Testimonials
Our members have provided some real life personal stories for you to get a feel for how Design a Decade can help you.
The program is empowering and has encouraged us to take control of all areas of life and be wise in the decisions we make for now and the future.
Stu and Katie Brown
Australia
As a family [with four kids] we always had the focus on building great relationships and we invested a lot into creating memories with each other. During the years we had some huge challenges to overcome [that] provided an awareness that it is important to have a balanced life – but we were still exhausted, because we neglected to take good care of our time and health. A very good friend introduced us to the founder of Design a Decade, Chris Freeman who presented the Design a Decade program to us. We knew that a balanced life is important, but we did not know how to implement it into our lives. By means of the program our quality of life is ever-expanding. The program provides methods and motivation on how to deal with all the important areas of our life in a simple and effective step-by-step way, which is accompanied by a fantastic, encouraging coaching team. The program has inspired us and brought back our hope that one day our dreams will come true.
Siegfried and Claudia Haas
Germany
Shannon Riley
Australia
Bec and I were doing great and looking towards the future. But didn't really have a plan; there wasn't a lot of structure or intentionality around what we wanted to do, or how to achieve what we wanted.
It seems a strange part of human nature that you can know something, understand it, recommend it to clients and provide advice in respect of it, but fail to apply it to your own circumstances. A bit like mechanics having broken down cars, plumbers having leaking taps etc. By starting the Design a Decade programme, it has, on more than one occasion, forced me to be honest with myself and realise that it is important to practice what you preach and apply those principles to your own circumstances, regardless of your level of expertise, education or income.
Sean Shotter
Australia
Design a Decade has been life-changing to us as a couple in more ways than one. Our mentoring meetings are always so encouraging and helpful to keep us on track in areas where we’ve drifted. We’ve made great strides in our finances in learning how to plan and manage our money in a way that is simple and effective. We are grateful to the Design a Decade team for equipping us with tools to invest in our future.
Scot and Sarah Eibel
Texas, USA
At the start of the program, I was living a life that I thought was going to take me to my desired destination without actually thinking about what that was, or being intentional about all areas of life. The program was a reality check – it gave me the opportunity to re-evaluate why I do what I do. And it also equipped me with systems that I can use to plan and create a balance in the important areas of my life, as I journey my way to my desired end goal.
Samson Usman
Now I can see a life of balance in all areas. With what I have gained from the program, I see a brighter future for not just myself but for other people in my life. Having the knowledge that sometimes life may throw me curve balls, I believe that with what I have learnt I am now able to manage any distractions and realign my course.
Australia
Rohan Weir
Australia
Our future is a lot more secure. We now have tools, resources and training up our sleeves for our future decisions.
Design a Decade has transformed the way we approach relationships, business, parenting and dreaming about our future! We knew we needed wisdom, insight and practical tools to get our life to click into positive momentum – but we didn’t know where to look for it. Design a Decade has far exceeded our expectations. An all-encompassing lifestyle, personal, professional and entrepreneurial road map that will gently push you out of your comfort zone and into your genius zone, and have you believing that you were made for more than you have been settling for. It has been interesting to realize that we both have similar goals but different approaches to reaching our goals, and that can seem to cause tension. Using the Design a Decade curriculum, and inviting a third party into our big projects and decision-making, has made all the difference in the world. We would be the first to admit it takes vulnerability and work to move forward, but the result has been better communication, clearer vision and a desire to keep going to set up our future and the future we hope to pass on through generations. We can’t thank Chris, Heather, Beren and the whole team at Design a Decade enough for inviting us into way more than a curriculum... It is a lifestyle. It is a family. It is hope for our future!
Randy and Tara Griffin
USA
Nicole Sparkes
Australia
The biggest benefit has been empowerment – to make positive decisions about myself, my future and my son's future. It actually gives me a sense of peace.
I had just become a single mum of a little two-year-old, moved from the country back into the city and was working multiple jobs. I felt that I was in this situation that was a bit more ‘survival' than I would have liked. And I remembered a conversation that I'd had with Beren about Design a Decade; pulled out Chris’s book and read it cover to cover. Realising I didn't have the skills I needed to get myself to where I wanted to be, I reached out to Beren and the team.
The biggest benefit has been empowerment – to make positive decisions about myself, my future and my son's future. It actually gives me a sense of peace. I feel like my future is bright and I know how I can afford to retire.
Nicole Sparkes
Australia
We see it as a blessing to be part of the Design of Decade family. It has helped us so much in all aspects of our life. We are a young family with two little boys and we always remember the quote, ‘Beautiful Chaos’. We wish we could have met the team 20 years ago. The program has guided us in the right direction with a clear vision for the future while enjoying different seasons in our life. We can’t say thank you enough and highly recommend the program to anyone.
