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It Starts With Clarity
Awareness Academy helps organisations improve workforce performance, leadership capability, resilience, and decision-making through diagnostic insight and targeted intervention.
We work with leaders, teams, and operational environments experiencing pressure, overload, burnout risk, disengagement, or reduced performance identifying the underlying drivers and implementing practical, measurable solutions.
Our approach combines behavioural science, resilience frameworks, leadership development, and performance advisory to support healthier, more effective workplaces without relying on generic wellbeing programmes.
Support can include diagnostic assessment, leadership coaching, resilience development, behavioural change implementation, executive support, and structured workforce interventions tailored to organisational needs.
Founded by Zac Parish, Awareness Academy integrates experience across leadership development, operational performance, mindfulness training, behavioural change, and resilience under pressure helping organisations move from assumption to measurable clarity.
The Awareness Ambassadors
- Zac Parish -
Founder & Director of
The Awareness Academy
Zac Parish is the Founder and Director of Awareness Academy, supporting organisations in workforce performance, resilience, leadership, and behavioural change. His work focuses on helping leaders and teams reduce burnout risk, improve decision-making, and strengthen operational performance.
Drawing from mindfulness training, behavioural science, resilience frameworks, and leadership development, Zac works with organisations operating in high-pressure environments. His approach combines practical implementation with measurable outcomes across both individual and team performance.
Zac trained as a Buddhist Monk for six years, an experience that continues to shape his work in attention training, self-awareness, emotional regulation, and resilience under pressure. For over two decades, he has worked across coaching, leadership, wellbeing, and performance development.
Expertise:
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Leadership & Workforce Performance
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Improve leadership clarity, communication, and operational effectiveness under pressure.
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Behavioural Science & Resilience
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Support resilience, adaptability, and sustainable behaviour change.
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Attention & Cognitive Performance
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Strengthen focus, emotional regulation, and decision-making capacity.
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Strategic Implementation
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Align leadership teams and support measurable organisational improvement.
- Dr Patterson Stark -
BSc. DC. FASLM
Lifestyle Medicine - Anti Aging -
Food, Nutrition
(Stark Health)
Thirty-seven years ago, Patterson had terminal cancer; he was told to "put his affairs in order:” When surgery and chemo failed, he began a search for the keys to health and happiness. It continues to this day! Triple board certified, his protocol encompasses behaviour change as it reflects to the causes of our most deadly diseases.These not only rob us of life, but happiness and productivity. Patterson supports the Awareness Academy in delivering evidence based, lifestyle medicine practices to the workplace.
Expertise:
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Fellow of the Australasian Society of Lifestyle Medicine
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Dip. International Academy of Prevention Performance & Longevity
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Dip. American Board of Anti-Aging Health Practitioners
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Dip. Australasian Society of Lifestyle Medicine Health Practitioners
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Associate International College of Applied Kinesiology
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Associate Australian College of Nutrition & Environmental Medicine
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Brand Ambassador; Specialized Bikes Word-wide
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Author, Live Now – Die Later, Starkhealth (Amazon)
- Bianca Smeekes -
BA Psychology - MA Business Management - Clinical Diploma Hypnotherapy, NLP Practitioner
(Neurospark)
Bianca Smeeks brings over a decade of experience across psychology, behavioural science, and applied performance.
Her work focuses on resilience, emotional regulation, nervous system regulation, behavioural change, and psychological safety within workplace environments.
Bianca has worked with individuals and teams across New Zealand and internationally, supporting organisations to improve communication, adaptability, resilience, and team effectiveness.
Within Awareness Academy, Bianca focuses on translating psychological insight into practical behavioural strategies that improve workplace capability and sustainable performance.
Expertise:
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Cognitive & Emotional Patterning Under Pressure
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Behaviour Change & Habit Formation
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Nervous System Regulation & Stress Response
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Psychological Safety, Communication & Team Dynamics