Often the best business ideas come from finding a need for something that is yet to exist, and for psychologist Danushi Fuller, this notion rings true.
The Latch caught up with the psychologist to chat about all things from workplace empowerment to developing a business from a gap in the market. Here’s what she had to say:
TL: Can you share a little about your career up to today?
DF: I have various roles within both government organisations and private businesses. My roles have essentially involved the application of psychology and best practices in workplace settings to help improve culture and engagement and support the development, wellbeing and sense of inclusion for employees.
When I became a mum and went on parental leave in 2020, I used that time away from work to launch my own business — Fuller Moments. I wanted to use my experience and qualification as a psychologist to create and run something of my own that had the potential to positively impact people.
TL: What inspired you to study psychology?
DF: I have always been interested in understanding people and what drives them to do what they do. During my undergraduate degree, I discovered all these other areas of psychology, including organisational psychology. I loved the idea of helping improve a part of people’s lives that we spend so much time in, the workplace, so pursued a master’s in organisational psychology.
TL: You created a collection of tools and resources with the aim to empower people to grow and develop. Where did this idea come from?
DF: For many years, I have been involved in developing and rolling out a number of programs within workplaces that have had some amazing impacts on people’s confidence and sense of capability.
It made me realise that opportunities to really invest in your development were a privilege limited to select people who either had workplaces that made that investment and selected them or people who could afford to make that cost and time investment using their personal resources.
I knew how to assess the validity of tools and programs in the market and wanted to reduce the cost and time barriers for a wider audience of people. Fuller Moments does this by creating evidence-based tools and resources that are affordable and designed in a way that you could be equipped with skills, knowledge and tools to learn more about yourself and develop without an intimidating time commitment.
TL: What is the best part of creating your own products to help others?
DF: Getting to see people taking active steps to better themselves! I love hearing about the impact Fuller Moments has had. It’s such a great feeling knowing that the products are making a positive difference to so many lives.
TL: Besides using your resources, what do you find are the best tools people can use to grow and develop from experiences?
DF: I think dedicating time to reflect. If you don’t ever stop to pause and reflect, it’s too difficult to take stock of what you have done, what you are capable of, and where you want to go. I also like listening to podcasts and reading other people’s stories for inspiration.
TL: What is your number one tip for successful goal setting?
DF: Have a clear plan on how you will achieve your goal with an end date! Plan what things you need to do each week leading up to the deadline you have set.
TL: What’s your best advice for being ‘Set For Life’?
DF: I think the first thing is to reflect on what being “Set For Life” means to you. One person’s idea of being set for life could be completely different to yours. So, I would recommend maybe first starting with a big blue-sky list of what that could mean for you then narrow down using reflective questions like; “what would it mean if I had that?”, “how would I feel if I couldn’t ever do that?”, “if I could only pick three things, what would they be?”, “do these align with my values?,” and “is this actually achievable?” to start with.
