| | | | Dear Guest,
Ever had the feeling that you’ve bitten off more than you can chew?
Sometimes the excitement of a new challenge can be dampened by a sense of overwhelm when reality hits and the ‘to-do list’ gets out of hand.
At the WNA Brisbane North networking breakfast this week, the collective minds around the table put together their top tips for overcoming challenges. And they’re worth sharing:
- Set boundaries.
- Check-in and communicate with your team - and listen, a lot!
- Be prepared to do something different - take a chance.
- If it doesn’t feel right, have the strength to back yourself and take a different path.
- Keep a positive outlook. Have faith in your ability. You can achieve anything you set your mind to.
- If you’re stuck on something, sleep on it. The answer may come (at 3am!).
- Be true to yourself, no matter what.
- You’re always evolving - embrace the change.
- Keep an open mind - there’s something to take away and learn from every experience.
- Trust your gut.
- Don’t be afraid to put yourself and your business first. Be prepared to say ‘no’ and stick to your boundaries.
- Identify the problem. Then ask yourself if it is a problem worth solving. If it is, that’s where the business opportunity lies!
These great tips emerged from casual conversation around the table - perhaps the delightful Dandelion & Driftwood caffeine had kicked in!!! The breakfast was hosted by WNA Member Dr Gail Crossley-Craven (known as Dr C-C!) who, among her many talents working with leadership teams, also shared her favourite productivity tips, which you can read here, or contact Gail directly.
And last night in Sydney and Hobart, WNA Members and guests gathered and shared equally valuable insights. A big WELCOME to the new Members who have joined WNA this month!
Next week we turn the page on April and welcome May! Our theme for the month is “Specialise”. Highlights ahead include our first event for the year in Perth, and a webinar with Dominque Lamb, CEO of National Retail Association, who will share the latest global insights from her recent trip to Rome for the World Retail Congress. If you have a product to sell, you must listen to this session on May 16! Read on for details and the free booking link.
And do let us know if the tips above help you in overcoming your challenges during the week ahead!
With courage and hope,
Cheryl Gray
CEO
| | | | | | WNA and WEConnect International collaboration
As announced recently, WNA has been confirmed as the Australian representative for WEConnect International, a global network that connects women-owned businesses to qualified buyers around the world. You can join a hands-on, live session with WEConnect's support expert Melanie Oliver, who will step you through how to register your business on the global platform FOR FREE!
Registering with WEConnect International allows you to connect with more than 12,000+ women-owned businesses across the globe. And your business profile can be accessed through the WECommunity platform by member buyers, certified Women’s Business Enterprises and other WEConnect International-registered businesses and organisations.
If you'd like to take advantage of this step-by-step walkthrough on how to register your business, email the WNA Team and we will forward a Zoom link for one of the following sessions: - Wednesday 11 May, 4pm-5pm AEST
- Wednesday 25 May, 4pm-5pm AEST (Q&A on WEConnect certification).
Incentivise with WNA Member offers
Great to see more WNA Members sharing special offers via the WNA Facebook Group as part of our "Incentivise" theme this month.
Don't forget, WNA Members can login to the WNA Website and browse our Member Directory to take advantage of many special offers and deals. If it's been a while since you updated your profile, now is the time - and why not consider a fresh incentive offer to share with your WNA colleagues. Need help accessing your Member login? Email WNA for assistance.
For more Member Incentives, check out the WNA Facebook Group where you can also post your own offer to Incentivise during April!