Miranda and Johnson Wei
Australia
We have really benefitted from the support that we have received from Chris and the Design a Decade team. The program has helped with getting back on track in many areas of business and life. We really appreciate the genuine care from Chris and the team.
Matthew and Terese Wright
Australia
Before the Design a Decade program our lives were less focused – sometimes even a little out of control. It was hard to catch up in areas like debt, health, relationship intentionality, etc. Not many people around us talked about managing finances, let alone the other eleven areas on which Design a Decade focus. The program has helped give us a framework to discover our WHY! And has provided us support through our journey from a redundant role to a new career. We've also been able to focus on specific areas, get rid of credit card debt, and live life with a bit more meaning and vision. It's been amazing having a community of support and connections with professionals who are specialised across multiple spheres of life.
We are more intentional now, full of excitement for new adventures and purposeful connections. And as we are moving from Australia to the USA, we are also excited about being a part of this community of support in an international capacity!
Matt and Mary Capper
Australia/USA
We have been working with Design a Decade for over ten years now. The program, with the support of our coach Chris, has had a profound influence on how we as a family consider and plan our future. Cristen and I have both enjoyed and benefited from being part of the Design a Decade program, and we would not hesitate to recommend it to others.
Martin and Cristen Driene
Australia
I began a journey of seeking to improve myself – to set and achieve goals during my time at university. This journey through my 20s was mostly self-guided. The Design a Decade program has formalised my life-planning approach, encouraged diversity in this approach through a trove of wisdom within the course, and developed discipline in desired habits – from the everyday to the big goals of life. My future is defined, yet flexible. I’m excited about it! I love the peace of mind I have knowing aspects of my life are being tracked, whilst my goals will be adjusted as life changes.
Mark Wojcik
Australia
Before the Design a Decade program life was very strained and stressful with three kids under 6. As a Life Coach I certainly had more tools and strategies than the average person and yet the season I was in felt like survival and never-ending chaos. We were struggling financially and our relationship as a couple was strained. A chance encounter had us meeting Beren, little did we know this would lead us to meeting Chris, who would open up doors of opportunities we didn't realise were available to us. We have never looked back. Both Chris and Beren, at different times, have been our guiding light when life felt darker than normal. It is so great to know we have them both to lean on for wisdom and support.
Wisdom and support and a healthy framework to operate in have been the most beneficial to us. The Life Management spreadsheet and content have kept us on track and moving forward strategically at our own pace, with zero judgment if we were struggling along the way. Knowing we are in the beautiful chaos season has instantly lightened the mental load. Our future is far more balanced and optimistic. Anything is possible.
Kelly Anne Cummings
Australia
This is my third year on the Design a Decade program and I highly recommend it! I heard about the program directly from Chris and Heather Freeman as they were already friends of mine and knew about my life and the goals I wanted to achieve.
I had been working freelance contracts in film and TV post production for about five years before I started the Design a Decade program. This sometimes meant relocating for work, having busy overlaps where I was trying to finish one job and start another, or periods of time without work. While I was managing ok, I see now that I was living in the moment and not looking forward to my future or being held accountable in my finances.
One main benefit of the Design a Decade program for me has been shifting my focus from just surviving, to planning and implementing what I can do now to set up my future well. This is still a tricky concept for me due to the demanding nature of my work, but my designated Design a Decade coach really helps to keep me on track.
Being a single person I would say another major benefit of the program is having a coach. I've realised how important it is for me to be held accountable to things, especially in the area of finances. When you don't have a partner or children to consider it is very easy to justify spending to yourself!
I have also found Design a Decade to be incredibly helpful when considering big life decisions and this program recently allowed me to make a significant career decision that required relocating, with certainty and clarity.
Looking forward I know my next decade will be better than my current one because of this program. Life will always be unpredictable, but knowing I have done what I can to help my future self is a great feeling and the Design a Decade program makes it easy to have that peace of mind.
Kathy Freeman
Australia
It quickly became clear to us that we really needed something like this so that we could approach our lives in a more structured and goal-oriented way. Thus, we decided to invest one year into Design a Decade.
We can no longer imagine not being part of Design a Decade. We talk about areas of our lives we wouldn't even have thought of talking about otherwise, and we get to know each other even better and talk about them every week. The main advantage we have gained from Design a Decade is the structure of our cash flow. We know where which amount of money is going. We now have financial peace by building a clear structure around our bank accounts. Our future looks great, because through Design a Decade we are able to keep our lives on course and are reminded every week to continue on that journey.
