiar face and name in the SA music scene and one half of the Cape Town based band that is known as lo-ghost. Evan is a highly qualified individual with an undergrad in English and History and a post grad LLB. He is a busy man. He is a producer, he has done both artist and production management, radio hosting, voice over work, and corporate MC work, not to mention playing in multiple bands, most notably his main project that is Lo-Ghost. With a natural affinity for both music and literature, Evan and Lo-Ghost as a band have seen a meteoric rise in the Cape Town and South African music scene. They have developed a somewhat cult following through their release of songs filled with thought provoking lyrical content that fearlessly explores the more difficult aspects of the Human condition. These messages are supported beautifully by a bed of nostalgic, yet unique and powerful production, that looks to both comfort and disturb the listener - increasing the yearning to listen more acutely. With an explosive live show that has been revered by fellow artists throughout the country, the Lo-Ghost energy and talent as both writers and live performers is something to behold. I chat to Evan about his upbringing, love for music, his jam packed schedule, his inspirations and some secrets of his creative process as he continues to put out such incredible work alongside his parter in music, Shannon Devy. Evan shares his story. Stay tuned to find out what makes this incredible human being tick.

Today i’ll be chatting to my cousin, Rhett Shillaw. Born in Durban, Rhett discovered his love for the outdoors and began his journey towards a career in flying when his family moved to the sleepy, coastal town of George, 4 hours outside of Cape Town on South Africas famous Garden Route. We chat everything from his studies in engineering and finance to the hard honest work he did while working on the ski slopes in the US - everything from waitering, to construction to au pairing. Bearing in mind that this is a guy with a degree. We chat about pivotal moments that reaffirmed Rhett’s drive to become a pilot and to do it on his terms. We discuss the decisions and sacrifices that came along with it. From juggling two jobs in Australia to gain private flying experience, to two years of personal sacrifice - in the concrete jungle of Johannesburg to complete his formal qualification as a pilot And finally to landing the dream job flying sea planes in the Maldives. Rhett lets us in to his world and some of the habits, techniques and mindsets he implements in his every day life that have resulted in him going from strength to strength in pursuit of his goals and dreams.

Today I’ll be chatting to Ian Fourie, a golden key graduate from UCT in Civil Engineering. After working for an international engineering company and being part of the team to develop the tallest building in North Sydney, Ian quit his job to pursue a self-developed company called Pluto LMS, an online course creation and management platform. We do a bit of a throwback to the early days and have a couple of laughs chatting about sport and teenage egos. We reflect on some terrible grade 5 mathematics marks and how, looking back these seemingly insignificant moments actually planted seeds of growth that hold great relevance into who Ian eventually became as a human being. We talk the value of community and how it feeds personal growth. How the sacrifices of parents can shape mindsets and build  determination. We dive into perspective that personal struggles bring and how they fuel Ians  ambition to share knowledge and educate.