ISSUE 4
COVER WOMAN
Lisa COX
Disability diversity.
ALWAYS WAS, ALWAYS WILL BE Meet Artist and Advocate, Kiya Watt
Cancer warrior
Emily has survived cancer. Not once, not twice but three times.
loss Love and intuition
Lauren's life after stillbirth.
And loads more.
ISSUE
THE
LAUREN OLIVER
LISA COX 06
28
EM
LAUREN SAMUELS | 10
| 22 ERS SOM ILY
JO Niall | 26
ERIN DUNCAN | 34
K IYA W
BRIONY
BENJAMIN | 32
od o re w
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| 14
18
AT T 38
KRISTY DINUZZO
cla
To be a woman, is to be inherently brave. THIS issue is dedicated to all women.
04 Bravely, be you.
EDITORIAL AND OUR CREW
06 Disabilty diversity.
LISA COX, DISABILITY ADVOCATE
10 Loss, Love & Intuition.
LAUREN SAMUELS, THE VIBE TRIBE
14 Always was, always will be.
KIYA WATT, ABORIGINAL ARTIST AND ADVOCATE
18 Money Mindset.
CLARE WOOD, MONEY MENTOR AND COACH
22 Cancer Warrior.
EMILY SOMERS, BRAVERY CO
26 Big message in a bottle.
JO NIALL, BOOB LOOB
28 Self care saves.
LAUREN OLIVER, MUMS WHO WINE
32 Life is tough, but so are you. BRIONY BENJAMIN, AUTHOR
34 100 bad paintings.
ERIN DUNCAN, ILLUSTRATOR
38 The Startup Sisterhood
KRISTY DINUZZO, THE STARTUP SISTERHOOD
bravely, BE YOU.
Being brave isn’t always dramatic. We can be brave every day without risking life and limb. Doing anything, big or small, outside of your comfort zone takes bravery. • Asking for help when you need it • Booking that doctor’s appointment because you are not okay • Standing up for what you believe in • Walking up to and talking to someone • Enforcing a boundary in your life • Going out when you would rather stay in • Staying in when you’ve been asked to go out • Owning your actions • Starting a business and backing yourself. The thing about these brave acts is - they never feel brave while we are doing them; instead, they feel scary, painful, necessary, overwhelming… anything but brave. But at the heart of every brave decision, is love. Loving ourselves enough to do what is right; regardless of the outcome, opinion, risk, or failure. Congratulations on your everyday bravery.
Welcome to Issue Four, “The Brave Issue”. ROWENA PREDDY
FOUNDER | DESIGNER | EDITOR
THE CREW Rowena Preddy |
DESIGNER, EDITOR, PODCASTER
Being head branding guru and magazine designer at Preddy Creative means wearing many hats, but my bravest moment in the last few years meant embracing what was under the hat and hair dye.
"Since unearthing my natural sparkles and highlights in all their glory, I have felt more me. Free from societies expectations and social norms. I love that it has inspired others around me to do the same. #greyandproud"
Kim Darby |
COPYWRITER AND SUB-EDITOR
Kim is a bonafide hand-on-heart-passionate-as-heck advocate for all things sisterhood, girl power and female empowerment.
"Bravery to me is when I acknowledge the fear, accept it and trust myself to make a conscious choice to move past it; because I know anything worth pursuing in life, exists on the other side of that fear."
Dominika Łazdowska |
WEB DESIGNER
Over at DoaLoa Design, Dominika focuses on working with and empowering female entrepreneurs by helping them build strong brands and effective websites.
"Being brave means saying NO to your mind's negative whispers and listening to your intuition. You already know what you are capable of!"
