Jazz Thornton is a mental health advocate, film director, author, speaker and co-founder of charity Voices of Hope. She also hosts a new podcast, Hope Is Real. Photo / Supplied
Jazz Thornton is a mental health advocate, film director, author, speaker and co-founder of charity Voices of Hope. She also hosts a new podcast, Hope Is Real. Photo / Supplied
Jazz Thornton is a mental health advocate, film director, author, speaker and co-founder of charity Voices of Hope. Paired with Brad Coleman, she won Dancing With The Stars in 2022.
I feel my best when I’m doing the things that I love – coffee, walks with friends, “introverting” and binge-watching shows or making videos. I have found I always feel my best when I am prioritising the things and people I love.
To keep fit and healthy I love smashing some gym classes – getting in and out and doing hard and fast workouts is really good for my mind. I also love putting on my headphones and doing my own thing to help clear my thinking.
To stay mentally and emotionally healthy I try my best to limit my time spent on social media, ensuring it is not the first thing I look at in the morning. Instead, I take it slow and allow myself to just “be”, without external influences. I love making sure I am seeing my friends and surrounding myself with people who just see me as “Jazz” and not “Jazz the advocate”. I still go to therapy, too. So important!
The best advice I’ve ever been given is, “It’s not about battling your past, but fighting for your future.” It’s something I have tried to live by for a while now – understanding there is only so far you can go in life if you are only focused on battling the things that have already happened. Fighting for the future gives you something to fight for and enables you to battle the things of the past with purpose. It’s hard to move forward when you are only looking back.
If I wasn’t an advocate, I would be a studio director. I studied film and TV and I fell in love with the fast pace of live show directing. Sports, news, current affairs, I love it! I think my ADHD brain thrives in high-pressure environments and live directing was something that my brain loved.
The values I live by are to be authentically yourself and never stop anyone from being their authentic selves. Be the change that you want to see in the world, love greatly and live with compassion, empathy and courage.
I’d like the older generation to be willing to learn about the things that younger people are facing today rather than just saying “back in my day it was worse”.
I’d like less division and hatred in the world. I think the last few years have really shown such a huge divide in so many ways and things like social media really amplify so much hate. We are all in this together, opinions aside, we are all human and we all deserve love.
I’d describe myself as a little all-over-the-show, but very compassionate. I am highly creative but terrible at finishing creative projects (#ADHD). I am loving, futuristic and will at all times fight with everything in me for other people.
As I get older, I realise the things that people say about you only have as much power as you let them.
The person who has had the biggest impact on my life is Genevieve Mora. She’s the co-founder of Voices of Hope and we have done this journey together for years. She has been the one to keep our organisation running, who inspired and encouraged me to take every step and opportunity to speak up. She has been there every step of the way and seen my entire career grow and change and championed me every step of the way.
Jazz Thornton and Genevieve Mora. Photo / Supplied
I have suffered from imposter syndrome a lot and honestly, sometimes I still do. Standing in rooms with royalty or business owners, governments or even that day that I was speaking at a conference with Hilary Barry, I was like, “I am not enough to be here.” But I am learning that I bring something to the table. We all bring something to the table – we deserve to be there, and we are enough.
My proudest moment was when a mother came up to me at a conference a few years ago and hugged me and through tears told me that her daughter had been in and out of psych wards from trying to take her life, but that she got my book a while back and it helped so much, and she hadn’t been back in hospital since. She just cried and thanked me, and I cried with her and in that moment, I just went, “This is my why.”
My least proud moment was when I ate a Terry’s Chocolate Orange incorrectly and made international news.
An ambition of mine is to make as much impact as possible during my time on earth.
The things that make me happiest are people. I love humans and all of the little things that we do for each other. I think seeing people’s “I’m good enough” moments really strikes at my heart.
My best life hack is: Surround yourself with the kinds of people who inspire you to be the best version of yourself.
