you’ll be waiting if you are waiting for permission…

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ABC Q&A aired a special extra episode tonight after securing an audience with visiting billionaire Microsoft founder and philanthropist Bill Gates. The program featured Gates as the sole guest, fronting an audience at the University of NSW with host Tony Jones.

Whilst Mr Gates is interesting, impressive and industrious, he performed admirably and did himself and his causes proud. What I found even more impressive though was the quality of the thinking that had gone into the audience questioning and the Twitter feed happening concurrently.

There are many who think deeply about some of the hard stuff and that buoys my faith in humans being able to better do good stuff. However, as Mr Gates pointed out this evening, if one sits around waiting for permission to do what needs to be done, death is likely to come first!

A case in point, Stephanie Woollard. Such a dynamic young woman, who has taken it upon herself to assist and truly empower all the marginalised women she can. Starting in Nepal first, world domination is definitively on the cards. She didn’t have to do it, she could have talked about it and done nothing because working from Australia would have been too difficult but she didn’t…

Instead, she started “Seven Women” (www.sevenwomen.com.au) which has since established two business centres whereby they become financially stand-alone entities as well as enabling the women to learn to earn. No permission sought, other than to appreciate the enormity of the task and then getting down to the tin-tacs of working out how to get it done.

With the women now eternally grateful.

B2B Fair Business Breakfast, 7am start (blimey!)…

SunriseI mean seriously! As if my brain possibly functions at that early time, not to mention my body…

I can’t be the only one who thinks such an early start is a little ridiculous.  Yes, it is another way to squeeze more stuff into your already very full day but is it really necessary? I mean really necessary?

Nonetheless…what’s brought this on you may well ask? Tomorrow morning I’ve been invited to attend the B2B Fair Business Breakfast at The Edge in Federation Square. I could have said no, but you know, just sometimes that may not be the smart response to give. So by saying yes, I am now attending this event as part of the Victorian Fair Trade Festival.

I’m going to learn about why other progressive organisations choose to be a Fair Trade workplace. No doubt I will walk away with nuggets of worth. I am after all becoming increasingly interested in true “Social Enterprises”, one’s that are commercial viable like “Seven Women” (hence why I’m on the Management Committee).

No doubt all will be revealed, starting at 7am. And once I’m up, I’m sure all will be forgiven too. Wish me good health!

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