A season just for you
A three-month, one-to-one journey of deep listening, following your curiosity toward what matters most to you.
The Wā Programme. Founded by Cleo Shortland.
A season just for you
A three-month, one-to-one journey of deep listening, following your curiosity toward what matters most to you.
The Wā Programme. Founded by Cleo Shortland.
Wā
(noun) time, season, period of time, interval, term, duration
What is yearning to come through you and into the world?
Your needs and desires are the layers that live within your stories. We listen deeply. We weave threads between them, and the solutions are what binds them together, and gives them life.
Your season. Your journey. Stepping into what feels most alive.
How it works
Six calls over one season, with an open line between them. You arrive as you are. No preparation needed. You bring what's present.
You are guided into self-enquiry, journeying toward what is asking to be seen and witnessed.
A season of working closely together gives the work room to breathe.
Karakia, a Māori incantation, is offered to open and close our calls with intention and care.
"Your positivity wasn't just uplifting, it was empowering. You have a way of helping people see what's possible rather than focusing on limitations, and helping them recognise their own strengths and potential. That gave me greater confidence in my own abilities, and I always left interactions with you feeling energised, capable, and more willing to back myself and take the next step forward. The lasting impact for me was a stronger belief in what I could achieve and the confidence to go after it."
— Aime Carter, Sissys
What you receive
Six fortnightly 90-minute one-to-one video calls with Cleo, and an open communication line between them.
A three-month journey from 7 September to 7 December 2026.
US$2,000/month · US$6,000 total.
Kia ora, I’m Cleo Shortland
Life is about capturing it all. The imaginative, the joyful, and even the painful moments we would rather leave behind. The Wā Programme holds that same season for you: room to notice what's most alive in you, and to witness what it asks of you. Holding a moment in time before moving to the next.
This work will encourage you to follow your curiosity before stepping into what's most alive.
"My time working with Cleo was alchemical. I had never felt so deeply held and understood, a natural gift she holds. What stayed with me was a connection that transcended the surface and the ordinary. You could always tell that holding space energised her as much as it uplifted us both.
Through ritual, contemplation, deep enquiry and a focus on creating the future, Cleo sped up my personal evolution in a way only very few people can. Blending the rational and the creative, her structures and frameworks create a safe container for deeper magic to come through.
There is a true element of belief and magic in working with Cleo that goes far deeper than the mind, and you have to experience it to understand what can be created together. I made so much progress in those years, having Cleo hold my visions with unwavering faith. Cleo is the real deal.”
— Rhea James Fox, Writer
Frequently Asked Questions
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Each call opens and closes with karakia, setting the intention for the work we're about to step into.
I'll begin with a question: what's present for you right now? From there I listen closely and offer tools that guide you toward what is asking to be seen and witnessed. What genuinely matters, once the surface has settled.
We build from there, depending on what the moment is calling for.
Calls are up to 90 minutes, one-to-one, on live video.
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No. I'm not a therapist and this isn't treatment. Wā is a space for enquiry, for people who want clarity on what they want and where they're going.
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Yes, and perhaps especially so. The people I work with aren't usually in crisis. They're thoughtful, capable, and quietly aware that something, a direction, a question, a long-held idea, is asking for attention.
Curiosity is all you need.
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Te ao Māori, the Māori worldview, holds time, relationship, and the natural world as interconnected.
Wā itself is a Māori word. That orientation shapes how I hold space: unhurried, cyclical, attentive to what's ready to come forward.
You don't need any prior knowledge of it to lean in.
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Because integration matters as much as the conversation.
A fortnight gives you time to sit with what emerged, notice what shifts, and arrive at the next call with something real to bring. Between calls, the communication line is always open.
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A short, free conversation, usually 20 to 30 minutes, where we meet and see whether this feels like the right fit. No obligation. If it's not right, or now isn't the right time, you are free to honour that.
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It's an open space to share and be seen.
Some clients write daily, some not at all, most land somewhere in between.
Logistics, a moment from your day, something that surfaced after our call.
There is no pressure to use it, and no pressure on either of us to respond to everything. It simply stays open.
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Yes: US$2,000 per month over three months, or US$6,000 paid in full.
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7 September 2026, for the next three-month one-to-one experience.
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What started as a three-month break turned into years. It’s much quieter now and whenever I feel like I need some connection or inspiration, I’ll make a call, go to an event, or read a book.
You can watch or listen to the Wā Podcast where I collect stories of inspiring individuals on my travels.