Q: How did you get into travel in the first place?
A: I always wanted a career in marketing and travel was never really at the forefront of my mind. But then when I was at Uni all the fun people were in travel and tourism.
So, I made a very shallow decision and decided that I wasn’t very good at management accounting and I was going to go and hang out with the travel and tourism people. It’s actually those people that led me there and that’s where my passion started.
Q: Which parts of the industry do you enjoy the most?
A: Great question. I always want to be passionate about what I market: I don’t want to be in a job that I don’t really have any interest in marketing, otherwise it can get a bit bland.
Navigating through challenges has been a constant, especially evident during COVID-19. It has been a dynamic journey, keeping one on their toes! However, my experience at FCM has been characterised by innovation and collaboration, making it very fulfilling overall.
Q: Talking of challenging, you made a big call in 2023 to take 10 months off and travel around Australia with your family. What was the motivation behind that?
A: The seed was planted back in 2011 when I was pregnant with my first child and we were in a place called Gnaraloo in WA. It was in the middle of nowhere and we met this family with three kids. Not many families did road trips together back then but I just thought how amazing it would be to do that with my kids one day.
I went on to have two more boys and I just wanted to spend time with them while they were still young. I’m a big believer in lifetime experiences and memories – that is what life’s all about. And it was probably the best, most challenging thing I’ve ever done.
Q: What were some of the highlights of the trip?
A: Highlights were the people we met on the road and all the stories that they had to share which were all very different. We loved having chats around the campfire while watching the stars. We made lifelong friends who we’ve now got scattered around the country which is very cool.
In terms of places that stood out for me were the Gibb River Road in the Kimberley region, Ningaloo Reef, Gnaraloo and the Oodnadatta Track, which runs up into Outback South Australia through the middle of Oz.
I think this country has some incredible energy that I probably didn’t really expect to feel or see. Coming out of the Sydney life, which can be very chaotic, into just having bare feet in the red dirt, looking at the stars and the crystal blue ocean, there’s something extremely grounding about that.
Q: What kind of experience was it as a family to be away for that length of time and to see this wonderful country?
A: It was really interesting because it took me longer than I thought to get into the rhythm of this life hanging out with my boys full time. It took us two to three months to really get into the swing of things.
And it wasn’t all roses and unicorns, that’s for sure. It was often very intense and we had heated moments: there were high highs and then there were low lows. But not once did we ever say, “oh no, we need to turn around”.
Q: So I’m guessing you’d recommend a career ‘time out’ for all Australians?
A: Without a doubt. Traveling around the country is not for everyone and it really depends on the workplace that you’re in. It can be really scary for people to go out there, especially if they don’t have a family or they’re by themselves.
Guaranteed you will meet people on the road, or wherever it is that you end up, but time out is the best thing. Work will always be there when you get back. It’s not the be all and end all.
Ningaloo Reef coastline. © Tourism WA
Q: What do you think you’ve learned from this experience?
A: It’s very easy to come back into normal life and get swept back up again and go back to trying to keep up with the Joneses.
My new lease on life is to have a simpler approach to everything. Not to fill it up with a lot of stuff and just try and get some of that family time back again. In the work sense I’ve said to myself not to sweat the small stuff.
Always look at the strategy or journey ahead. Each kilometre counts because it takes you closer to your destination and you can take that theory into both work and home life.
