Bye 2018, it was a good year

2018 – my last year in my forties, no longer a mum of kids/teens, not working by myself in the business.

Some of the big things in 2018 included –  

• Seeing the Queensland Parliament’s flags at half-mast on Invasion Day. Then taking a pic and posting it on Twitter and then having it stolen by the Weekend Australian.
• Being the official run leader/coach for Brisbane Deadly Runners summer season. It was an amazing experience – LOTS of hard work, but very fulfilling.
• Walking up Douglas Track in Far North Queensland and (not really) nearly dying. IT WAS HARD!
• Doing a little work with BlakDance around APAM this year was great. I really do love live-tweeting sessions with good conversations.
• Finally getting shit shorted with the accountant. We’re not completely back-on-track but I feel more empowered around this work now. In the middle of the 2nd half of the year, I put it on them to be a little more proactive in how they work with us. It does cost us more but in the end, costs us less because we’re more on top of things than ever.
• Restarted Nyumba again with some deadly women – 2019 is going to be THE YEAR!!
• Finally finished my P&C duties somewhere in the first quarter. Sad but nice to have that part of my life completed.
• The impact of the Commonwealth Games is still being felt for me professionally. I will forever be grateful to the Games and to a deadly few people who allowed me to be part of their projects. It’s been a complete turning point for me and for Iscariot.
• Black Coffee really began to fly. There’s still a lot of work to do in building the infrastructure, but it’s on its way.
• Meeanjin Markets x 2. I wore a few different hats – chamber president as well as a vendor. It was hard work but fantastic.
• I started training for the Bloody Long Walk, and then did the Bloody Long Walk. It took me 9 hours but I made it over the finish line. I couldn’t have done it without my sisters who did the first and last 10k with me. I was also supported throughout by text messages and phone calls. I can’t wait to do it again and training will commence this Saturday!
• Delivered on two programs for the Australian Indigenous Leadership Centre.
• Did Yellow Arrow in Cairns – twice. Not ready to tackle Red Arrow yet.
• The Fat Adventurers! stalled a bit because of my Deadly Runners and Bloody Long Walk training – not sure what to do there yet.
• Nominated a good friend and colleague Emma Kerslake for a business award. She didn’t win, but it was excellent to go through that process. And she’s awesome!
• Indigenous Business Month rocked it – over 40 events across the country. It wrecked me but it was good. Next year will be even bigger I reckon.
• Bought an expensive dress for myself for Christmas – a huge leap for me.
• Ran 5km non-stop twice – once at the Twilight Run and again at Deadly Runners parkrun.
• Went to and spoke at a number of conferences, including IBA’s Strong Women Strong Business, the World Indigenous Business Forum in Rotorua, New Zealand, the Australian Indigenous Tourism Conference in Lorne Victoria, and Woodford Folk Festival.
• I wrote my first tender and it nearly killed me.
• Got on a preferred supplier list for a training program.
• Signed up to deliver a new digital program Digital Tracks in 2019.
• And lots more ….

Professionally it’s been an amazing year. There are so many things I need to make better. I need to keep building our team, some things are taking way to long to deliver on – this REALLY needs to change.

2019 will be a year of consolidation and developing processes. Until now, Nyumba, Blacklines, and now Iscariot have all been run from the control room that is my brain. But now, finally, it’s all at a point – too many projects across too many areas – where it can’t continue to go that way.

I need to finally run a real business and properly build systems and structures and allocate jobs to others so that the machine can function without me.

I have no doubt there are clients who are currently frustrated with us at the moment. And it’s just killing me. 2019 has to be about thinking about and embarking on effective customer service.

I’m looking forward to spending the night with one of my oldest friends as she turns 50. But I’m even more excited to be (officially) in the office on the 7th of January.

Thank you 2018, and let 2019 begin.