Folio Mortgage & Finance Co-Principal Richard Kirby lives by the motto that no matter the challenge you face in life there is always a solution.
Having cheated death twice and now with restricted physical mobility due to a surfing accident which almost claimed his life back in 2014, Richard has faced more challenges than most, but they have never stopped him from succeeding in business and living a full life.
While walking out of the surf, after a two-hour surf with his son, Ben, and long-time friend and business partner, Bruce, at Queenscliff in Sydney’s northern beaches in April 2014, Richard was struck by a breaker which caused him to fall awkwardly head-first into a sand bank, twisting his neck and pinching his spinal cord.
He was rushed to Royal North Shore Hospital and underwent emergency spinal surgery followed by a month in ICU, then three months in the Spinal Unit and a further three months at Royal Rehab in Ryde. His recovery was further complicated by the fact that he is an insulin dependent diabetic.
After three years and numerous injuries (including a broken hip during recovery) Richard gave back his wheelchair.
Despite not being able to return to surfing, he was able to focus on his mortgage management business which continued to grow with the support of his wife Kay, his business partner and a dedicated team.
As well as having, and delegating to, a support team, focussing on physical wellbeing for himself and his staff has also become a major priority for Richard.
“If your body’s not fit, your brain is not fit so we try and encourage all the staff here to take part in sport to keep fit and maintain healthy eating as well – that’s a key part of our culture,” he says.
Richard’s story is featured in our eBook Balancing work, life and everything else along with tips and advice from a range of successful broking business owners from different walks of life, different business sizes and different stages of business growth.
The eBook was produced as a resource to address concerns raised by members in the results and respondent comments of the 2020 Opportunities for Women survey, about time management, managing their work-life balance and generally remaining resilient.
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