Daniel Radcliffe is making a difference through the International Volunteer HQ. You can make a difference to a lot of peoples lives, if you put your mind to it.
Jo Mills, our resident powerblogger on LiveMyGoals and General Manager of Career Analysts interviews Daniel Radcliffe and finds out how he creates action in his life and makes a difference in many others.
International Volunteer HQ (IVHQ) was formed in early 2007, with the aim of making volunteering possible for everybody through affordable, safe, high quality projects in developing countries.. In addition to providing aid and assistance to these countries, IVHQ endeavors to increase education and heighten awareness through not only the skills and expertise taken by volunteers to their host communities and institutions, but also through the experiences and lessons volunteers will in turn take back to their own countries and cultures.
In 2005 and 2006 after finishing his Master of Business in finance and sustainable logistics, the Executive Director – Daniel Radcliffe volunteered abroad. Naively, he was initially surprised to find there were no opportunities to volunteer abroad for ‘free’, unless he wanted to commit himself to 12 months in a service like the Peace Corps. However, after thinking about this (putting his logistics degree to good use ;-)), he came to the conclusion, that this made sense, because if a community was really in NEED, then where would the money come from to pay for these volunteers’ food, accommodation and supervision. Despite this, he still could not find a volunteering organization that provided AFFORDABLE and yet most importantly high QUALITY volunteering opportunities.
On returning home to New Zealand in late 2006, IVHQ was born with the goal of providing safe, affordable and high quality placements in areas where there is a real NEED for volunteers. IVHQ provides affordable placements by partnering with NGOs based in the country where volunteers wish to work.
Despite their relatively young age, IVHQ is experiencing unprecedented success signing up a large number of volunteers . This has meant the need for expansion and IVHQ is currently in the process of opening new programs in other developing countries. Based in New Zealand but providing volunteering opportunities to people all over the world, IVHQ is growing rapidly and in 2008-09 plans to open programs in Bolivia, Egypt, Mexico, India, China and Ghana to complement our existing programs.
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An interview with:
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Daniel Radcliffe– International Volunteer HQ Executive Director
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My company
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International Volunteer HQ
An international internet based volunteer travel agency that provides volunteer “holidays” in developing countries.
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My interests:Things that take me to my happy place!
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Scuba diving
Fishing
Travelling
Sport
Surfing
Socializing
Farming
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List a few of your recent accomplishments that you are proud of:
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- Having to revise first year forecast for volunteer numbers from 200 to over 1000.
- 2.7kg crayfish caught in January diving… Monster!!!
- Getting great feedback from volunteers….. very satisfying.
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How do you celebrate them?
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I usually get party pretty hard with friends or whanau.
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I am busy at the moment doing:
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- Sorting out minor problems with programs in Tanzania and Peru.
- Opening our new office in New Plymouth
- Hiring my first New Zealand employee
- Opening a new program with a partner in Mexico
- General day to day International Volunteer HQ administration work (busy time of the year )
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My big hairy audacious goal this year is to:
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- Open new programs in Mexico, India and Ghana.
- Become a genuine “intermediate” Spanish speaker
- Buy some farmland before the end of 2008.
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I knew I was onto something when:
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We doubled our first months forecast.
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My secret for getting things done is to:
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Concentrate
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My darkest hour was when:
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Violence and rioting started in Kenya over December 2007 – January 2008 with 20 volunteers on programs there.
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I came through it by:
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Having good staff in Kenya who are Extremely reliable and looked after our volunteers/kept them safe.
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I came up with the idea for/to:
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By going on a program myself and not being satisfied by the options or the program I went on in regards to quality and price.
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How old were you when you first had the idea?
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22
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How many businesses / ideas have you tried before this one?
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First one
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What do you do to cope with stress?
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Working on the family farm, Scuba diving and just forgetting about things/getting away from the computer.
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How many hours do you work each week?
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At the moment about 90-100 but looking to cut it back when getting our first NZ employee .
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What do you do when things aren’t going your way?
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Throw my toys then look for other options and ways to overcome the problem(s).
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What is the most important piece of advice you’d give to people who are struggling to create a positive change in their lives?
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If you want to do something make it happen. Hard work and self belief will get you a long way.
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What is the hardest lesson you’ve had to learn in life/business?
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You cannot please all of the people all of the time. No matter how hard you try there will always be people that are skeptical and dissatisfied with the job you have done.
“Any fool can complain and criticize……. And most fools do”
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What separates successful people from unsuccessful people?
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Self belief.
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Do you have any daily rituals that help you keep focused and in the right mental state to succeed?
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Some sort of exercise and also plenty of time doing “other stuff” to keep you fresh for work.
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What was your working background before you started what you are doing now?
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Straight out of university and a year travelling. Before this just did part time work on farms (mustering, crutching, fencing etc)…. Also a week as a financial analyst for Telstra Clear before I threw it in thoroughly dissatisfied with how my life was heading if that’s what I was going to be doing from then on.
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Do you have any school/study qualifications?
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Masters of Business and Bachelor of Commerce
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Do you have any other business interests at the moment?
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Just started a property investment company and looking to start a recruitment company with some friends in Taranaki.
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What are the three most important personal qualities you’ve had to develop to become a successful business person?
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People management skills (really important with staff from different cultures and countries)
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Patience
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Listening skills (there are a lot of people that can help young people starting a business but you have to be willing to listen).
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What are the three most important skills that you would advise up and coming youngsters to develop?
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- Planning (always have a plan for your business and make sure you are organized and prepared for every possible outcome).
- Listening (There is a lot of good advice out there)
- Judgment (There is also a lot of bad advice out there, learn to separate the good from the bad).
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How do you know when you’ve found a good idea?
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You never really know….. you just have to be brave enough to give it a shot and be so well prepared/done enough homework that it cannot fail.
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Do you have a formal goal setting process?
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No.
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Have you ever been scared in your role/business? What did you do about it?
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Spending large amounts of money on advertising initially took a little bit to get my head around but I came right.
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What comes first...success or confidence?
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You need to be confident if you are going to give something a shot. If you’re not you are wasting your time attempting it.
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The Parting Shot: When I feel frustrated that things are not coming together as I wish, I proceed to:
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Throw my toys before trying to work out how to get things back on track.
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