Richard Poulton is the Asia Pacific Managing Director of AFEX, the world’s largest privately-owned currency payment and risk management business.

Richard loves helping people to set their goals and find their professional path. He applies his passion for high performance to his own personal development, as well as the development of his teams.Richard, an immensely driven person, used to always try to do everything at 100mph. Such a feat is manageable in your 20s and 30s, but as Richard got older, he realised he did not have the skills or the tools to deal with the daily stresses that come with running a business. He was living in his nervous system, and realised he needed to change as he was close to burning out. He then started his journey and researched the science behind mindfulness and meditation and how it can help with stress.

He now meditates every day to quiet the busy mind and build mental focus. He practises presence training to stop over-focusing on what is next and focus more on building stronger and more meaningful connections with people. He uses breath work to calm his nervous system, and has shifted his mental frame from an external focus to an internal one. Consequently, his life has changed from one of surviving to one of creating.With the work over the last few years, Richard realised he was still lacking intrinsic value. To fill this void, he began coaching and inspiring his team. He teaches them mind tools to incorporate into their daily life and shares his own personal stories.He is on the board of Give2Give, a not for profit that gives scholarships to people to attend Dr Joe Dispenza’s retreats. He sponsors the Magic Bus Foundation which supports children all over India, and is heavily involved with the Sydney Children’s Hospital Foundation where he is on the committee for the Annual Diamond Event which has raised millions of dollars over the years.Richard also recently worked on the Inner Peace celebration event in Sydney, centred around inner peace education and how it has helped him in the corporate and finance space. The event was held in conjunction with the UN sustainable development goals.

Richard also recently spoke at Harvard Business School on how to deal with stress and anxiety as a CEO.