Page 57 - Tropic Magazine Issue 12

Industry
Tourism

Humans Of Cairns

Inspired by the famous New York blog, the team
at Young Entrepreneurs Project have launched a
local profile series.

Cairns punches above its weight when it comes to Oliver Murphy-Kurth
entrepreneurship, small business and the self-employed
sector. Indeed, our billion-dollar-plus tourism industry was Many people choose work based on the pay, but I look for
built on the back of hard work and the go-getting attitude of more. Why work in something I don't enjoy, just to spend
pioneering entrepreneurs. all the money I make on a holiday where I can enjoy what
In a new profile series, the Young Entrepreneurs Project – I'm doing?
known as Y(E)P – has launched Humans of Cairns, part of the I would prefer to do work that may be harder to make a living
Encouraging Entrepreneurship and Self-Employment but allow me to contribute and have purpose. Young people
Initiative from the Australian Government. e series can get trapped into following what other people want them
includes stories of local entrepreneurs as told to to do, rather than really thinking about what they want to do,
Entrepreneurship Facilitator Tara Diversi and in what their values are, and what’s important to them.
collaboration with photographer Kate Stoter. Whether I’m doing jobs that other people don’t want to
e aim of the series is to introduce entrepreneurs and do or my dream jobs, I bring a positive attitude, and want
self-employed people from the Cairns and Tropical North to be proud of the contribution I make.
region from a variety of backgrounds and a range of di ferent In my role at WindSwell Kitesurfing in Port Douglas,
stages of their business journey. every day I get to go out onto the Coral Sea, have fun and
teach people about how their choices affect our
MORE: humansofcairns.com.au environment… it doesn’t get much better than that.

Kate Stoter

I didn’t do so well at school, growing up in Innisfail with my Juggling family and business can be hard, but it is also very
amazing mum. I was great at sport, and creative and didn’t complementary. I get to work when I want/can and do less when
think academia was for me. Sport and art kept my mind busy the kids are on school holidays. I miss them being babies, and I
and used up some of my endless energy. At school, I found it am so grateful that I got to be at home when they were little and
difficult to concentrate and to learn. I used to think I was dumb. can be at home when they finish school. I think lots of mums
Turns out, I have ADHD and dyslexia. Boy, do I wish I knew that feel like staying at home is a barrier to long term success. I
as a kid! Life is good now that I know my brain is wired never planned to be my own boss, and if you told me that I would
differently, everything makes sense now. have a photography business a couple of years ago, I wouldn’t
A couple of years ago, I was always taking photos of everything have believed you.
and my passion for photography grew. My friends and
Facebook friends started telling me that I was good and then
they started paying me for portraits. I had a lot of self-doubt
and didn’t think I was that good. My sessions started to fill up
quickly, and I got great reviews online and from my clients with
a lot of repeat business.