Julia Hebb, owner of Juro Business Services, and Shelley Flett, founder of an eponymous leadership coaching business, both took similar leaps of faith, leaving corporate jobs to start their own businesses. Over coffee with Grow reporter Narelle Coulter they discuss the highs and lows of doing business solo.
Julia – I was in the corporate sector for 20 years in banking and manufacturing and was made redundant from ANZ about four years ago. I woke up one morning and realised I had been leaving (Pearcedale) at six in the morning and getting home at 8pm and I didn’t even know who my neighbours were. I had a bit of a crisis moment I guess. I decided to take three months off and do volunteering and work with not-for-profits. That crystallised my decision to start my own business.
Shelley – I also left ANZ, just under two years ago. I had been there 10 years in a variety of leadership roles. When I left I was six months pregnant with my third child so it was a little bit crazy. I had been planning to leave the corporate world for a while to start my own practice in leadership and human development. I could have put it off, but was already really passionate about what was to come so I decided to seize the moment.
Grow – How have you used your corporate skills in your new ventures?
Julia – There are a lot of the opportunities here that are really good in terms of being able to utilise some of the skills I’d learnt in the corporate environment and being able to pass them on to people who want that type of skill base.
Shelley – I still work with corporates, but what I enjoy more is working with small businesses on how to develop teams and leadership capabilities at the grass roots.
Grow – How has not having to commute changed your working lives?
Shelley – Taking the commute away really takes the pressure off. I love the community feel in Casey. Coming from Oakleigh (Shelley moved to Narre Warren a year ago) I was pleasantly surprised to how approachable people were. There is so much more of a sense of community here. Being able to work where you live you have more opportunity to meet people and every time you meet someone it is an opportunity to form a relationship and do business with them.
Julia – I enjoy the flexibly in my hours. I have a passion for triathlons so that manages to work out quite well. It’s long hours but it’s much, much more rewarding having your own business and working locally.
Grow – What has been your biggest achievement since setting out on your own?
Shelley – Probably one of my biggest achievements is I managed to write a book. I love to be around people so I would prefer to sit down and have a conversation with someone than sit alone in a room doing research. Writing a book for me was me doing the work. It’s called the Direction Dilemma. I’m very proud of it.
Julia – I’ve had a couple of big contracts I’ve won so I think the high for me was going out and winning those job, doing the work and finally getting the money. You want to frame that first bank statement. For me that was a high. It just made it feel like it was completely worthwhile.
Grow – what is your key piece of advice for anyone thinking of starting their own business?
Julia – My key piece of advice is ask. Don’t be scared to ask people for help. I had such a lot of support from people around the City of Casey, people connected with the council, networking groups and mentoring. They find connections for you, point you in the right direction.
Shelley – I think it’s a little bit like Nike, Just Do It. If you have an idea and want to do something and think you are so much more capable than you are there is no point sitting it on the shelf. The reality is there is never a better time in your life to start than now. I think women are capable of doing so much, we can just fit so much in. I’m a working mum, very career driven, very focussed and I love my family as well but I believe you can be both people.
Grow – Starting your own business is hard. What has been your low point?
Shelley – My low was probably not knowing when to stop. I had a quarter where I was investing so much because my husband had taken 12 weeks of parental leave so I worked 12 weeks full-time in my business and I expected big returns in that time. I could have earned more on unemployment benefits in those three months. I think I tried to control too much as opposed to letting things go because I felt the pressure of having that time. New businesses take time and nurturing and relationships. A lot of things I did then I am now seeing the benefit of. I didn’t see it then.
Julia – Six weeks after I made the commitment to start my own business my partner was made redundant. We were completely gobsmacked by that. He made a similar decision to start up his own building and pest inspection business locally. That time was very challenging trying to manage the stress, keep calm, and try not to do too many things but focus on what you’re good at and that’s really what we had to do. I decided to choose one particular service and focus on that. It’s 18 months before you start seeing any returns. That first 18 months is really challenging.
Grow – What do you miss from your corporate jobs?
Julia – You take for granted that regular income that your lifestyle depends on. Starting my own business made me get back to basics so it was good from that aspect. It was a reality check and I think that has grounded us for the next phase. The way my business has developed I have transplanted what I did in the city and now I do it out here. It’s more interesting, you’re not doing the same thing day in day out.
Shelley – I miss having a team of people to do the things I don’t want to do! When you learn to operate at a leadership level you get out of the detail and operate on a big picture level. When you run your own business you forget that you need to chase up invoices, and you need a business plan, and you have to put proposals together and do the research so I miss my team.
Grow – How do you maintain business relationships?
Shelley – I’ve got a co-working space in the Waterman Centre so I’m like a leech with people … “tell me what you do?” I tap into whatever and whoever I can to get information. Interactions are more conversational as well. And we help each other. I love it. The passing conversations at ANZ were all internalised, the passing conversations now are amazing because there are so many different people.
Julia – One thing I do miss is colleagues but I get out and about and see people. Through the small business workshops I meet a lot of people and I make sure I go to at least two or three networking events each month. It keeps your finger on what is going on.
Grow – What has surprised you about the Casey Cardinia Region.
Julia – I had my own perception of what was here but once you start meeting people and getting to know them you see there is a massive range of businesses from large corporations to small businesses in the region.
Shelley – Absolutely. I think the Casey Cardinia region is set up to support an area that is potentially a lot bigger than itself. I see it like a Geelong. I see really exciting things looking at the diversity of the businesses and working out of the Waterman Centre highlights that.
Julia – I do a lot of work with a lot of other councils and regions, and I think the support for small business here is phenomenal and it’s not necessarily the same everywhere. That’s what will set the area up for success.
Footnote: Julia Hebb now knows her neighbours, some of whom also run home-based businesses. Shelley Flett is working on her second book, and deals with business and family pressure by taking her dirt bike for a spin.
