What are the downsides of a QANTAS stopover in Dubai, UAE?

(Trigger warning - rape)
Safety signs are everywhere, at theatres where strobe lights are being used, at amusement parks, where some rides are unsafe for people below a certain height, at playgrounds and in shopping centres. They're bright, obvious and sometimes seem a bit over the top with stating the obvious:

But what they all have in common is the perceived need to keep the public safe ... and possibly the venue from being sued!

Some are clearly designed to inform the travelling public of potentially dangerous local conditions, and are very welcome for those not used to such things as wandering bears in camping grounds:

However, when it comes to overseas travel, information about dangers aren't always as well publicised or easily accessible. A vague, generalised comment might appear on the home page of an airline website about potential difficulties when travelling to specific countries, and even the "Summary" about a country in the government travel website might not mention some important information.

Recently, QANTAS airlines has partnered with Emirates, and all flights to the UK now pass through Dubai. It's being presented not only by the airlines, but by travel agents in Australia, as a wonderful place to break your long journey by a few days or more.

Easily accessible QANTAS information about Local Culture in Dubai includes:

Respect: Travellers to Dubai should always remember to respect local laws and traditions. Alcohol is only served at licensed establishments and people should dress and behave with modesty during their stay.

There is no link to further information such as: http://www.smartraveller.gov.au/zw-cgi/view/Advice/?topic=United_Arab_Emirates where we see the following:

Exercise a high degree of caution
This alerts the traveller to read further.

Given the extremely restrictive laws and harsh penalties for many things perfectly acceptable in Australia, wouldn't it be responsible for both QANTAS and Emirates to direct passengers reliable and comprehensive information so that they don't end up in jail where the Australian Government will have little ability to assist?

What the brochures don't tell you:

Alcohol is served in bars and clubs at most major hotels but may only be consumed by hotel guests. Residents are not allowed to drink in hotels unless they hold a liquor licence. The legal age for alcohol consumption by licence holders in the UAE is 18 years of age, though a Ministry of Tourism by-law requires hotels to serve alcohol only to those over 21 years. Drinking in public or being intoxicated in a public place is illegal and offenders may be arrested. Foreigners have also been arrested on arrival in the UAE after becoming intoxicated on incoming aircraft or while in transit. 

Imagine that you and your friends are staying in different hotels and that you've had a few drinks together. It's not unheard of for a group of Aussies to have a few too many drinks before finding a taxi back to their own hotel! Given the lack of information on the QANTAS website they'd be unaware that:

Visitors to the UAE should also be aware of incidents arising from the use of taxis where passengers are intoxicated. Any dispute with the driver may result in the passengers being taken directly to the police station and charged with public intoxication.

No doubt QANTAS was aware of these laws before encouraging Australians (who are known to enjoy a drink) to visit. What were they thinking?

Would any Australian reading the extremely superficial cultural information on the QANTAS website realise that if they do happen to be arrested for being drunk that:

If you are arrested or jailed, the Australian Government will do what it can to help you but we can't get you out of trouble or out of jail. Any custodial sentences will be served in local jails. (smarttraveller.gov.au)

We're used to being warned about potential dangers, and safety reminders are often welcome. Here is a very real danger, yet the warning about the possibility of a jail sentence after having a night on the town while on holiday is not obvious.

But it's not just the danger of having a few drinks too many, are you aware that:

Medications available over the counter or by prescription in Australia may be illegal in the UAE.

If you're travelling to the UAE, do you know where to go to find which medications are deemed illegal? Can your travel agent direct you to the information?

The crime of being the victim of rape
Did you also know that if you're unfortunate enough to be raped in the United Arab Emirates that you should not report the crime to the authorities?

Did you also know that if you're raped by one, or a multitude of men, that if you're injured and need medical attention, that you shouldn't seek medical assistance until you've first contacted your Embassy?

Did you also know that if you're employed by some companies in the United Arab Emirates and are raped, that it's best not to tell them or you could end up with the additional stress of being fired.

Unfortunately these and other horror stories aren't isolated examples. Yet this is the country that QANTAS is now funnelling unwary Australian tourists through on their way to the UK and in which travel agents are encouraging stopovers.

Helpful information about the potential danger of travel to the UAE is tucked away in the Australian government travel website www.smarttraveller.gov.au, rarely read beyond a cursory glance by the novice traveller because, understandably, being jailed for being raped is a possibility that hasn't been considered. A victim of rape would naively assume that seeking medical help would be safe and they certainly wouldn't think that if they'd been violently abused, that seeking necessary medical attention would result in being charged with "having sex outside marriage" and ending up being held in custody, with your passport confiscated and not allowed to make a phone call for assistance.

