WTF is TIF?
I acknowledge the Gimuy Walaburra Yidinji and Yirrangangi as the Traditional Custodians of the land, seas, and waterways on which we gathered and pay respect to their Elders past, present and future
WOW…
Just WOW! Getting back on a plane and being up in the air again, really set the scene for the lofty and lit energy of our entrepreneurial ecosystem here in QLD.
Add to that exuberance, the raw, real and ridiculously rounded feeling of being in the company of regional founders, in what could arguably feel like the capital of North Queensland, Cairns, you can imagine how an already excited and endurance seeking entrepreneur might be feeling right now. I’m finding it hard to come down from the high high!
What…
Tara and Kate have created, along with their incredible sponsors, supporters, volunteers and small mighty team, an equitable energised and extremely curious ecosystem, where it matters not whether you founded a double unicorn (Vu Tran and the $2B QLD success story GO1) or are leading a brand new miniature micro, just beginning to dip your toes in……there was a sense of natural and renewable energy for equity at every single point and with every single person I encountered or experienced.
I didn’t want to leave! I already want to go back! Can we do it again soon please?
Wrap…
So I sit here downloading thoughts, connecting with new contacts and realising that at the start, the middle or the end of a lifecycle of anything, a company, a cohort or a community, there’s one commonality that binds us all. PEOPLE
Making money is one thing….Making a difference is everything!!
I’ve been reflecting on my own thoughts gathered and garnered from being guided and grounded in regional Queensland for a few days….
I yearn to learn, to build authentic relationships….to acquire knowledge and to use this to invent, innovate and intensely invade my own growth mindset in the most inquisitive of manners.
So when Tara stumbled introducing me with my lengthy Lithuanian surname (Grigaliunas, a name I’m no longer married to) and surprisingly announced me as YazzyG (ironically the same name as my Medium profile), it had me alliterating with the letter G…..
- Growing & Guided
- Gritty & Grounded
- Gregarious & Giving
Cairns was clearly evoking, energising and extremely engaging
Words…
I had the honour to take the stage myself this year, to share in a manner I love to call….
‘less showreel and more real reel’.
My own journey hasn’t been all fanfare, funding and founder fairy lights, it’s also been a shit show pain train of losses and lessons and could have been (and was a little) soul sucking and debilitatingly destroying. #realreel
I’m positive and passionate about the polarising sides of starting, stabilising and scaling an enterprise. I’ve always preferred to be BRAVE (Being Raw, Authentic, Vulnerable, Everyday) and this includes equally calling out the “gritty, shitty and unpretty”, giving it as much exposure as the impressive headlines we read when things are in flow.
So while my own journey is mine to own, I remain open always to being open and channel change and growth when on the ground with a diverse gathering of great people.
Regardless of stage or phase, I remember this little formula I created when aiming to explain how our credentials and qualifications don’t determine our own story, success or stage in life.
Effort + Execution = Evolution
- Put in the Effort +
- Do the work =
- Evolve
Wonder…
Some of my most wonderful memorable and literal goosebump moments at TIF for me (in no particular order) were:
- Sitting alongside legends on 2x Panels….
………The linkage and love of sitting with much admired and inspiring females for the Fun and Fearless session….facilitated by Heather Smith, featuring Julia Spicer OAM, Christine Williams and Jodie Mlikota….
……….Then backing it up later that day (with drinks on hand), wedged between Vu Tran, Christine Williams (again) and Tasmin Trezise, facilitated by the exemplary Tara Diversi — we had the best fun together, I think this photo says it all
- Connecting with and hearing Councillor Kristy Vallely speak — a soul sister standing in her own power
- Natalie Cook OLY and her enduring extreme exuberance
- Wayne Gerard — sharing the real reel and reminding me that the weirdo, crazy, risky and outlandish thinking are the very ingredients that bind us as entrepreneurs
- Dennis Fay — fellow #circulareconomy entrepreneur, saying yes to my ‘slightly’ McBossy suggestion to launch himself on LinkedIn before pitching, and for trusting me to do the initial setup…..(connect HERE with him, we’re on the way to the 100 milestone of LinkedIn connections!)
- Hannah Boon — OMGoodness, with her permission, I share that her bright beauty blew me away, something in her smile, eyes, energy and authenticity, had me constantly admiring her striking face. I couldn’t not tell her!! So I introduced myself and made sure she knew that I found her strikingly stunning!
- Sarah Smith & our predawn run, her constant commitment to show up for us all and gather great photos and footage so we can remember the awesomeness…..and fellow OQCE legend Sandy Mott for the night owl street talk and walk after dark. Together we laughed SO hard!!!
- Mackay Legend Stacey Lia recent winner of the Mackay Startup Weekend —late in the night we randomly collided wearing unplanned matchy matchy shirts.
- Dinner flow in the zone with some of the best in business; Mick Liubinskas, Mark “Z” Zmarzly, Cheryl Mack and Harvey Liu— Greek food, great company and stretching & connecting hearts and minds on matters that matter.
- Rhys Lloyd — this guy is going places — I have no idea where, but felt his unique youthful essence, energy & exuberance….he’s on the way to 100 LinkedIn connections too — reach out to connect with him.
- The sporting elite entrepreneurs, with Mark Cantoni & Kirk Reynoldson, with neither professional athlete flickering or flinching when I shared memories of moments I tore strips off my own nether regions for 8 days whilst on an endurance athlete fundraiser event riding a bike from Brisbane to Townsville.
- Ash Ivory — we passed each other in the corridors every single day, never being able to align timing…..then shared an Uber to the airport & connected deeply on values, vision & versatility.
- Finally, Llew Jury and Peter Laurie — having them both in town, seeing them, feeling them and knowing that they were right there at the beginning of my funding journey in 2018, where I literally almost walked away to NOT even start…….it was grounding and a gift to remember the moment I almost walked away. It reminded me of the unconditional support and love of the PEOPLE.
PEOPLE POWER — The most powerful resource on our PLANET
What….
In life, regardless of the label you label yourself with (or the one others use for you), I’ve discovered along the way that it’s not at all about ‘What do you do?’. You know, that awkward question people ask or answer when first meeting someone new. I actually detest this question. In fact, I have stopped asking or answering it…What I reshaped and reinvented as my own little phase of choice, is to ask with genuine and heartfelt desire to know….
‘Who are you?’
Try it next time you’re standing around listening to people rattle off their ‘what you do’ boring little pitch about all the ‘things’ they think you want to hear when meeting someone new.
Who…
“Who are you?” is so much more real reel…..leaving less room for the showreel most people have been programmed by so called normal society and media. (thank you for this inspo Dennis)
Many new connections in Cairns reminded me that along the way on this journey of life, a lot of people will have your back, some will stand on your back and a few may even stab you in the back…. but if you continue to show up, authentically in the raw, you will always find your PEOPLE.
Many years ago I said “Love is the next disrupter in business”….and the time spent in Cairns proved that I’m not the only one juiced up on the value of values and the pure connection of collaborative collision.
PEOPLE…..find them…..and be open to letting them find you too…
My TIF in PICS for your enjoyment below….
