Jude | Naenae, Wellington

“It’s not so recent, but it happened at the beginning of the year, I completed a certificate in business studies, and it had been a really long journey to find what I wanted to do, wanted to study, and turning 40, it’s quite a big achievement when I didn’t do so well at school.

So I was really proud that I could actually finish this, the certificate, and do really well, and get As in everything. It was quite a big achievement for me. 

What I’ve learned about myself, during that journey, was that I had strength that I’d never known that I had, that I could achieve and do well.

So, I grew up here in Naenae, and we’ve moved around with our home and everything, with our parents. But this is my home-base. 

I value respect, honesty, and I value just you know, people being kind and caring and loving on others, and just being able to make a difference in the world. 

So my advice, for someone who’s on a similar path, would be that they can do it. They can achieve. One of the hardest things for me was actually that I didn’t think that I could do it, and taking that first step by enrolling in the course, and starting my first paper, and then realising, actually this is hard, but I actually can do it.”