WHAT THEY'RE SAYING

Finance Asia 29 October 2012
LIFE AFTER CAPITAL MARKETS

(EXCERPT) - Lara Wozniak

"When former Deutsche Bank and Nomura DCM banker Mark Leahy sent around details about Legacy Retreat — a high-end coaching and therapy-based programme that caters for "cosmopolitan clientele who lead busy lives and crave a pause to get some perspective and balance, away from the noise" — emails went buzzing. Is this really what he's up to? And do I have to pay top dollar to meditate?

Really, it's what he and his wife Crystal Lim Leahy are up to — Crystal is also an ex-banker, who worked at UBS and CLSA. They are working in conjunction with the co-heads of Integrated Therapy, Jutka Freiman and Volker Krohn, who together have five decades of experience coaching clientele.

If you're sceptical about self-improvement, the sales pitch is an uphill battle. If you're not, here's one huge selling point: this is for you. The guest list for last week's Hong Kong roadshow to showcase the project was a who's who of bankers.

If you're involved in capital markets, I'm willing to wager you don't want to explore self-development themes with the founders of Occupy Wall Street. Chances are, though, they won't be at a retreat at the uber-glamorous Alila Villas Soori in Bali, which was voted as one of the top 10 new resorts in the world by Traveller Magazine this year, and is where the next retreat will be located (one five day/ four night session starting on December 7; the second one beginning on April 17, 2013).

You can expect life-coaching sessions with a focus on mindfulness and spiritual awareness — not designed to "fix you" in a weekend, but rather to refocus your outlook so that you have skills to cope with stressful issues later on. There are group sessions and private counselling meetings, as well as a custom-tailored series of Ayurvedic and Oriental medicine consultations with leading Sydney-based expert Mark Phillips. And if you're inclined, there are meditation and visualisation sessions, as well as yoga and Qi Gong. And of course, gourmet meals and a luxurious setting." .....