About me
Welcome! I’m Riki Deale
Chief Zookeeper
Child Temperament Whisperer
I train other zookeepers, AKA parents, to understand what type of zoo animals they have in their homes, according to the different temperaments.
Who am I?
I love animals. I even have a zoology degree to prove it.
I was ready to save each and every species from extinction single-handedly.
… and then I had a baby.
My whole world changed forever. I found something I love even more than animals: being a mum.
But how would we raise this cute-as-a-button tiny human being into a mature and responsible member of society?
Scary thought!
Desperate to be that Pinterest-perfect-parent, I searched high and low. I read some amazing books on parenting, and some horrendous never-should’ve-been-published parenting books.
And then…
I found the ancient wisdom of understanding people according to their different temperament types and studied how it applies to our children and parenting.
Thanks Hippocrates!
Even in our modern world, the original theory of the four temperaments still holds true.
So, is my home-zoo Pinterest-perfect? Heck, no! But I don’t care about being perfect anymore. As long as my kiddies feel safe, loved, heard and respected, in a space where they can grow into mature adults, we are all OK!
Over the past decade, I’ve helped numerous families to create harmony and peace in their homes, just by explaining the different temperaments and how each one operates.
I always laugh out loud at Riki’s funny stories, and her practical advice and original ideas on how to handle certain parenting challenges has been life changing for me and my family
Where did it all start?
I always had a strong personality. I always had strong opinions. (mind you, I still do, I just manage my tongue better these days). I always loved organising people. And if there is not a strong enough (in my opinion) leader, I will naturally take over and get things done!
As a child, I was often in trouble for not being respectful enough, quiet enough, small enough. And yes, sometimes I still didn’t go down without a fight. I knew I was a fighter, and struggled with self-acceptance.
And then, one day in 2000, I discovered a small, inconspicuous book on temperaments in my local library. And for the first time in my life, I could ‘label’ my ‘condition’. I was normal. Well, as normal as 25% of our society. I just had a specific temperament.
This was my first step of a 20-year self-discovery that has led me to like myself, and even love myself on some days. That was the start of a deeper understanding of who I was, and why I act the way I do. Yes, I had to work really hard to polish my rough edges and smooth over my strong, and opinionated, personality.
Being the bold project manager that I am, I started sharing this information with friends and family, always learning, observing, asking questions, contemplating, explaining. And reading, reading, reading.
When my own girls were born, I was fascinated how they already showed their own temperaments right from birth. They became my favourite project to manage. And now, with my girls not so little anymore, I had capacity for another project.
And Tame Your Zoo was born.
A parenting collective of my experience and research over 13 years as a parent, but 20 years on the journey. A deeper understanding that we can’t change who we are, but we can fine-tune and polish our temperaments to be content, respectful, responsible, reliable, mature, loving and caring people, making the world a better place for those around us.
Just in case you need a professional bio
Riki Deale is a proud Afrossie (South African Aussie), wife and mother of two. She worked as an Environmental Consultant in the oil-and-gas and mining industry until her life changed forever when they laid that baby girl on her chest.
Making a U-turn from a career woman to a mom was the most rewarding experience ever. She wanted to raise her girls to be strong, confident women, but also have integrity, character and compassion.
Lots of research on parenting followed, building on her fascination and knowledge of different temperaments, and how that fits into families, cultures and parenting styles.
Riki is a registered Temperament Profiler with DISC Profiler Australia, but it is the 12 years of parenting, research, experience and counselling that really makes her a wealth of knowledge on temperaments in families.
Riki is a dynamic and engaging speaker and trainer, focusing her workshops and talks on the different temperaments to help parents understand, enjoy and raise their children to become strong and confident members of society.
So, that degree in Zoology still comes in handy, as she can definitely help you tame your zoo too!
Do you need a practical plan?
Tools that can be implemented immediately?
Clear instructions on how to communicate with your child?
Why work with me?
I’ve been guiding families for over a decade to understand their family dynamics and offer practical tips and advice on how to change this for the better.
I see families as the building blocks of a healthy, safe and functional society – a place where children can grow up, dream big, feel loved, connected, safe, protected. With society putting more pressure and demands on us (as parents and as kids), it breaks my heart that there are so many families who only coexist under the same roof, while we have the potential to make homes into functional units where children can grow up, thrive and reach their full potential, not only be in survival mode. If we can manage this better, we will have better connections, not only in our family homes, but also at work, at school, in the shops, in sport, in times of crisis and times of peace.
Children can’t decide how they want to be raised, but as parents, we have the opportunity to choose how we raise our kids. Some of us had wonderful examples of how to do this, but for many of us, we have to make a conscious decision to change the legacy of our family tree.
Maya Angelou said: “do the best you can until you know better. Then when you know better, do better”.
Imagine being the one to do better.
How? By understanding the different temperaments and how that impacts the dynamics in your home.
The temperament theory has been around for more than 2000 years. It has been proven over and over again. Over time, but also cultures, languages, lands, in times of hardship and prosperity, in war time and peace. And it still rings true today.
So, if we invest a small amount of time (in comparison to our lifetime), we can have the impact of a lifetime.
