While the size of New Zealand’s official development assistance programme is under reconsideration, we speak and prepare for the budget this year we intend to shift the dial to move our Pacific relationships past the donor/recipient interaction and into genuine, mature political partnerships; That’s one woman moving the dial for herself. She is the CEO of her own life—aren’t we all?—and her small business. But most important, she’s moving the dial toward her passion and personal goal. And in doing so, she’s setting an example for other women. How can you have a career and a life you love, in a world which still isn't set up for you to do either of those things with ease?

Anderton-Davies works in finance and so it is not unexpected that there is a whole chapter on money, titled money matters [particularly, she argues, for women who are affected by the gender pay and pension gaps]. She says it should have its own dials, for instance, earnings, savings, investments and pension. It is believed the used car and intellectual property numbers were changed because, on review, Productivity Commission officials felt they were unrealistic.So what doesit mean to “move the dial for women in leadership”? Here are three stories to illustrate how I think about it—I’d love to hear your take, too. The letters were sent to coincide with the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty. This year’s theme ‘dignity for all in practice’ touches heavily on the inequalities lower income people face in access to housing, food, and healthcare. The day aims to recognise the countless people suffering from poverty and highlight the essential global solidarity and shared responsibility we hold to eradicate poverty and combat all forms of discrimination. These dials can change in intensity at different times in your life, reflecting that life shifts, for instance, your children don’t need you as much as they grow older, you may take on caring responsibilities for older relatives, you have to focus on work to get a promotion and so forth. The levels change as your life evolves and the levels allow you to be more deliberate and intentional about this. That means you can make trade offs. Perhaps you need to work longer hours to get to the next level at work at one point, but at another something challenging happens in your family that requires you to be less focused on your work. Perhaps there are times when you need to be more focused on your career and your partner can dial their work intensity down.

It has become increasingly obvious that the perception of New Zealand by Pacific leaders is changing. This reflects a new generation of post-colonial Pacific leaders who are increasingly confident, independent and assertive regionally and internationally. They are more comfortable in courting a range of external partners. The phrase work-life balance has become so commonplace in the last years. It seems like the nirvana so many of us are seeking, but it is one that Rebecca Anderton-Davies describes as toxic. That is because she says it paints a picture which is impossible to achieve, a static, two-dimensional, conflict-prone picture which is out of sync with the constantly changing, four-dimensional world we live in.Stay up to date on all our headline work and the topical issues facing the sector. Our weekly updates will keep you informed of our latest publications, upcoming events and recent blogs.