Our theme for May is "Specialise" so stay tuned for tips on how to connect with your business Superpower! | | | | WNA is proud to support Jo Sainsbury of Kickass Women in her Dancing CEOs campaign. Jo is aiming for the stars and has just launched an online raffle with some incredible prizes up for grabs! All funds raised go directly towards her Dancing CEOs tally and support WLSQ and their work helping women and children escaping domestic violence situations. Get your tickets today and go in the draw to win a stunning Diamond and Ruby Rose Ring from Ruby Red Jewellery, 4 tickets to White on Whitehaven Long Lunch, an Empowering Women Portrait Experience from Mel Watt Photography and more! Click here to enter! | | | | | | Join our conversation with National Retail Association CEO Dominique Lamb who will discuss her recent trip to Rome for the World Retail Congress. Learn about the rise of the conscious consumer, how customers place more trust in retailers as leaders, and the latest best practice insights from global retailers. If you’ve got something to sell, you need to listen to this! Click here to register for free. | | | | News from Queensland
****GRANTS ALERT**** Get ready for this one... The next round of the Queensland Business Basics grants program will open at 9am on Wednesday 4 May 2022. These grants offer $5,000 to eligible new or emerging businesses to improve their operations, such as upgrading websites, improving skills or adopting best practice. Program guidelines and other information is available from the Business Queensland website to assist businesses to check their eligibility and gather materials needed to submit an application. The schedule for upcoming grant rounds of the Business Growth Fund and Business Boost has also been updated. | | OTHER QUEENSLAND EVENTS - Supporting our Charity of Choice and Charity Partners Conversations with Carers
The Carers Foundation Australia will hold the first in its "Who Cares? Conversations" series at the Samford Community Hub on Wednesday 11 May, 9:30am-11:30am. The inaugural speaker is Geraldine (Geri) Munnich, who is familiar to many of the WNA Brisbane members. Event information and bookings here.
And don't forget the "Who Cares? Luncheon" on Friday 17 June - a major fundraising event for The Carers Foundation Australia featuring great entertainment and much more. Event information and bookings here.
Mind Your Fashion at the Races Racegoers have an even better reason to attend the Brisbane Racing Club's Stradbroke Season High Tea on Friday 13 May, 10:30am-1:30pm. A portion of ticket sales and proceed from raffles will go to Mind Your Fashion, raising awareness of mental health in fashion and creative industries. Event information and bookings here.
Dancing CEOs - Tickets available WNA Member Jo Sainsbury has been polishing her pink steel capped boots in readiness for her debut at Dancing CEOs on 21 May, at Brisbane City Hall. Check out her groovy moves here. Our WNA table at the Dancing CEOs event is fully booked, however Mezzanine tickets are available here at a cost of $150 for a five-hour canape and beverage package. Mezzanine guests cheering for Jo will be seated together – so you can really raise the roof and have Jo win the People’s Choice Award on the evening! Also, Women's Legal Service is seeking volunteer helpers for the event. You can apply to volunteer here. | | | |
News from Victoria Having just hosted the largest weekend sporting event in Melbourne’s history, attracting more than 400,000 attendees for the Formula 1® weekend, and with the announcement of the 2026 Commonwealth Games coming to Victoria, there are plenty of opportunities on the horizon for business in Melbourne.
Around 35% of Australian businesses are owned by women. The growth opportunities are being taken up – slowly - which is why Women’s Network Australia has joined the call for all levels of government to engage women business owners and look to them to provide essential products and services in the lead-up to major events, such as the Commonwealth Games.
As part of this discussion, we are pleased to host the Lord Mayor of Melbourne, Sally Capp, as we explore opportunities for business in Victoria. Sally Capp was re-elected Lord Mayor of Melbourne in October 2020 after having previously been elected in May 2018 and is the first woman to be directly elected as Lord Mayor.
Find out more about this upcoming event at the Hellenic Museum by clicking here.
| | | | | | News from New South Wales | | WNA is back in Sydney! That was the resounding declaration following last night's event at Shell House, in the CBD. We were pleased to welcome some new faces, and long-term members including Dimitra Mersinia, whose dozen years as part of WNA have helped to support her business growth and change.
Thanks also to Kristina Coyne, who made the trip from Canberra - for the company and because Shell House is a special place for her as her grandmother worked there for many years from 1947 after receiving special approval to work even though she was a married (actually widowed) woman!
We are looking forward to the next event already. Our Ambassador Leanne Elich will host a special lunch next month for Queensland Member and Family & Criminal Law specialist, Kelli Martin. Register your interest in attending this event here. And we will be at Sydney Build on 2 June for the Women in Construction networking event. Free entry tickets are currently available. Email the WNA team for further information.