Disability DIVERSITY
6
Lisa Cox is a multi-awarded writer, presenter and consultant based in Australia. She is also the author of two books, an advocate and ambassador. She is on a mission to muse, educate and challenge. How did you come to be so passionate about the misrepresentations of disability in society today? I grew up here in Brissy in Australia, went to university, got my two degrees - Business Communications and Media - then started working in advertising agencies. Then, after a couple of years, unexpectedly at Melbourne airport one morning I had a brain hemorrhage. I was in a coma for three weeks, on life support for two months and in hospital for over a year. During that first year, I had my left leg, right toes and nine fingertips amputated, heart surgery. And then all of my invisible disabilities or permanent brain injuries; I'm over 25% blind, my speech has been impacted, my memory is terrible. I’m a bit wobbly on my feet so I use a wheelchair full time as well as my prosthetic leg. I've also got anxiety and PTSD. After all of that, I thought there is a way to combine my professional background with my lived experience. So these days I work in media and advertising as a, I suppose, a disability consultant. I work with brands and businesses and teach them or show them how to include disability better in their content and how to understand those nuances better. Sometimes that's in the fashion industry, sometimes that's in advertising or marketing. It's in a whole variety of ways. And of course, I still write. 7
How do you see that fashion can be leveraged to start to showcase this change that you want for the world? I chose fashion because despite all of our differences, be they skin color or ability or gender, fashion is so universal - we all use it, we all own it in some way. And it certainly is something that sets trends. I'm not saying the inclusion or representation of disability is a trend. But I certainly hope that it can be a trend that is a forever thing.
What are your hopes for a future where disability is more represented in the fashion industry? I would really love to see disability included. There are still special agencies just for disabled models as mainstream modeling agencies will not include disabled models. That's not true inclusivity. I would absolutely love it if inclusivity was prevalent on the catwalk and in newspapers. Disability is being represented in Australia, yes, but I’d love for it to be normalised and not be a big deal.
You've been celebrated as a body positive influencer. What shifts have you noticed in mainstream media within the body positivity space?
y at positivit y d o b t abou e. message and mor e s h ie t it g il in b ges, a Spread hapes, a s , s e iz s all
It has been generally positive. And so much of that has been to do with social media. For the first time, women have had control over setting their own narrative and have been able to put our own stories out there; and take photos of our own bodies, our own cellulite, or our own tummy rolls. We're seeing real bodies that haven’t been retouched and edited.
8
What can we do in our everyday lives to really start to understand disability more? Go into it with an open mind of, “I don't have all the answers, but I want to learn”. A curiosity. I used to be that person without disabilities who was terrified of putting a foot wrong. I was wanting to do better and genuinely wanting to educate myself, but shit I was scared, tiptoeing around. I would hate for anyone to be tiptoeing around me. What does brave mean to you? It's not the really big, big things with explosions or wrestling a crocodile. That doesn't have to be the brave thing. Sometimes it's just texting back, “No” when a friend asks, “Is everything okay?”. That can be the biggest act of bravery for someone that week.
click
HERE
Want to hear more? Click to listen to Lisa's podcast.
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www.lisacox.co
LOSS love INTUITION Through her own personal journey of losing her full term daughter to stillbirth, Lauren started her own high vibes marketing agency that embraces her life and family values.
10
Would you mind telling us a little bit about Laylah? So my first born, she was stillborn at 37 weeks. She has definitely shaped a lot of who I am; how I do things, how I see things and why I run the business the way I do. She was our first child. I had a really normal pregnancy. I was feeling great. All my checkups were normal, everything was by the book. I had finished up at work. I was on maternity leave. I was done. I was at the end. I had a hospital bag packed. I had a nursery all set out. Everything was done. I had a busy day as I'd been out and about and doing the last minute things waddling around the shopping centres. I remember coming home and just thinking, “Oh, it hasn't been as much movement as normal”. As the night went on, it was just playing on our minds. So my husband took me to the hospital. The rest from there was a bit of a blur. They called my obstetrician at 3am and he came in completely disheveled and I'm like if he’s here, it's not good. Then they told us they couldn't find her heartbeat and that we lost her.
