|
Dear Reader An Amazing JourneyI am just about recovering my thoughts after a whirlwind trip to Aussie with Suraya. I gave a shout out to her in the June 11 Newsletter. This week I want to share that her pitch was chosen and she was awarded a grant of $50,000 to progress her business idea!
Before I share what it was like for me to be there as she presented her pitch to the judges, I’d like to seek your help in helping her achieve the next step: to win the People’s Choice award. This award is granted to the finalist who gets the most ‘likes’ on her social media posts about her participation in the Business Booster. Here are the 5 links to her social media posts. Like them all or one. It’ll all help towards the final count. Thank you! LinkedIn Facebook1 Facebook2 Instagram TicToc
My heart burst when it was announced that she had won the grant. It was such a privilege for me to be there as her “plus 1” at the event. It was humbling as well. Each of the 10 finalists showed passion and commitment for their projects. All are winners in my eyes. Even more exciting to me was the passion of the Uber and Rare Birds folk who were there. Uber founders recognise many of their drivers do that work to give them time to follow their passion and develop it into a business, just like they did. Their generosity is beyond belief. If every company did this for their employees there would be a lot more avenues for our collective creativity to shine. It was a whirlwind of a trip. We flew into Sydney on 30th June, stayed two nights just 20 minutes from the Uber headquarters, and flew to Brisbane where we spent two nights with my other daughter Amy and caught up with my sister, niece, aunt, nephew and his family – so many we didn’t have time to visit this time, so precious to visit with the ones we did.
I haven’t been to Sydney for a long time. Apologies to family and friends there as the focus of our trip was the event, and preparing for it, so there was no time to catch up with you all. My oldest granddaughter, Emma, drove up from Melbourne to visit for a short time with us. It was a dream come true to see her. She’s the grandma of that beautiful wee baby that is Octavius, my great-great grandson. (He’ll be one-year-old in August – time flies!) One of the things we needed was a long walk to ground us before getting ready. I was so impressed. My love of urban environments took me into my career as a town planner and Sydney was a delight to my senses. Beautifully designed modern buildings alongside, and in some way complementing, the historic buildings of an early Sydney. It’s hard to take photos of this beauty. Here’s the AMP building that blew my mind with it’s angles. Imagine the views from each level. Originally built in the 1970s, the modern skyscraper tower was built on top of the older tower, modernising it by incorporating elements of the new form.
We walked through the parks and botanical gardens and at one point we saw this very happy and peaceful kookaburra.
Our walk took us to the opera house. We promised ourselves we’ll come back and see a show here. We were satisfied for now with viewing this grandest of buildings from a distance and up close. We loved the crazy paving and the steps. And a brief preview inside confirmed its grandeur inside as well as out.
A Final ThoughtSuraya’s journey is not over. There’s a long way to go to production and a lot of steps. I’ll give you updates along the way, especially the outcome of the people’s choice award. Your encouragement over this process has been much appreciated. Till next time, may your lives and hearts be full of joy. My thoughts for Living Life in 2024 and beyond: “Write it on my heart that every day is Ralph Waldo Emerson “Remember that sometimes not getting “I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave [person] is not [the one] who does not feel afraid, but [the one] who conquers that fear.” Nelson Mandela Read past Newsletters and, if you enjoy them, please share with your friends and encourage them to subscribe http://www.StephanieHammondAuthor.com Join my Reader’s Group on Facebook. FOLLOW ME Like, post and comment at any of |
Perseverence and support pay off
Leave a Reply