If you live outside of Sydney and would like to host a coffee catch-up in your area, please contact us.
National Retail EXPO Also coming up in Sydney is the National Retail EXPO. The goal of this event is to bring retailers of all sizes from across Australia together to provide thought leadership, retail solutions, and look to the future of the industry. We want to provoke discussion about the future of retail, and to have this event become an annual calendar highlight. You can see more about the speakers and the agenda for the day at https://nra.swoogo.com/nrxpo/. Click below for tickets.
| | | | | | Thank you to Jo Bigg for sharing a part of your story at our Hobart event last night. We understand that it was a giant step in the healing of deep scares and also the springboard for fundamental change and transformation in may lives. Our members spoke of being privileged to be in a room where a strong, brave and inspirational woman allowed herself to be vulnerable, exposed and totally outside of her comfort zone. Thank you for taking this leap and inspiring our members, Jo! | | | | News from South Australia ***HELP WANTED*** We are looking for hosts for networking events in Adelaide. Interested? Email the WNA team for further details.
SA Grants News For information on SA grants and financial incentives for business owners, including COVID recovery grants, bookmark this site.
The closing date for applications to the Small Business Assistance Grant - December 2021 has been extended to 31 May 2022. This grant provides support to eligible small businesses in the hospitality, event, creative and performing arts sectors that sustained financial impacts over the festive season restriction period between 23 December 2021 to 4 January 2022. Businesses that meet the criteria may be eligible for payments of up to $12,500 ($4,400 for non-employing sole traders). Check the eligibility details and apply here.
News from Western Australia ***EVENT ALERT*** Join experienced Board Director, author and former senior public servant of Western Australia and Queensland, Lesley van Schoubroeck for Coffee and Conversation on Thursday 26 May from 9:30am about leadership, governance and wine! Having undertaken strategic policy reform and planning across governments, and in the mental health sector, Lesley reflects on how to create change and deliver better outcomes for communities. As WNA returns to live events in Perth, join Lesley and our Ambassador Marianne Rom for a buy-your-own coffee session, and rekindle your network. Register today and buy-your-own coffee on the day! News from the Northern Territory For information on Northern Territory Government grants and financial incentives for business owners, add this link to your bookmarks.
News from the ACT
***EVENT ALERT*** We will be holding a networking evening in Canberra in mid-May. Stay tuned for details, or email us to confirm your interest in attending.
| | | | | | Recommended reads for April Our three WNA Business Book Club titles for April are: This week, guest book reviewer Sue Lester tells us about "Level Up: How Managers Learn To Do Less And Be More" by Maree Burgess. Read her review below. | | “Level Up: How Managers Learn To Do Less And Be More” by Maree Burgess Reader review by Sue Lester (www.SueLester.com) It’s always a great sign when reading a professional development book to have clients and friends pop into my head. That definitely happened while I was reading Maree Burgess’s “Level Up: How Managers Learn To Do Less And Be More”. Burgess’s book is a lifeline to all those whose excellent work “on the tools” has been rewarded with a promotion into management, often the only way to get off the pay plateau. New managers are too often then left alone, battling Imposter Syndrome, and floundering with managing their team, either micromanaging or being too hands off. Very few are “born managers”, even less are “born leaders” so giving yourself (and those you are mentoring or leading) permission to learn, to understand how to think at a different pay grade, is essential for growth and sanity.
Read the full review HERE. | | | | Our good friends at Dymocks Brisbane have some fantastic author events coming up. On 6 May (6-7pm) at the Brisbane Square Library, join Isabelle, Kerry and Emmie Silbery (hilarious three generations from Goggle Box) in conversation with author and journalist Frances Whiting. On 11 May, join Lisa Curry as she discusses her funny, heart-warming but always life-affirming memoir and reflects on a life well-lived and the experiences that shaped her in this special event. These events are free, but bookings are essential. Book here. | | | | What would you like to read about in The Friday File? We love your feedback. Tell us what you'd like to read about in future editions of The Friday File by emailing us at admin@womensnetwork.com.au
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