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What advice do you have for anyone that finds themselves in a situation where they have to support someone through this? I've had other people that I've known experience loss like this, and even I was like - Oh my gosh, how can I reach out? What can I do? Naturally, people don't want to make you more upset. So often, they'll avoid talking about her or avoid using her name. And it's probably the opposite. I do talk about her all the time and refer to her and that she's got two little sisters. Not to be worried about talking about it would be one thing, because whether you say something or not, it's always in our head. We're always thinking about them. You are big on intuition. What tips do you have for people to follow theirs? When you are starting out you don't want to upset anyone - you go with the flow of it, you're trying to build. It's hard to trust it. But The Universe is only showing you the right way. It's not trying to lead you up the garden path. If you listen to it, it's gonna be for the good. A lot of times intuition can be referred to in terms of guiding you from something bad, but I also love that it's for the good.
100%
Your track record for getting through hard days is
How they can make themselves shine out against a world of ‘same same’? We are about surprising and delighting people and those outside of the box ideas. We often sit down and think - How can we just do this a bit differently? How can it be more impactful? Bravery plays into that a lot and across everything, whether it's life or business. It’s not business to business anymore. It's human to human. What would you say to people wanting to feel more brave? Your track record for getting through hard days is 100%. Bravery is getting through the tough days when you don't think you can.
click
HERE
Want to hear more? Click to listen to Lauren's podcast.
www.thevibetribe.com.au
14
ALWAYS WAS, ALWAYS WILL B
Kiya’s passion for family, art and culture is what drives her. She is loudly and proudly vocal about the issue’s impacting First Nations people.
In an ideal world, what would you like to see happen to Australia Day? I feel like changing the date can seem like such a surface level achievement. I want to see systemic change, I want to see government policies be removed. And I want a real commitment to the governance and the policies in place that put us at a disadvantage that are still oppressing us, as First Nation people. I am very vocal about many, many kinds of issues impacting us. Why I stand so heavily behind this is because it comes down to the first of our ancestors who were fighting - and we're continuing on with that fight and trying to make change in a holistic way, not just with one instance - we want a holistic change within the whole society and the Australian system. 15
What are your hopes for reconciliation in Australia, in the near future? For us [First Nations People] to be in leadership positions with Blak perspectives to be incorporated into the whole system, down to the curriculums. I want my children to grow up, feeling like their culture matters. I want my children to be able to go to school and feel proud of themselves and know that their languages are being celebrated and learnt. NAIDOC and Reconciliation week to be incorporated into the curriculum, but also within every system, even in politics. I want Aboriginal people to have their own political party. I want us to be able to lead in so many different avenues so that we can make real change and that our voices are heard.
You are a toy on Playschool. I did the artwork for her. When they released her they asked a few questions about my culture. They really wanted to represent that we all have our own cultural identities. I love the pride being instilled into young Blak kids and babies, just knowing that the whole of Australia loves you and appreciates our own significant culture and our cultural identities. Playschool is committed to bringing Blak perspectives into their shows. They understand the platform they have, and I'm so proud to have been able to work with them. 16
What would you say is your biggest driver? The importance of being a leader and not giving up so that other Blak children are inspired and can see that it can happen - Blak leadership is possible. I have three proud Mineng children myself, so I want them to always see me reaching for my full potential and demanding respect and honor for my culture.
This year's NAIDOC theme is ‘Heal Country’. My family have a lot of sacred places that need to be protected. The message can't just be a tokenistic “heal country”. Mining companies are blowing up sacred places all over Australia. This theme is asking for commitment from people in positions of power to be able to make change, to engage with Aboriginal communities and elders and make sure that these sacred places are being protected.
What does brave mean to you? Being your authentic self, no matter how uncomfortable others make you feel about it, and just standing true to who you are, as a person, no matter white or black. Just being authentic to your belief system, to me, is the best way to live.
click
HERE
Want to hear more? Click to listen to Kiya's podcast episode.
