The Design Detective process is all about encouraging people to discover (and do) the thing they were put on the planet to do. To do that thing that truly brings them alive and gets them excited every morning when they jump out of bed. Unfortunately, many people are doing something that does not align with their design. Surprisingly few people love what they do. 

With this in mind, the following groups of people might find Design Detective helpful:

• Highschool Students (Y10/11) trying to work out which subjects to choose/direction to go.

• School Leavers (Y12) who are unclear or uncertain about what they should do now/next.

• Anyone who is super-frustrated in their current job and looking for a fresh start.

• Highschool Students (Y10-12) who 'do not fit' the school system and need direction/ encouragement.

• Anyone feeling overwhelmed by all the study/job/career options.

• Anyone who started further study but quit without finishing because it bored them to death.

• Weary souls who have spent most of their career doing something that just didn't fit.

• Anyone who has 'tried everything' and can't find that thing they truly love.

• Anyone who regularly daydreams about doing that thing they love rather than their job.

In short, anyone who is confused, overwhelmed, frustrated, lacking direction, lacking motivation etc. regarding what they are doing with their life, could benefit from the Design Detective process. It is a journey of self-discovery/re-discovery that takes you back to basics. 'Who am I and what am I supposed to be doing ?' is a big question Design Detective helps to answer.

Absolutely ! 

If you follow the usual pathway from the 'Book Now' page of this website, you will choose either an 'Educational' or 'Occupational' Consultation depending on which one suits best, check out the 'Process and Prices' page and end up at the 'Buy Now' page.  The 'Buy Now' page outlines exactly what you get as part of the full 'Design Detective Experience' and then gives you the option to choose 'Buy My Consultation' (blue link), if you are buying a Design Detective Experience for yourself OR 'Gift Consultation' (green link), if you would like to gift a Design Detective Experience to someone else. 

If you follow the green 'Gift Consultation' link you will purchase the consultation as usual and fill out the details for your personalised 'Design Detective Digital Gift Voucher'. When this digital gift voucher arrives in your email inbox (within 24hrs.), you can print it out and gift it in person or send it to the recipient via email. 

The choice is yours :)

Design Detective will focus on helping you discover, explore and understand your unique design (PERSONALITY, INTERESTS, SKILLS and VALUES), and will encourage you to choose jobs/study/career that fit your design beautifully. 

You remain in the driver's seat regarding your choices and future direction !

The short answer is 'YES' !

Alongside being a fully qualified Career Direct Consultant, Matt also has the following additional qualifications/experience:

1. BA (Psychology) [followed by 4 years working with the Department of Families, Seniors, Disability Services and Child Safety.]

2. B.Ed (Primary Grad.)  [followed by 23 years as a Primary School Teacher, a specialist PE Teacher and an Acting Principal] 

3. Diploma of Health Science (Naturopathy)

4. Professional Certificate (Health and Wellness Coaching)

5. Matt also holds a current 'Blue Card' (Queensland Working with Children Check)

At Design Detective, one of our favourite sayings is 'If you know who you are, you know what to do !'  

What we mean is, if you understand exactly who YOU were designed to be then making important life decisions becomes easier. 

Most people also find that doing something that lines up with their design puts a big smile on their face because they feel fulfilled and happy in the work they do :)

You may have noticed that on some of our Design Detective promotional material it says 'Powered by Career Direct'. Career Direct is the tool/system/program that we use for discovering, exploring and understanding your unique design. 

Career Direct has helped hundreds of thousands of people (just like you :),  find their thing over the last 25 years. 

The Career Direct Assessment that we will walk through together has been developed, tested, refined, updated and polished by some seriously clever people over many years. :)

The Design Detective process shines a big spotlight on the absolutely unique design of our clients and encourages them to make study/job/career choices that align beautifully with their design. 

Design Detective is focused on helping YOU find YOUR THING. 

We leave all the decisions regarding study/job/career choices in your capable hands.

Absolutely not ! 

Unfortunately most education systems only have one measuring stick for success (academic ability), and many students will feel like a failure because they don't fit the system. 

The beautiful thing is that 'success at school' is not a fair or accurate measure of 'success in life' and our mission here at Design Detective is to help you find that thing you will love (and be awesome at), regardless of how things went for you at school.

Yes we can ! 

Matt has been on his own adventure over many years and understands exactly what it feels like to show up day after day after day, to a job that deep down, you know isn't a good fit for your design. 

Sometimes money (aka. 'the golden handcuffs'), habit, fear, familiarity, family expectations, pride etc. keep us trapped in a job (sometimes for years), even though it is intensely frustrating and unhelpful for our mental health. 

Our heart at Design Detective is to speak hope, truth and encouragement into the lives of people in exactly this situation. We do this by helping them discover, explore and understand their unique design and encouraging them to make future choices that align beautifully with their design.

The Design Detective process is suitable for clients from 16 to 160 years of age :) 

(TOP SECRET INFORMATION: The same clever cookies that put together the Career Direct Assessment Tool that we use on this journey of design discovery together are currently working on a similar tool for use with 12-16 Year Olds ... Contact Matt for more information :)

The average cost of completing a year of a University Degree (or similar qualification), in Australia is around $20 000 (often significantly more :). 

Unfortunately many people choose a course they think they will love and start studying but then quit after a year or two because it did not align with their design. 

It's probably a bit cheeky to advertise that Design Detective can save you $20 000 on your first year of study but what we really mean is, if you are super-clear about your design and who you really are, you are unlikely to waste $20 000 on choosing, starting (but then quitting), a course that doesn't fit you and your unique design.

Interestingly, NO ! 

While Matt prefers to meet with all clients face-to-face if possible, it is completely acceptable to engage in the Design Detective Consultation Process from anywhere around Australia or around the world. (as long as the primary language is English :)

The only difference is that the 2-hour 'Design Detective Deep Dive Consultation' is conducted via Zoom rather than in a face-to-face meeting. All other components of the Design Detective process can be completed as normal.

This is a great question because, on paper, the process seems to be the same for both. 

The short story is that an 'Educational Consultation' is for someone who is not in a 'career job' yet but is trying to put the pieces together regarding their purpose/design/direction for future study/jobs/careers. Often (but not always), people who choose an 'Educational Consultation' are still at school, finishing school soon, just left school, in a temporary job because it pays the bills or have started studying but are not convinced their study path is a good fit for them. 

An 'Occupational Consultation' is for someone who has been working in a 'career job' for some time and seeking a change or a fresh start. Deep down they know their current career job doesn't fit (and is probably unhelpful for their mental health), but they continue to do it anyway for a range of reasons including money, habit, family pressure, social profile, familiarity, debt, pride etc. 

The additional cost of an 'Occupational Consultation' is because we take all the above factors/complications into consideration as part of the 'Design Detective Experience'. 

Often, leaving a career job to do something else after a number of years is significantly more complicated (for multiple reasons), than making vocational choices that align with your design at the beginning of your working life/career.