Borne out of personal need to connect with women in an inspirational, aspirational and motivational way, I established IT STARTS WITH US as an event business that curates amazing speakers who share their stories with the ISWU community. My business journey has been a relatively short one but during this time I have been absolutely overwhelmed by the beautiful connections that I’ve made with women from across Australia.

Your It Starts With Us program is an amazing initiative for school aged girls, tell us a bit about it! 

I’ve been a teacher for over ten years now and whilst I believe educators do an incredible job within the classroom I really believe that we have a duty to encourage our students to be involved in the ‘world’. After running a few ISWU events for adult women, I was fortunate enough to be given the opportunity by my current School Principal to run DARE TO DREAM for our female students.

D2D has become an annual event on our school calendar. The girls come together and listen to women, from varied industries, talk about their strategies, challenges, experiences, highlights in their personal and business lives.

What is your favourite part about running events for both young and adult women? 

I always make a point of taking a moment during the event to ‘feel’ the buzz. Nothing beats seeing a wonderful community come together with a shared purpose and knowing that it was my vision that brought some sparkle into their lives.

My next event will be held on Saturday 13^th October in Brisbane – I haven’t revealed the details of the event yet but it’s going to be a beauty!

How important is it for girls to build skills outside of the classroom? 

We live in a fast paced world where technology and industries are changing faster than the curriculum. It is vital for young women to have access to mentors and ideas that can set them up for their future.

Having said that, curriculum is still relevant – literacy, numeracy and problem solving will always be the foundation upon which pathways can be forged.

What’s your number one tip for investing in your own personal development?

My tip is to actually INVEST in it. Something I’ve noticed since starting ISWU is that mothers have SO much guilt. Mums tend to prioritise everyone else around them so spending money on themselves is a definite source of (extra!) guilt. My theory is that if you’re not feeling amazing about yourself, you’ll be better able to serve the people around you.

How long have you been in the teaching profession for?

I’ve been teaching since 2009. I taught for three years in the Queensland State system and then moved to my current school. I’ve taught across years and am currently year 8 coordinator.

Best part of being a High-School teacher?

The best part of being a high school teacher is definitely working with so many different students. I love watching growth and development. Nothing is better than returning student work that rewards their effort and consistency.

Favourite quote?

My favourite quote comes from a lady I saw speak at a leadership summit. She was a mum of three, a decorated police officer, a university lecturer, speaker and the list continued! Anyway, she spoke at length about her career and eventually got to the punch line of the 40 minute speech “the skirting boards can wait”. I try to keep things in perspective and the skirting boards now often do wait.

What was your first job?

My first job was at the local fast food chicken shop. My mum was super keen for me to ‘get experience with the interview process’ and more or less forced me to apply. I was devastated when the manager took my resume and (without even looking at it!) offered me the job! It took me the next 12 months to break up with the job!

Favourite book?

The question of favourite book is a toughie. So, my all-time classic favourite is Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird. Followed VERY closely by Tim Winton’s Cloudstreet.

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