I’m going all the way back to the beginning but I promise to summarise because who has time to read my life story! After graduating from University in Auckland, New Zealand, I found myself looking for a job. Having had a few casual roles in Auckland (my home town), I decided to cast the net a little wider and search for jobs in Australia. What did I have to lose! I was 21 years old and an overseas adventure sounded exciting. I was definitely naive at that point and thought I would never land a job in Aus so what’s the harm in trying.
And then of course I did! I applied for a publishing assistant position with an up and coming Entrepreneur in Sydney called Dale Beaumont and much to my surprise I landed the role. So much to my parents dismay, I packed my bags two weeks later and moved to Sydney. I told my heartbroken parents that I would stay for 1 year, give it a good shot and then come home. Unfortunately for them, that was nearly 20 years ago and I still live in Aus.
Throughout my career, I moved from publishing to running one of Australia’s largest business education companies called Business Blueprint. I continued to work with Dale during this time for 14 years, eventually becoming his General Manager. As I am sure you can imagine, working for an Entrepreneur for that long meant I learnt A LOT! And I am happy to say, I had a ball the entire time.
We ended up running large events for business owners and entrepreneurs across Australia and New Zealand. I was surrounded by incredible business people who taught me so much. And I was often asked, “when will you start your own business”?
Truthly, I didn’t think that was ever in the cards for me. You see, I enjoy being in the background. I’ve always loved supporting others and being behind the scenes. But after 14 years, my biggest challenge (and greatest achievement) was born – my daughter Coco. And as cliche as it sounds, everything changed (and I don’t just mean I haven’t had a full night’s sleep since that day 4 years ago).
I’ve enjoyed some incredible roles since leaving Business Blueprint, including working for my chosen charity, Hands Across the Water. But lately I started thinking – what am I going to create for Coco’s future? And what does working look like for me while trying to be the best Mum I can be.
Enter Tier One! Over the years of running events, I’ve met some incredible Speakers. I truly believe the right speaker can bring an entire conference or event to life. I’ve sat in the audience and been so inspired by speakers. I’ve seen the reaction from audiences when a Keynote Speaker sparks something inside of them. I’ve watched their faces when an idea has changed the course of their business. And I’ve admired Speakers and their incredible skill from afar for years. So when the opportunity presented itself to manage some of these Speakers that I’ve admired for so long, it took me about 1 minute to decide that this was the next move for me. Shout out to Amanda Stevens and Chris Helder for workshopping this idea with me and believing in me from day 1!
Having personally watched over 500 speakers throughout my career, I feel I can genuinely say what makes an incredible speaker versus what makes an ok speaker. And so my vision for Tier One was to represent a handful of Australia’s best speakers, and I am so proud that this vision has come to life.
Now I get to do what I love, surrounded by incredible people, all while being the best Mum I can to our little girl. Starting a business is no joke! I’ve always known that, but experiencing it myself has taken that to a new level. But when times get tough, or the challenges seem greater than I can manage, I keep reminding myself – this is for Coco. I want to teach her that she can achieve anything, no matter if it feels big or looks scary.
So now this journey officially begins. Not to turn this into an Oscars speech but I want to thank the seven speakers that have started this journey with me. Your support means the world to me and I feel so incredibly lucky that I get to work with you and your teams.
The future looks bright and I couldn’t be more excited.