Thanks to the incredible Vanessa Brettell (CEO of Stepping Stone | Social Enterprise Cafe), I got to participate in The Mill House Ventures Ltd. & Social Impact Hub's Scale for Impact program (facilitated by the AMAZING Adam Long GAICD). It was such a fantastic program and I feel very grateful to have spent two and a half days learning from Adam and the rest of the cohort.
While I have had A LOT of wins this year (being asked to write a women's history travel guide for a major publishing house is a pretty big deal!), it's also meant this year has been absolute chaos and did not go at all how I thought it would. The time I hoped to focus on growing the business got sucked into the book, and we didn't hit our financial goals (like, at all).
Soon after realising this (it was almost right after returning from my big trip around Australia), I went to Vanessa and asked if there was more work I could do (outside the scope of my current role) and if I could have more hours. Without hesitating, she said yes. She was so excited and didn't make me feel bad—in fact, she made me feel like I was doing her a favour (which says a lot about the sort of person she is because it was definitely the other way around).
I know that in a year when She Shapes History exceeds all its projections, it will be partly because I wasn't stressed about covering my bills and because of all the great learning opportunities (like this one) I've had working with Stepping Stone.
Vanessa is an above-and-beyond employer and a giant support for me as a human and for She Shapes History. She was one of the people who helped me realise what a social entrepreneur can be and is the person who inspired me to go down the path of social entrepreneurship.
I have learned so much from watching Vanessa as a leader (could easily be the topic of a second book). She is someone who is always willing to learn, grow, listen, and learn again. She is also the sort of person that always elevates other people and gives them incredible opportunities without thinking twice.
I sometimes feel like just as she is transitioning Stepping Stone's beneficiaries into external employment, she's doing the same for me—and I've been lucky to benefit from a rare, flexible, well-paid apprenticeship in the social entrepreneur space (something kinda unheard of...).
This is just one example (of many!) where, as a Stepping Stone employee, I learned a lot for Stepping Stone (watch this space as our impact measurement, reporting, and corporate partnerships program get even better!), but also for She Shapes History and how we can scale.
Unsurprisingly, Vanessa has been recently nominated for the Australian of the Year Awards in the Local Hero category.
