I’m a double dipper. I confess I once may have gone in for an extra helping of gherkin dip with the same cracker while no one was watching. And I also received maternity payments from both my employer and the government when I had my first child. But it wasn’t the Australian taxpayer I was ‘ripping off’. It was actually the taxpayers of another country I am fortunate enough to share my … [Read more...]
I will remember them. But I will not speak for them.
Anzac day is important for remembering those who made the ultimate sacrifice during wartime. From the minute I woke up today, my Facebook newsfeed flooded with people paying their respects at Dawn Services and attending marches across the country. But as I scrolled through these posts I felt mixed. Not about the sentiment behind those images. Nor the futility of war that took the innocent lives … [Read more...]
Dread for the women scaling the corporate ladder
In recent weeks the winds of change have breezed ever so gently across Australia’s male dominated professional landscape. A number of new initiatives aimed at supporting female participation in the workforce at the highest levels have nudged us in the right direction. Last month South Australian Chief Justice Chris Kourakis targeted gender imbalance in the legal profession with an initiative to … [Read more...]
I had a dream! Then I woke up to my mortgage…
Last week I went to a business-networking event to listen to a successful businessperson share her success story. I won’t name who it was, but she certainly enjoys a remarkable career as a self-made entrepreneur. She was a great presenter and very likeable. I guess you would describe her as your quintessential motivational speaker echoing messages around the conference room like: “You just … [Read more...]
Where are all the women CEOs? By the washing line…
“Why are there hardly any women CEOs?” is the bewildered cry. “What on earth are we doing wrong? Do we need more mentors? Do we need more management quotas? Do we need gender-biased recruitment processes?” No. No we don’t. If you ask me, these things are missing the heart of the matter. And that heart of the matter is housework. Yep, you read me right. Housework. And a range of other … [Read more...]
Simply know
The tone of my Facebook page has changed in recent months. Less frequent are the jokesy ‘mumma-on-the-edge’ updates and more frequent are updates linking to tragic, and at times unbelievable, stories. I wonder if my friends welcome my somber and impassioned updates? My posts might be a rude and confronting awakening in between the cat memes and food photographs. But I can’t help it. This is … [Read more...]
Why I can’t look away
Yesterday I vented my frustration. “Stop reading,” was the well-meaning advice from friends who care. But I can’t. I can’t stop reading. I can’t stop watching. As I told my beautiful concerned friends, I feel like I owe it to the people whose lives have been stolen by the sheer stupidity of the human race. Yes, the news is particularly confronting and distressing at the moment. But so are … [Read more...]
People no different to us
I can’t tell you how many times I have flown internationally. I was 11-years-old the first time I flew the kangaroo route between Australia and London when my parents took me to England to meet our extended family. Since then I’ve stepped onboard many Europe-bound planes: as a child, as a backpacker, as a businessperson, as the wife of an Irishman. Hundreds and hundreds of hours watching that … [Read more...]
When did we all start smoking again?
About three months ago I picked up a contract with a client who wanted me to work onsite in their office in Sydney’s city centre. It’s been a while since I’ve worked in the city. Sure I’ve popped in for meetings or client visits. But it has probably been more than 10 years since I’ve had to travel into the city on a daily basis. At first I quite enjoyed it. The early morning ferry ride followed … [Read more...]
This is why we have pets…
I wrote this for a vet blog I sometimes write for. I love it so much, I had to post it here too... My seven-year-old son and our dog Dexter are inseparable. They are always side-by-side: in the playroom; in the garden; down the park; and on the lounge at the end of the day watching television. Sometimes I swear the dog thinks he’s my son’s biological twin brother. It’s a beautiful thing to … [Read more...]