It’s always nicer if your efforts are going towards something meaningful, something that could change people’s lives.  And I almost magically found that meaningful cause in the Queensland country town of Charters Towers. I was changing careers, and cities, and started searching for work in the town, but I kept hitting brick walls. Nevertheless, I kept exercising my tenacity and emailed a local man I had never met, and he pointed me towards a Facebook post advertising for a community manager of The World Incubator. First off, I loved the name. "Incubator" conjured up images of ducklings and chickens hatching out of eggs, but I quickly realised its concept was even better than the name. Helping local people grow (“hatch”) their own start-up business, while creating jobs locally and engaging customers internationally, made a lot of sense to me.

In my previous job, I was made painfully aware of the doldrums many rural economies were in, and had seen first-hand just how hard some people were doing it. But I never felt I was making a real difference. Until now.

What I want to achieve

I want to help reinvigorate the Charters Towers region. I think that deserves the attention and effort of as many people as possible. There are so many good things already going on, but I think The World Incubator could take it several steps further. So far, the people in the town have shown me lots of things: passion, innovation, desire. But I’ve also seen concern and confusion. That’s not a surprise, because trying to change a town’s economic standing and its profile is scary. You’re challenging not only yourself, but the people around you, and some of them might not want to be challenged.

Making entrepreneurship less scary

Everything I’ve ever heard about starting a business is that it’s bloody tough work. But hard work is far from unusual in rural Australia, especially north Queensland. Regional life breeds resourcefulness and innovation, and many people have already created award-winning ideas without even realising it. Entrepreneurs aren’t just corporate businessmen or savvy food connoisseurs – they take many different forms. The most “home-grown” idea can, and often does, become a multi-million dollar venture. Lots of start-up businesspeople go it alone, but The World Incubator is designed to take much of that weight off people’s shoulders. I am truly excited about the future and all it can bring, and I hope to help bring the change I want to see.