Paul Blackburn was born in 1951 and raised in Cronulla, New South Wales. Portraying the typical traits of a classic baby boomer, Paul has done everything to prolong his youth and to continue experiencing ‘peak’ moments in his life. By the time he was 19, he had jumped from an aeroplane, flown a glider, scuba dived, sailed, surfed and explored caves.

When he was appointed as a schoolteacher in Sydney’s west (where there was no surf), he met and married Mary. They decided to move to the bush and bring up their children in a rural environment and now live in their conference centre, built on 257 acres near Canberra, Australian Capital Territory.

Driven by the need to live fully and passionately, and a desire to transfer his teaching skills toward helping others, Paul has spent the last 23 years building an industry-leading personal development business. Paul and Mary own and operate highly successful property developments in New South Wales and Queensland, as well as a minor chain of three bakeries, internet businesses and their core coaching and training operation. Asked by many premier businesses to talk at their national conferences, Paul is also a popular keynote speaker for companies such as McDonalds, Optus, Canon and hundreds of others. His top nine clients are worth over $300 million and control over $2 billion of the Australian economy.

In 2003, Paul faced terminal cancer, which saw him refocus and devote some of his time and energy into helping others in similar situations. Today, Paul and his wife are focused on delivering their Mental Toolbox personal development course and training coaches.

Paul loves the ultralight that he flies from the airstrip in his backyard. He plans to spend the next five years exploring the east coast of Australia with Mary, searching for their retirement home on the beach.