Jonathan and Tabea Grimm
Germany
John and Sharon Smith
Australia
Since starting on the Design a Decade program we are making better decisions together. Our planning and actions are far more intentional in taking us toward our ten, twenty and thirty-year goals. It amazes us when we review our goals together, how much progress we are able to achieve, all while still having fun along the way!
My biggest wake-up call was looking at 'the inevitable next ten years'. I didn’t want to be doing the same things at 53!
Jennylee Taylor
Australia
Hossana Hanson
USA
The biggest benefit I've received through the program is having a coach walk through the very basic steps of what to do next. Something like buying a house or doing my second investment seemed overwhelming before joining the program.
When I started with Design a Decade I thought that most of the information was fairly straight forward and I struggled to understand the benefits. It was only after I gave it a real go for a while that I realised that I was looking at a lot of areas of my life with the wrong context. The Design a Decade program has taught me a lot about how to prioritise, communicate with my wife about investing and think more clearly about where I want to be in the future.
Hamish Ferguson
Australia
The Design a Decade program became my lighthouse when I felt like – I’m just drifting through life. It made me and my wife able to do the things that we really love to do but are too lazy to do. The program really opened a lot of new doors for us, turning dreams into reality. We are thankful that we are part of this family.
I’ve been in the program for two years now and it really helps us, especially having a young family. It taught me to keep learning new things.
It helps us in decision making.
Grhan Olaso
Philippines
Grant and Angela Mascini
South Africa & Australia
Before being introduced to the fundamentals of this program, we believed that we were doing just fine. We were a young couple with no kids, double income and we were enjoying life! Design a Decade showed us what we were not doing, and how not taking action immediately to secure our future would lead to disaster...
I first met Chris Freeman through Thought Leaders Business School and was impressed by his ability to tell his story in a way that resonated with the people listening. I wanted help with building my practice so I reached out. He has helped me immensely with expanding my mindset on what is possible with my practice. In particular, his approach to sales through genuine storytelling has been a game-changer. In addition to this, my wife and I embraced "Happy Hour", which is an hour that we spend each week reflecting on the week's Design a Decade module. It has helped us immensely with better managing our time, relationships and finances. My favourite thing about “Happy Hour” is having a great excuse to enjoy a cup of tea and, of course, get together with my amazing wife!
Gihan "Dr. G" Jayaweera
Australia
As is often the case, one does not seek help until a crisis is upon them. In my case I was heavily in debt on a dual occupancy development that was going south very quickly, it was my first attempt at property development and of course I was lacking some of the necessary skills, knowledge and connections. Thankfully my mortgage broker recognised my predicament and organised a meeting with the Design a Decade team. That is when it all changed and the situation started to rapidly improve! Although I had to extract myself from the development and in the process cop a reasonable loss, the coaching ensured that I not only survived but came out in good shape; and has also helped lay a foundation on which my partner and I can forge ahead into a bright future. It is just over two years since the 'world came tumbling down', yet we are already looking at our next investment or development opportunity and I have never felt more in control.
Geoff Yeatman
Australia
I started with Design a Decade because I wanted to take responsibility for my life. I knew there were a lot of things I just wasn’t thinking about and I realised that no one else was going to be more invested in shaping my life than me. It hasn’t been easy, but with the support and structure provided I’ve made some huge changes. Design a Decade’s holistic approach has forced me to confront the way I handle almost every area of my life. It has helped me go from passively navigating through life, to taking ownership of what my life looks like now, and what it will look like in the future. I definitely wish I had started this in my early twenties. I still have a long way to go but Design a Decade has truly opened up my world to possibilities that I believed were beyond my reach – that freedom has been priceless and I am so grateful for it.
Fiona Hull
NSW, Australia
We are so thankful that we discovered the Design a Decade program at the time we did. We originally needed to concentrate on time management issues, but an unexpected financial crisis occurred and this revealed both the flexibility and holistic nature of the coaching program. We are now mostly through the crisis and are feeling confident about the future. The program itself is only one contributing factor to the overall success experienced. The personal trust that quickly developed in the growing friendship provided much needed emotional support during testing times. I have recommended the 'Design a Decade' program to others who have similarly benefited. Thank you Chris, Heather and the Design a Decade Support Team!
David & Tuula Schaeffer
Australia
I believe that we can all individually achieve a certain level of success. I also believe that this level of success will be significantly improved when we have a guide, a mentor, a coach that walks alongside us. Design a Decade is much more than an effective coaching program, it provides access to a team of professional services for additional support when needed.
David Tomkinson
Newcastle, Australia
Danny and Shana McKibben
Australia
"We are well into our second decade now with the Design a Decade program. The principles we have learned over the years have become so much a part of who we are and how we think now that it is hard to remember what we were like before meeting Chris and the team.
