In the country, it's a little harder. Firstly, men are men. They are brought up to be the providers for their families. Imagine the burden that they carry when for whatever reason, this is not possible?

I have taken on The World Incubator with a positive approach. I can create change by changing the way people think. I have spoken to a lot of people and of course, some of the most successful people in  the world have actually said to me that they think I am doing an honorable thing and it comes from a good place, but I will be lucky to find one or two people worthy of going into a funded incubator.

That makes me sad, but perhaps I am ignorant. Maybe I have it wrong. But I pray like crazy that this is not the case. That people in Charters Towers have dreams just like I did and even though they may not have all of their ducks in a row right now, they can learn on the job and believe that anything is possible.

The first step though is positivity and supporting each other. I have been inundated with messages about people who are not supporting other businesses and will do anything to bad mouth, slander and try to ensure that others fail. Who does that? Well I can tell you the type of people who do:

a)  People who need to make themselves feel like they are in control or more powerful or to cover up their own insecurities.
b)  People who have experienced a trauma of their own in the past and they don't know how to deal with the pain so they hurt others as a defense mechanism.

I am saying this now, and I want everyone to be very clear... there will be no backstabbing, bad mouthing or negativity associated with The World Incubator. Period. Any person who dares to put down what is positive in the community or a company having a go and trying their best, will not be taken lightly.

Charters Towers is in need of businesses that are set up to succeed. We all need to support every single person, whether they are a competitor or not, and help each other reach for the stars. 

The first step is to be positive and think positively.

• Positive thinking can be applied to all aspects of your life, try it not just in your work life, but in everything that you do
• If you think positively, it is proven that you have a greater capacity to take on board new information
• Positive thinkers have more energy 
• Positivity builds resilience and helps speed recovery from negative emotions
• Positive thinking improves your capacity to make better decisions in every area of your life
• Positivity is infectious.

I ask that everyone in Charters Towers think about this message and how it applies to them. Positive change is necessary to change our outcomes. Believing in ourselves and the people that make up our community is critical to change.

By building successful businesses that export to the world, we will create jobs, and give our people opportunities for career progression, travel and in life in general.

We will also put Charters Towers back on the map; front and centre. There is no downside to creating a more prosperous community with the flow on effect of successful entrepreneurs resulting in less unemployment, less crime, and more educated and skilled workers.

Let's do this together. I can't do it alone and we need you all to be on board.