www.kiyawatt.com.au 17
money mindset
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Clare is a business coach and a money mentor. She’s a numbers nerd (a CPA even), a wrangler of two boys, a drinker of wine, a gym junkie, a wanderluster and a podcaster with a reality TV addiction. She loves empowering entrepreneurs to manage their mindset and make more money. What are some of the biggest money fears that have held you back? In my early stages of business, I wouldn't spend money on anything. My accounting brain was like, “keep your costs low”. A big shift for me was that I started to look at my peers around me, who were doing massive things, watching people having $100,000 launches and making half a million dollars. And I was like, Why are they doing so much better than me? What are they doing? I realised that they're spending $5,000 on that course, they've got this beautiful new website. Or they've invested with this program. And I just realized I can either stay stuck here in my old stories around keeping my costs low and not spending a cent on anything, or I can go, Well, this seems to be working for other people, maybe I need to start investing in my business.
freedom, fun
and impact Mindset practices such as meditation and journaling can be a big part of your journey. Investing can be scary as a small business owner. Everyone's got a different appetite for risk. Everyone's got a different capacity. When you are investing, do it firstly, from an expansive, energetic state, rather than “this has got to be the thing that saves me”. Asking yourself, Can I afford this? Why am I doing this? Do I need this? What does the result look like? Investing is always going to be uncomfortable. The way that I do this is by combining the mindset side with the practical money side.
To me, I use them as tools. I find the tools that really support me and incorporate them into my everyday life. There's heaps of fantastic ways that you can bring spaciousness and abundance and gratefulness into your life. It really is about finding practices that work for you. Meditation has been a life changer for me in so many ways in terms of attracting the results that I desire in my business, but also in reducing anxiety and stress. It's got so many benefits.
You share your business ups and downs with your audience. I share the challenges that I've been through, because I want to normalize that it's not all sunshine and rainbows. I share things from a perspective of trying to help others. Something that I do when I'm having a challenging time is, I keep it to myself; until I've got through it, figured out the lesson, navigated through. And then when I share it with my audience, I try to do it in a way of, “This really sucked. But here's what I got out of it”. Or, “This really sucked, but here’s how you can make sure that you don't do that”.
What is your message for those who are experiencing money blocks and how they can move themselves past that? The first step is identifying what stories are coming up and then literally just saying to yourself, “Wow, that's a limiting belief” or “Wow, I need to do some work on my money in that space”. Then start to rewrite the story differently. What could this look like in a different situation? What could it look like, if I price things differently, if I had a new team member, if I did a course, if I did a program? Rewrite that story and create a new one. 21
click
HERE
Want to hear more? Click to listen to Clare's podcast episode.
www.clarewood.com
Bravery Co. was born to a girl called Emily. A dreamer and a traveller, a collector and a designer, she spent her days as an Art Director in a bubble of colour and happiness. Then she got sick. Real sick. She got cancer. Not once, not twice but three times. And do you know what, she beat it. Not once, not twice but three times
Cancer WARRIOR
22
Why did you start Bravery Co? When I lost my hair the second time,I was really sick of wearing my wig. I was Google searching; chemo headwear, cancer headwear and the brands and the styles that were popping up were so daggy and bland. At the age of 26, I didn't want these scarves that screamed ‘cancer patient’. So I started playing around with head scarves. And like a good art director, I made a big Pinterest board with beautiful 1930s and 1940s Hollywood kind of girls wearing turbans and also amazing African women wearing their huge bright,bold, colourful turbans. I jumped on to YouTube and sat there for hours and taught myself how to tie lots of knots and ties and twists and turbans. It was when I started wearing the scarves I made that I felt more like myself. I didn't feel like a cancer patient. I felt like someone that was wanting to wear the scarf because it looked bloody cool and then I started getting compliments from people. The girls in the chemo ward asked me to teach them how to tie the headscarf; I can remember a lady that I helped and it was so quick and so simple to teach her how to tie it in a really fun, fashionable way. Not a cancer patient way. You could just tell that she'd stood taller. Creating things that look like they're from more of a fashion world, rather than a clinical hospital world so that these cancer warriors that have just had the worst couple of weeks of their life and are going through something as traumatic as losing their hair, they can find bravery.
