DAVID SEYMOUR on the VALUES we should have as KIWI's...

If you were to step in and to help lead this country to be prosperous, to be connected, to be thriving, you know, what would you do differently and you know, what's in terms of leadership, what are those values that you'll bring to the table?

Well, first of all, I think in terms of values for the country, we need to start being a lot clearer about. First of all, there is an objective reality and there is universal humanity. There's not different worldviews, there's one world and we're all part of it and we're all humans and we're all equally part of it. I think second of all, we need to start being a bit more respective of success. So for the last five or six years you've just heard constantly, you know, if you've done well, if you're a farmer, if you're a landlord, if you're high net worth, if you're high income, if you own a home, if you own two homes, then you know, somehow you've done something wrong and any effort or sacrifice that you made to get there, well, that doesn't count. I don't think that that has been a good communication of cultural values for New Zealand. So I think we could do a lot better in terms of underlying values that cause and effect are important. Then when it comes to a more technical level, it goes back to that idea of what is the role of government. So what are the things that if government didn't do, nobody else would and would be worse off for it? I think there's a lot of stuff that government's currently involved in doing that it doesn't need to do and actually costs money twice, once through funding the people to do it, and second of all through the effects of it. So I look at the regulatory space, you know, the government has laws and regulations up the wazoo, produced at an enormous rate and all it does is it actually reduces New Zealand's prosperity because people find themselves spending more time in compliance activity, less time and productive activity and we're poor as a result. I mean, Early Childhood Education Centres, just a classic example. You know, they tell me they get a weekly update on the new rules the Ministry has made. They have to open with 303 rules to comply with every day. They have to keep a record of every bit of food that has been given to kids for three months. And you just have to ask yourself, you know, is that actually the best use of people, Simon, Is it yielding benefits? Well, probably not, but you know, in every area from farming to finance to construction to you know, resource use. We find ourselves tied up in endless rules and regulation and it's making us a lot poorer than we need to be. So that's just one area. I mean, there's a whole other discussion around expenditure. But just in the regulatory space, we should ask, you know, is there a problem that won't be solved without the government making a law? And does the government's proposed law have cost benefits that exceed its cost? If you start from that perspective, I think we can make New Zealand a much more prosperous place.

Makes me smile inside and out. I hear pragmatism and common sense.

Thanks.

We need that, you know, it's incredible. So thank you. I've got one last question for you.

Sure.

So if we were to fast forward way into the future many years, it's your last day here on Earth, you know that it's your last day. Someone very young, maybe it's a grandchild or just someone that you've got a lot of time for and that you love, they come into the room and they say, David, how do I go about leading my life on purpose? What would you say to them?

Well, I think you have to really sit down and think hard about what your values are. So you've got to be mindful of, first of all, what works for you. But that should be pretty strongly rooted in the impacts it will have on other people. So, you know, I actually have a, if I've got it here, little card that I carry that's probably quite useful. And it just says, speak well of others. Seek and recognize the best in each person. Use my time on Earth to leave the planet and people better than I found it. Be self aware and take responsibility for my actions. Be kind to myself today and make decisions that are kind to my future. So that's, that's what I carry. And I don't claim just for anyone who's wondering to be perfect at this. You know, in fact, the reason that you have goals like that is that you often don't achieve them. But that's the whole point. You're supposed to stretch.

I love it.