David Downs was recently appointed as the CEO at New Zealand Story Group, the the ambitious initiative to tell Aotearoa New Zealand's stories to the world. David has one of those CVs that makes you question your own life choices. He’s packed so much into a career that has included 13 years at Microsoft as Regional director for South East Asia and senior roles with New Zealand Trade and Enterprise specialising in technology and more recently agritech. 

He’s written and published four books, two on New Zealand innovation and innovators, one about his battle with cancer, and this year he published Silver Linings, a book about the positive stories to come out of the Covid-19 crisis. He’s an ex-comedian, TV and Radio actor and a popular MC and speaker.

In this episode David talks about...

— what he learned from his Irish parents;

— how he almost ended up becoming a priest as a teenager;

— escaping the clutches of the Catholic Church and discovering comedy and acting at university;

— becoming the first person in his family to attend university — graduating proved a bit trickier;

— his first big breakthrough and how it led to a job in TV;

— how the skills he learned as a comedian and actor translated to the corporate world;

— giving up comedy in exchange for a real job;

— why curiosity and innovation have been key motivators in his career;

— the five different careers he's had and why you should never be afraid to start again;

— his incredible cancer survival story;

— why he's so positive about NZ's ability to bounce back from Covid;

... and much more.