What advice do you have for people that want to be there for the people that might be going through something very similar to what you went through? Say something as long as you're saying it with love.That's more appreciated than completely dropping off and not saying anything at all. You also have to think that your friend is still your friend. If they liked funny YouTube videos, they'll still like those. If they're really into footy, send them all the footy chat like nothing has changed. People kind of forgot that my personality was still there. I'm still the same person. There's things that you can do - have a think about your mate, what they like and send them what they love.
24
What is the most unexpected thing you’ve found about cancer?
CO.
Still the most surprising thing about this whole cancer land is that I've just met the most wonderful, beautiful, warm, talented, strong women that I feel really lucky to have met. I wouldn't have come into contact with any of them otherwise because they all come from different sides of the world and different walks of life. All of my models are cancer warriors, so they've had or they have had cancer. I feel like cancer seems to maybe only affect the legends in the world because I don't think I've met a girl that hasn't blown me away.
I read somewhere that cancer is the greatest equalizer. Cancer strips back everything in your life and you realize that there's a whole lot of noise in our day to day life that you just don't need. You realize who your good mates are and you realize what you really love doing in life. And it just simplifies everything. Because once you have health, that's all that really matters. As much as I say I never ever want cancer ever again, I'm grateful that I had it because it really shook everything up and turned it all upside down and turned it to shit for a while but then gave me the chance to build it up into something that is now much better.
15% off scarves with code BRANDYOUBRAVERY
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HERE
Want to hear more? Click to listen to Emilys podcast.
www.braveryco.com.au
BIG message IN A BOT TLE Hello, I am Jo. The owner and founder of BOOB LOOB, a cheeky business name that tends to generate some curiosity from the uninformed. The local Postie delivered about 10 parcels to me before sheepishly asking, “What is, ahem, BOOB LOOB?” And I love an opportunity to share the meaning behind the name. It’s as scary as shit to be told ‘you have breast cancer.’ Words that were delivered to me over the phone one dark Friday in 1988. I was 28, 32 remarkable years ago. These days the words, breast cancer, come out of my mouth with a little less trepidation, because I want to bring about awareness to this scary but all too avoidable subject. The breast cancer awareness message needs to reach women of all ages, but particularly young women, who may have a false sense of security because of their age. The idea is not to generate fear mongering, but rather to help women understand the importance of checking their breasts and get to know their ‘normal.’ If women get used to a 26
www.boob-loob.com.au routine of self-checking, they are arming themselves with a greater chance of early detection in the unlikely incidence of a breast cancer diagnosis. I was so ignorant as a 28 year-old. Breast cancer was something only old ladies got, right? WRONG. A Self Check Shower Gel seemed like the simplest way for women to take time to check their boobs. Already naked and in the shower, the product is right there front and centre, reminding them about that check. A couple of minutes getting to know the feel of their breasts and learning how to check, is a perfect opportunity and an important component of their whole self-care regime. Statistics have shown that many women who find a lump, have found them when showering. BOOB LOOB tries to keep this VERY IMPORTANT message a bit lighter by being a tad tongue in cheek. I have endeavoured to draw attention to this serious subject by making women feel less fearful or intimidated, and maybe less bored by the usual educational content surrounding the subject of breast cancer awareness. Having said that, you will find legitimate educational resource links on the BOOB LOOB website for further information. Business wise, this has been one hell of a ride, launching just months before Covid hit. I could have chucked in the
A valuable inheritance: "This is my beautiful granddaughter. My legacy for her is to make sure that in the future she will know the importance of monitoring her breast health and will be educated and proactive with her self checks."
towel at times and said, ‘too freaking hard,’ but so passionate I am that you get this message, I won’t stop till I hear BOOB LOOB is a household staple in women’s showers. Remember to loob your boobs, get touchy-feely in the shower get to KNOW YOUR NORMAL.