We can now tangibly see a platform for our life to flourish. The Design a Decade program has been an important tool for our dreams to materialise.
Craig and Michelle Sparrow
Australia
Going into Design a Decade, I wasn't really too excited. But I knew there were things we needed to prepare for because we have two teenage boys that need to go to college and my husband and I are both self-employed. I'm not super organized, especially with my time and thinking about the future can be pretty overwhelming for me. I have always been an out-of-sight, out-of-mind person. Not great when needing to prepare for the future or run your own business.
Our coach, Beren, was always so very kind and gracious. Two weeks into our program we had a devastating trauma in our family and by God's grace, Beren knew exactly how to come alongside us during that time. It bonded us instantly. Over the next several weeks and sessions, Beren challenged us to see ourselves in a more positive light, he was our number one cheerleader and helped give us the nudge we needed to always take that next step. Some of my favourite lessons from him were on ‘budgeting my time’ - prioritizing my time to say yes to the things that were most important and realizing that when I chose to work late, I was making work a priority over other things in my life. Also ‘putting EVERYTHING in my calendar’ and adjusting throughout the day so I can look back and see where my time is actually going. And learning to asking ‘is it good enough?’ Because of my profession, I am a stickler for details to a fault. I had to learn to let some of that go and ask myself, ‘is this good enough for where it is on my priority list?’
Because of Design a Decade, I am less fearful of dreaming about my future. I know I still have a lot of work to do but now I have the tools to live a more balanced life, that is paved with opportunity instead of fear. Chris, Beren and all of Design a Decade have impacted our lives for a brighter future that can be seen with perspective instead of limitations. I am so so grateful for their time, experience, encouragement and most of all love!
Brooke Fish
USA
Before joining Design a Decade and collaborating on our life plans with Beren, we were really just going through the motions. We had an idea about what we wanted but no plan to get us there and no idea what could be a reality.
Since being on the program we have welcomed the support from Beren to get the basics right, so we can build our capacity to level up and achieve our goals. The 12 modules have been a great reference point to help guide us in making big decisions, including the recent addition to our family, Sundae (our gorgeous golden retriever puppy). She is the first piece of achieving our bigger goal of a house with a white picket fence, a backyard for the kids, a dog and some chooks, and the financial freedom to live life how we want to.
Looking forward, we have a rough blueprint for how we will move ourselves toward our dream. With support and coaching from Beren and Chris, we are confident that this is within reach and have the confidence to take those steps outside our comfort zone.
Brent Hodgson and Cassie Moore
Australia
Blake and Esther Brister
USA
We see a bright future with a plan. And we have more peace today than ever, knowing how and where we are going, with confidence that we are going to get there over time.
Before the Design a Decade program, we had just been married and life was good. We did not choose the program because we were in a crisis; we were not looking for a solution to a current problem, but for a practical, trustworthy and developed tool that would help us to manage life and purposefully build the future.
Having discovered that the reason for my parents' peace and confidence in their future, despite facing some big challenges, was because of Chris and the Design a Decade program I flew back to Sydney and called Chris right away. "Hello, Chris. This is Ben Haas, I am the son of Siegfried and Claudia. I have no idea what you've done to my parents, but I want the same thing." We got together for coffee and I quickly realised this program is a solid tool and it could really help us manage our lives well.
We now know that life is too short to make all the mistakes ourselves, but we can benefit from the experience and wisdom of others. In our case, it is the Design a Decade program that helps us avoid mistakes and make wise decisions. We can now look at the days to come with confidence and are even looking forward to getting older!
Bekky and Ben
Konstanz, Germany
Ashley Middleton
Australia
My biggest challenge was time as I was always busy and definitely struggled with time that was not booked into my calendar and committed to other people; like time for me, time for my health, time for my husband (and now family).
Design a Decade has given us the tools we were missing to move forward together in our relationship; with our family [of seven kids]; and in our three businesses. Without Chris and the Design a Decade program we would not be in the contented place we are today. Thank you Chris!
Annalise and Stephen Logan
Australia
Before joining the Design a Decade program I lived month to month. I was not experiencing wins where I wanted to and struggled to see a way forward in some areas. Now, after a second year in the program, I have been able to create savings that have helped me navigate through challenging seasons. There have been positive shifts in various areas of my life and I’m now able to imagine reaching dreams I never thought possible. All by taking small steps and allowing my thinking to be opened up to new possibilities through planning and goal-setting, and of course, a great support team cheering me on. If you want your next decade to be better than your last, this is the program that will help you do it!
Angela Grace
Australia