Leadership’s a funny thing

Leadership is a funny thing. You don’t need to be a Leader to be a ‘leader’.

Sometimes you don’t know it’s being done well until it’s not there any more. Sometimes you don’t know you’re leading because you’re ‘just doing your job’. And sometimes leadership comes from unexpected quarters because someone has an opportunity to show what they are capable of.

On Twitter, Brendan from Mallacoota, who is sending out information by live tweeting, is an interesting example of an unexpected community leader now representing his community in international media. However, we do have certain expectations of our elected and paid Leaders.

We expect compassion, empathy, decisions and action.  We expect them to be there. In some way at least.

Forgetting about climate change as a hot button topic for a moment, the actions of the PM can barely be seen as leadership. Not when the country is burning, and the deaths are mounting. Not when people need some hope. No matter what’s going on behind the scenes, he’s been absent.

Sure, as a country we need someone to blame for this horrific situation.  That’s very Australian, and in emotional times, that’s understandable. Rest assured the fingers of that blame will spread once the response for the fires is more controlled, and community and media have time to question more fully what’s occurred. But if you’re not there, physically present, you can’t feel it and you can’t see it.

The PM’s flippant comment about not picking up a fire hose is nonetheless correct. In an operational sense, you don’t want interference. But in my experience, feeling and hearing what’s happening on the ground and what people need is one of the best ways to be informed.

You have to pick your time. I’ve seen it done brilliantly during the Hazelwood Mine Fire in 2014, and the Wye River/ Kennett River fires in 2015 with the former Emergency Management Commissioner. Currently, the RFS Commissioner is, day after day, seen to be operationally present at State level and on the ground in New South Wales.

Victoria’s Premier and Minister Emergency Services are seen to be steady, informed and interested. The insights they gain will help further inform the decisions they are being asked to make by government agencies, departments and communities.  At a more basic level, communities can see they are listening.

I’ve seen the media clips with the PM being abused on the ground. His interest is too late and these communities feel betrayed. It doesn’t feel authentic and Aussies hate that.  You must be authentic and know what you’re talking about. Now more than ever, our leaders across the nation have to rally behind our communities and show a collective, united and genuine leadership.  Our communities need it. And they won’t stop needing it for a very long time now.

https://www.smh.com.au/national/people-are-looking-for-someone-to-blame-and-right-now-the-pm-s-their-sights-20200102-p53obw.html

/0 Comments/by

What will be new about this New Year?

This New Year’s Eve I strolled down my inner Melbourne suburban main street for a casual dinner with friends. And I was grateful I could. I’m grateful for my year, for my Christmas, my home and my family. I’m holding onto that gratitude with both hands knowing that others are fighting for those very things, with no other option but to.

‘With half the nation burning it doesn’t feel very festive’, my friend rightly observed of New Years.
It didn’t. It doesn’t. I’ve been glued to social media for the past week/s reading as many updates as I can about what our communities are facing, not just about Victoria but New South Wales, South Australia and Queensland. For me, their losses are triggering. For them, it’s devastating over and over.

To think that despite systems and information, despite plans and resources, often it comes down to human nature and Mother Nature. There’s only so much you can control in the moment, only so much you can do in the moment.
Voraciously reading stories of terror and of bravery, of loss and of hope, of continuing flames and exhaustion, of togetherness and blame, this is an Australia we’ve seen glimpses of before, peeking out from previous fire seasons and summers across the state, the nation and the world.

But not like this. The anger in the fires, in those hungry flames seems beyond anything that should be endured with no real end in sight. It feels dramatic. It is dramatic. These moments are very real. No matter how we got here, it should be a rallying time with little thought to politics and pettiness. It should be about people, of doing everything possible now in this moment to help them help themselves.

The media are telling their story; community members are also telling their own. It’s hard to brush aside the hate and the opportunists in social media to get to the heart of what the community and the emergency management personnel are going through. There’s enough time for more blame. We’ve seen it before and it will come again, rightly or wrongly. It’s right to ask questions about how we get out of this. It’s right to ask how we mitigate the chance of being here again.

There are people with answers – that’s not me. Like many, I just have opinions.
But it’s not right to accept that this is the new normal. Based on that, it’s not right to change nothing and to wait for it to happen again. It’s not right to admit defeat. Our communities – those who have lost and those who may still lose – deserve better than that. This New Year must bring something better for them.  And for us.

/0 Comments/by

Going Down The Tech Rabbithole

Tech start-up Third Aurora has a little something special on the market with an augmented reality App testing the boundaries of technology with more than 500 wineries from across the world so far.