Love Jo
self
saves care
WRITTEN BY LAUREN OLIVER FOUNDER OF MUMS WHO WINE
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In November 2017 I made a decision to quit my stable and lucrative career as a senior litigation lawyer, to focus on building my newly established business Mums Who Wine. In the eyes of the world this was probably not the “smartest” decision given that I had only officially launched Mums Who Wine as a business in July 2017. This was most certainly a “risky” decision given that I was the main breadwinner, I was on a high six figure salary, I was on the road to partnership and I was ticking “all the boxes” in the eyes of the corporate world. However I firmly believe that with great risk, comes great reward. Choosing to quit my career as a lawyer was my first “brave” decision as a Founder/CEO of my own business. It is one that I am proud of because by making this decision I overcame fear of judgement, fear of failure and fear of identity loss. In fact when I did decide to quit my job as a lawyer, I didn’t even know how to do it! I said to my husband Mark “how do I even quit? What do I say?”. His response “go in there and say that you are changing the lives of mums across Australia… and back yourself” #blesshim. Since stepping out in faith and choosing to build our incredible Mums Who Wine community, I have had to make many decisions, many of which have been “brave” decisions. One the best examples of this was my decision to launch our #selfcaresaves campaign. At Mums Who Wine our mission is for every mother, in every nation, to invest in her own self care. I am a passionate mental health and self care advocate, because I know that as mothers we do not prioritise this and we often put ourselves last. My heart is to empower mothers to put themselves first and prioritise their own self care and mental health.
29
write what you LOVE
Stepping out in faith and making brave decisions is not easy.
So fast forward to November 2018,
To say this was the craziest month of my
when I was driving and thinking about
life was an understatement! I literally put
a way to spread our message, when I
my whole life on hold to dedicate to this
clearly heard a voice “raise $10,000 in 30
campaign and to hit our target to raise
days”. I returned home and said to Mark
$10,000 for PANDA. My kitchen table was
that we were going to launch a campaign
covered with t-shirts, I was sending out
that was going to raise $10,000 in 30
orders around the clock, posting regularly
days. At this time we did not have a team, it was literally myself and Mark (who was also working full time), so this was a huge undertaking and to many, an unrealistic goal. However I knew in my heart that this was something I had to do. So with a fire in my belly and a passion in my heart, I publicly announced our campaign in which we would sell #selfcaresaves
on social media, whilst also travelling the country to host events and continue building the business (and looking after two small humans too!). However despite the chaos, this was to date the most empowering and profound moments of my life, because this was when I truly witnessed the power of community.
t-shirts for 30 days and all profits would
Women from across the world (yes the
be donated to PANDA (Perinatal Anxiety
world) were purchasing our t-shirts and
and Depression Australia).
sharing our message. Local boutiques
Join the
MUMS WHO WINE TRIBE for $69 per year! Click here to join.
were asking to stock them, without receiving anything in return, just to help us reach our target. People were purchasing t-shirts for their friends and families, even their children, because they wholeheartedly believed in the cause and message. It was incredible and because of this we smashed our target of $10,000 by raising $12,120 in 30 days!! Stepping out in faith and making brave decisions is not easy, but I firmly believe that when you take that step God/the Universe (whatever you believe) backs you. Even more than that, you are supported by an incredible community of other like minded people, who cheer you on, pick you up when you fall and remind you of the impact that your step of faith is having. For that I am eternally thankful.
BY BRIONY BENJAMIN
Supporting a loved one going through
him a dose of bankruptcy and throw a marriage
a really tough time is tricky. Everyone is
breakdown into the mix.’ I mean, how unfair would that be? So just avoid it.
different and will want different things. Upsetting someone who is going through
Don’t try to fix it.
a major life crisis isn’t going to win you
Because you can’t. Nothing you say will fix it, so
a friendship bracelet (or feel particularly
don’t offer solutions, just listen and empathise.
nice). So I’d strongly advise that you steer clear of any of these clichés.
Don’t make it about yourself.
Don’t tell them about the time you had a similar experience. Right now it ain’t about you, so don’t
Don’t tell them, ‘All things happen for a reason’.
steal the spotlight – just listen and support.
Do they? Did I get cancer for a reason? Do people have horrific car accidents for a reason?
