Bronagh Healey

Change agent, Consultant, Entrepreneur, Idea generator, Life mentor

I am a 32 year old Irish woman living in the UK. By day I am a cross government security awareness lead specialising in changing human behaviours and cultures through education and awareness and in the evenings and weekends I work as a mindset coach. I love learning, I am passionate about self development and encourage everyone I meet to start investing in themselves. It’s the best thing I ever did! My hobbies include reading, I am most definitely a book worm, I enjoy painting, drawing and making things, I’m a DIY junkie. I like to know how things work too and how they fit together, I love a good puzzle. I have lived and traveled to many different places across the world. NYC being my second favourite place so far, first is my lovely home town of Derry. I love to travel and experience new cultures, foods and ways of life. Dubai is next on the list. I like to think I am a fun loving free spirit, but I do like to be organised too. I am always up for adventure and believe laugher is the best medicine.

I am a security professional by day and an accredited mindset coach by night. My professional and personal passions seem worlds apart, however, in actual fact they crossover and interlink massively. Why do we do what we do? is a question that sparked my curiosity and opened up a whole new level of self development and personal growth for me. I am fascinated by the human mind and how are brains are wired. Researching how humans think, make decisions and behave is what I do for fun - okay, I do also enjoy reading, painting and making things I’m a DIY junkie, but learning, especially about us humans and why we do what we do is one of my favourite pastimes. So much so that it started as something that peaked my interest but is now my full time job. Humans play a massive part in security. Yes they add to the risk, human error, poor behaviours and carefree cultures can have catastrophic consequences when it comes to security, but when humans are armed with the right education, learning and security awareness, they can be the best form of defence. Thats where I come in, I specialise in changing human behaviours and cultures through education and awareness and it starts with understanding why we do what we do, and to understand that I had to understand how we think. And that’s where and how my professional and personal passions crossover and it all comes down to mindset and thinking about how we think.

How we are programmed can shape who we are - do you know who you are and how you think? Are you aware of the cognitive biases that impact our deciding making daily? Cognitive biases are often a result of our brain's attempt to simplify information processing. There is just under 200 researched cognitive biases, they are simple errors we all make in our day to day thinking when we are processing and interpreting information in the world around is, cognitive biases affects the decisions and judgments that we make. A decision I made in my early teens shaped by the confirmation bias shaped my identity for the majority of my adult life. Causing me to suppress parts of my personality to fit with the story I created and that I believed to be true about myself. Growing up I filtered out anything that did not suit who I thought I needed to be to succeed in life. However, as I began to research how my brain works and learn about cognitive braises and how my thinking was programmed, having this awareness enabled me to rewire and rewrite my internal programming and things started to make sense and I started to embrace all parts of who I was. opening my world to endless possibilities and opportunities. I now share this idea with people by asking - do you know who you are and how you are programmed? If not, start thinking about thinking. I’ve had some amazing feedback from people who have taken the time to research the term cognitive biases and start to think about their own thinking.

Behavioural economics, cyber, mindset, Security

I have been watching TED talks from my early teens. I’ve always had a curious mind and a love for learning and I found the TED platform introduced me to new ideas and that the talks always got me thinking and wanting to know more. In the early summer of 2020 I took part in my first TED Circles where I joined in discussion with a host from my local area. The discussion was dynamic, inspiring and thought provoking. I loved the idea of having a safe space to share and hear other's ideas, perceptions and opinions on topical issues and current affairs. I was hooked. I enjoyed the discussion so much I became a TED Circles host myself. Not only do I enjoy meeting new people, I also love the insight into how other people think. Providing a safe space for people to express themselves freely is very rewarding. I host 2 TED Circles per month, bringing around 20 people together in conservation over the 2 sessions. More recently in November 2020 I delivered my first TEDx Talk at the TEDxDerryLondonderry Women’s event. Where I shared my idea of ‘how we are programmed can shape who we are’ with the world. I shared a virtual stage with 15 amazing woman from across the globe. Delivering this TEDx Talk saw me achieve a goal and realise a dream, it also spurred me on to become a multiple TEDx speaker. The future chapters of my TED story. Next in my TED story involves me working behind the scenes with the TEDxDerryLondonderry event team at the January 2021 event and to continue hosting TED Circle discussions.

Cooking...I love to cook and have become very fond of baking. Once I moved out of my parents home I made it my mission to learn how to cook properly. This was a massive challenge as growing up I couldn’t even boil an egg. However, I don’t get to showcase my skills regularly for others as I live in a different country from the majority of my family and friends.