Winerytale takes a real wine bottle and via a smartphone app displays the winemaker’s own video, audio, images, text and sound to create a rich and memorable experience.

Capitalising on the augmented reality boom, the Geelong and USA based entrepreneurs have big plans and a lot of talent as well as 500 plus wineries on board current field trials pushing technological and enterprise boundaries.

The technology behind the Winerytale App is designed to work on any wine label, using artificial intelligence (AI) to scan and recognise labels, and augmented reality (AR) to showcase the wine’s backstory by beaming it from an imaginary space inside the bottle.

The platform is purpose built for mass adoption and accessibility to any winery wanting to take advantage of a brand marketing and sales future that will undeniably involve augmented reality.

It’s a bit mind boggling and a lot fascinating seeing it in action.

App Managing Director and Co-Founder of Third Aurora Dave Chaffey brought me on board a few weeks ago to talk through the strategic communication and content development needs for Winerytale.

Though I didn’t know my AI from my AR at first, it’s been a pleasure to go down the technology and marketing rabbithole and come back up with strong messaging and successful industry-focussed media takeup.

Understanding business objectives and pulling apart and strategizing communication and content needs aligned with that is one of my favourite things to do.   Best of all is the chance to learn new things alongside digital marketing gurus. It’s been incredible to be involved close to the ground up of a talented new business testing products with possibly unlimited potential in the right markets.

/0 Comments/by

Working With a New Client

I may have extensive experience in internal and external stakeholders, but as I explore my new hustle as a small business owner of a boutique communications agency, building and maintaining relationships with new – and existing – clients takes on a vital note.

What’s important to me is what’s important to them. I listen, ask questions, pull things apart in my mind and put them back together again before settling on what the job is.

What is needed is not always what a client is prepared to commit to, and I find it important to be clear about the output, and the potential outcome while being respectful of how deep someone wants to go.

I’m an options person, a problem solver and a thrifty Virgo and so far I have found a way to deliver winning outcomes within set parameters.

Judged by feedback, direct sales, media take up, brand awareness and statistics. But most of all, judged by the ability to have tough conversations, have a laugh, celebrate the wins and catch up over a coffee.

/0 Comments/by

Business Owner Marisa Just Believes

Marisa Lawlor owns Just Believe Fit, a Thornbury boutique wellness studio focusing on yoga, pilates and strength conditioning. Spring coming in to summer is traditionally the time when people turn their mind to fitness, staggering out of hibernating Winter.

Marisa is in the process of ramping up her business social media marketing, but she’s been warming up with a few special features you might not necessarily associate with yoga.

She’s just finished a ten-video special with the theme of “Time Poor Move More”, focusing on how people can move their bodies in everyday ways.  In the social media videos we used humour and practicality in encouraging members and potential members to do moves including the ‘toilet tic tok’ and ‘shower and stretch’.

Additionally, her Friday night “Sip and Stretch” class is a collaboration with Bespoke Wines and Spirits, where a glass of wine is supplied for a gold coin donation and attendees get a special price for the wines featured at Bespoke.

“Not your normal type of class maybe,” Marisa says.

“But at the end of a week on a Friday, our members get an amazing, professional stretch class and a glass of wine that no doubts helps relax work-weary muscles.”

I’ll declare here I have been to the class and it’s quickly becoming a favourite. End of week wellness, and a great community and caring feel to it.

Justbelievefit.com.au

Find Your Story. Be Your story. The Art of Why.

/0 Comments/by

When Busyness is What Small Business Needs

In talking to several small businesses in the last few months, it seems the winter months can sometimes be difficult to entice people out of their homes and busy lives and into the local stores and businesses.

As a rabid consumer myself I know the reasons that consumers buy into particular goods and services are varied; the convenience, the customer service, the feeling they get when they walk in/engage/leave, the alignment with values, and products that please and continue to be attractive.  In small business this is even more important, as the service comes down to personal and personality.

I’ve been working and interacting with a number of small businesses in a Thornbury shopping strip and I’m impressed by their business acumen and ability to diversify and adapt.

Phil Gray at Bespoke Wines and Spirits, Marisa Lawlor at Just Believe Fit and Grazia Cavallin at Lola Lovey Gifts all have an interesting story to tell.   My role with each was in developing content and the right fit for their social media channels and linking it with their marketing and business development strategies.

Find Your Story. Be Your story. The Art of Why.

/0 Comments/by