‘Your cancer diagnosis reminds me of the time I
It’s something people say to fill the space,
broke my arm . . . I can really relate.’
but it’s supremely unhelpful and can sound
Don’t share a tragic story of your own (or someone else’s).
dismissive of the immense pain someone might be experiencing. While good can eventually come
Don’t tell them about someone you know
from terrible times, there is no reason for this
who died of the same thing or had an awful
crisis. Put the phrase down and slowly back away.
time (unless there is a kick-arse ending about
Don’t say, ‘They only send it to the strong ones’.
how they beat it, met the love of their life – a
Groan . . . There is no one sitting up there saying,
handsome prince from a small country we’ve
‘Oh, she’s a tough cookie: let’s give her cancer.’ ‘You
never heard of – had adorable twins and was
know what, I reckon Brian could take it, let’s give
given a small island). 32
Don’t tell them to ‘be positive’.
If you have a strong religious belief, that’s great,
They are probably trying their best to do that
but respect that the other person may not. They
already, so it’s condescending. Also they may
might also be a bit angry at God right now. One of
want to punch you in the face. Don’t tell them it will all be okay.
You may really believe this to be true or really want it to be true, but you don’t know that.
my favourite cards, created by lymphoma survivor Emily McDowell of emandfriends.com, says: ‘If this is God’s plan, God is a terrible planner. (No offence
So it can come across as being dismissive and
if you’re reading this, God. You did a really good job
insincere, and they will lose trust in what you say.
with other stuff, like waterfalls and pandas.)’
Don’t betray their confidence.
If they’re sharing their vulnerabilities and fears, keep tight lips. Ask yourself if sharing the details would help the person or make them feel more anxious and upset? In the case of illness, don’t tell them about some magical cure you read about on the internet.
Unless you’re their doctor, it’s best to steer clear of any medical advice. Just leave it to them and
click
HERE to get
Life Is Tough But So Are You or request it at your favourite bookshop
their medical team. Don’t mention anything about it being
Text from Life is Tough (But So Are You) by Briony Benjamin
‘God’s plan’.
MURDOCH BOOKS RRP $32.99.
100 BAD PAINTINGS
34
Bad Painting #3
What happened in November last year? I went for my first mammogram. I expected to just be in and out, bang, done. And there it was, you've got breast cancer. Once you get diagnosed, you are on the train and there is no getting off. You can't run from this one, you want to run and there is literally nowhere to go. Within weeks, I'm having a double mastectomy, lined up for six months of chemo, daily radiation, and five years of hormonal therapy. Nothing remains the same from that point. It's a real ‘Tower’ moment. In a Tarot deck, you get a Tower card and everything crumbles.
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An illustrator, an artist, a maker, a mother. A writer and explorer of the creative process. Ever seeking a life that truly resonates with what she wants and how she wants to live. Until...
Bad Painting #1 Bad Painting #8
What did you come up with as your way of creatively making sense of all this?
How has cancer changed your relationship with your body?
I came up with a project called 100 Bad Paintings. It's a way to let go of any pressure, it's a way to immerse yourself in doing what you love, it's a way to heal and release emotions, it's a way to just grow and let go and be free. If I tell myself, they're bad, then they don't have to be good.
On that day when I got told that they were going to remove the breast, I came home and I'm standing in the bathroom. All these years, I have been looking at myself, like I'm not enough. And then all of a sudden I looked
Naturally, you want everything you do to be polished and to be finished and to be looking good. What's beautiful about the 100 Bad Paintings is that you allow yourself to create and share work that is awkward, unfinished and raw. It’s the beginner mindset behind it and the playfulness that really resonates more with people and yourself. The juice in your story is actually the parts that are uncomfortable and awkward. And potentially ugly or bad as well. That's actually far more powerful than the stuff that's always perfect.
in the mirror and thought, “Shit you’re fucking beautiful, perfect just the way you are”. And I realised that we have been doing ourselves such a huge disservice. All of us women. There's always this glorification of youth and perfection, what it means to have the perfect body and I realised under that crappy light that my body was perfect. It was perfect. 36
Bad Painting #12
Bad Painting #4
What does your motto “I am true to myself, my thoughts, my ideas, my talent, I am following no one” mean to you?
