Human 1: Matt To'omua

Professional rugby player, café owner, comedy enthusiast

Since signing his first professional rugby contract in school, Matt has played over 100 Super Rugby games (ACT Brumbies; Melbourne Rebels) and has made around 50 appearances for the Wallabies. He completed his Masters of Business Administration in 2019, and has since become a partner at Five Ventures Investment and joined the board of Tenpin Bowling Australia. Matt is a part-owner of Two Before Ten cafés in Canberra and is a comedy enthusiast. His coffee is great. His jokes are shit.

Matt is a human mammal. Here are his thoughts:

What brings you the most joy in life?

Achievement of goals. Family health and healthy relationships.

What does success mean to you?

Completing what I aim to do. 

What are you most grateful for?

Great family upbringing. Living in Australia. Having a good education. Great friends and family.

Who or what has had the biggest influence on your life?

My parents and friends.

What do you regret?

I don’t think I regret anything to be honest. I haven’t made any catastrophic mistakes in my life. When I have made mistakes, I feel like I’ve learned from them, even if it was a tough lesson.

What advice would you give your younger self?

Keep learning. In a non-business-related sense, being nice is better than being right.

What do you doubt most?

No idea.

When did you last change your mind?

All the time. My fundamental beliefs over time have changed. I am pretty stubborn and I pick a side, but if evidence/experience makes it obvious that I am wrong then I will happily change my mind. I love having a heated discussion and see it as growth if my ‘opponent’ changes my mind on a subject.

What is the role of luck in our lives?

A little bit. I think over time luck has diminishing returns and there’s more logic/reason to ‘success’ in our lives. Some may experience luck and lose it all (e.g. lotto winners). Some may use their luck to their advantage and leverage it to keep moving forward.

What would you do with your life if you had unlimited financial resources?

Take care of my family financially. Play a year or two of golf. Find something I am passionate about because I can’t sit still for too long.

If you could have the definitive answer to a single question, what would you ask?

Is there a God?

What concept/fact/idea should every human on the planet understand?

Nurture and culture have a huge effect on who we are. There is rarely a right/wrong, except for the obvious.

Should we think of morality in relative or absolute terms?

Relative. You only know what you know at the time. We progress with time; our morality is the same.

Do human beings have free will?

I don’t know. I want to believe that we do, but I don’t know. There are so many factors that can influence our actions and decisions that sometimes I think we are just merely reactionary to circumstance.

Do you believe in God?

I don’t know. There are so many God’s out there and, in the traditional sense, I don’t believe in the God most people think of. But I’m open to a higher being, I guess. I don’t lose sleep over the question though. I figure if I’m a good person, do the best I can and love lots, then hopefully, if there is some higher being, he’d be able to assess my intent in life.

What do you see as the biggest existential threat to humanity?

Climate change. The world will be fine, but life and humans will be buggered.

What does it mean to live a good life?

Have a good influence on the lives of others and bring them joy.

What is a good death?

Following a life lived with joy. As little pain as possible. Expected.

What happens after death?

Funeral usually.

Thanks for your time, Matt!

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