What would you say has been your bravest moment? Brave isn't having cancer because you don't have a choice. My bravest moment is every day, when I decide that I'm not going to let fear stop me from making plans, having dreams, taking steps towards living the life that I've always wanted.
You have to come from your heart. I stopped listening to music or podcasts whilst I was painting so that I could just have silence. Silence is scary. The bravest thing is listening to what comes up from inside you and witnessing it for yourself. Shit comes up you don't want to hear, you hear what you've really been saying to yourself in your own head and you have to face it and stop running away from it. Often the answers to what is going on externally are internal. How can we possibly know ourselves if we're not listening, if we never give ourselves the time, and the space and the silence to listen. It doesn't happen immediately. You need to give yourself time for that to bubble up and
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www.erinduncancreative.com
show up to that silence daily. 37
Kristy Dinuzzo created a go-to membership community that helps early-stage female founders learn the secrets to brand, market and grow their businesses without the overwhelm 60% of businesses fail within the first 3 years. Why do you think that is? First things first - you need a product or service people actually want. Too often people start a business because they have a passion for something. This is a great start, but most underestimate the importance of market research. There needs to be a demand and a market fit, otherwise marketing becomes an uphill battle. I truly believe that the difference between surviving and thriving, comes down to how well a founder can brand and market their business. Most markets are saturated, so the winning brands understand they need to make their product, service or brand different or better from the rest in order to grab attention. 38
It takes a village to grow a business.
Memberships and courses play a huge part in the entrepreneur journey. Why did you start The Startup Sisterhood and what are your dreams for it in the future? When I left my corporate marketing role to start my own business, I could see first hand how much business owners struggled to understand how to brand and market their business effectively. I knew if they could nail this, they would have gamechanging results. Most women who want to start a business don't have the brand or marketing knowhow. I want The Startup Sisterhood to be the place female startups come to build and grow their wildly successful brands 'together' and do so without the overwhelm, guesswork and loneliness. How important is having a sisterhood when you are in business? It's everything! I love the quote by Tony Robbins - "stay in your head, you're dead". When you don't have people surrounding you who 'get it', it's very easy to talk yourself out of something or believe what your friends and family have told you. It takes a village to grow a business - having a supportive sisterhood is so important in those first 3 years of business.
What do you find people find the scariest in their businesses and what advise do you have fo them to overcome this?
I'm not sure about the scariest, but the most overwhelming I would say is not knowing what they should be focusing on to move the needle in their business the most. They are doing all the things without much strategy or focus, I call this the scatter-gun approach and it's draining. Entrepreneurship is the only career path where you're expected to wear all the hats, so it's no surprise founders feel very overwhelmed. My biggest tips to overcome this is:
1: Understand the power of clarity. If you are feeling overwhelmed it's time to pop the bonnet and take a look under your biz hood. Go back to the basics and read the data to see what is actually working and what's not. Look at your website, socials and email analytics. 2: Revisit your brand strategy. Your why, ideal customer, message, unique point of difference, position etc 3: Create a simple action plan. Give priority to the tasks that will move the needle the most.
Don't compare your start to someone's middle.
What are some of the most effective ways startup businesses can cheaply and effectively market themselves?
1: Tap into pre-built audiences. How can you get your brand in front of your ideal customer by using someone else's audience? Think of a creative collaboration you can do with another brand, or simply go and post in Facebook groups remembering to stop the scroll. 2: Build your email list as your priority. Email is still the best way to convert 3: Pick one platform. Grow your community on this platform first before focusing on another. What top three things should a brave brand be?
1: Own your differences by communicating them effectively 2: Know your ideal customer better than your competitors and create meaningful touch points 3: Be confident in what you have to offer. What advise to you have for people in a growth phase in their business?
As a business grows it's easy to lose sight of the experience a customer has with you. Nothing will bring a business down quicker than negative reviews, so make sure you continue to always put the customer at the centre of every business decision.
www.thestartupsisterhood.com.au
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