Being jailed for being raped has been reported about at least two young women, one an Australian who was jailed for 8 months for the "crime", the other a young Norwegian who will be in jail for 16 months on charges including being raped.

The UAE with its vastly different expectations of behaviour and brutal attitudes towards women and sexuality, is "set to be one of the hottest destinations from Australia in 2013" (QANTAS website)  where even our Embassy may be unable to assist if you're the victim of rape and have been charged with that "crime".

Victims of sexual assault: It is possible that victims of sexual assault may be charged by UAE authorities for engaging in sex outside of marriage and be dealt with according to the criminal law. There have been cases in the UAE where sexual assault victims have been imprisoned after reporting an incident to local police or upon seeking medical assistance. Sexual assault victims should contact the Australian Embassy in Abu Dhabi or Consulate-General in Dubai, or the Consular Emergency Centre in Canberra, as quickly as possible to obtain relevant information on these issues and guidance on what support services may be available. Consular officers cannot provide legal or medical advice but can provide lists of English-speaking service providers who may be able to assist you in this process. Contact details are listed under Where to get help.

Note the use of the word "may" - it's not clear that there are support services or that they will be able to assist. 

All women, but particularly young, unmarried women need to be extremely careful when travelling in the UAE - even if it's just a stopover. Drink spiking happens - you will be blamed if you're the victim of sexual abuse and could well end up in jail. Is it worth it?

Good one QANTAS - more young women will now be exposed to this vile attitude towards women and rape and a culture which appears to condone the abuse and jails the victim. A culture where women are less than second class citizens. I have the horrible feeling that these two publicised cases aren't going to be the last.

Thinking about ethics as I often do, I'd be uncomfortable promoting Dubai as a stopover for men or women without encouraging them to read the extended DFAT website thoroughly. It's relatively easy to search for information about being drunk (a crime), holding hands (a crime) and even the crime of looking at local women (another crime), (here) but it's not on the QANTAS website and there is no link or even the hint that you need to understand local customs in far more detail than one would normally expect. The issue of rape is not surprisingly, avoided or ignored expect on the DFAT website.

Jewish Australians 
If you're a Jewish Australian, forget it, it's possible you may not be allowed to leave the airport, although that's unclear (here) - which could be a blessing in disguise! It's certainly not clear from information provided by QANTAS. Good one QANTAS for supporting discrimination. But what happens if lots of aircraft are grounded and airport hotels are full? Where do our Jewish friends go? If they're not allowed to leave the airport - will they be forced to sleep on the floor in the transit lounge?

Do travel agents remember to ask all travellers? Do they remind travellers to get a new passport if they've travelled to Israel? Do they give clear information about who to contact and NOT to contact in the case of emergencies and why this is vital? Can they direct travellers to information about local laws?

GLBT and defacto couples
Not only will there be a clash of cultures with attitudes towards drinking and holding hands in public, but sex outside marriage is illegal and you may be asked to prove that you're married. I wonder how many Australian couples are made aware of this before travelling? What does QANTAS suggest they do?

Homosexual acts and sex outside of marriage: Homosexual acts and all kinds of sex outside of marriage are illegal and may lead to severe punishment, including imprisonment and fines. Foreigners have been imprisoned for having sex with people to whom they are not legally married. De facto relationships and civil unions are not recognised in the UAE and any sexual acts within these relationships are considered to be sex outside of marriage. It is also against the law in the UAE to live together or share the same hotel room with someone of the opposite sex to whom you are not married or closely related. If checking into a hotel as a couple, you may be asked by management to prove that you are legally married. These laws apply equally to UAE residents as well as visitors.

QANTAS, I won't be staying in Dubai, and I'll discourage everyone I know - I refuse to support a country which openly condones violence towards women and blatant discrimination towards fellow Australians. You haven't provided clear information or obvious links to smarttravellergov.au and appear not to have thought through the implications of your partnership with Emirates, not only on your own staff, but on Australian tourists.

Tourists could understandable be forgiven for assuming that if Australia's trusted airline QANTAS and their travel agents are encouraging a visit to the UAE, that the country is relatively safe. Given the warnings on the Australian Government travel website, that is a questionable assumption.

Travellers need much more than a superficial "be careful, they have different laws there". That is such a vague statement as to be meaningless for the unwary, inexperienced traveller who knows nothing about Sharia law. The sign at the start of this post about bears is more helpful. It's clear the situation and danger is taken seriously and the traveller is appropriately warned about the danger which could be experienced. You are able to make an informed decision before staying.

Lift your game QANTAS and Emirates and give the travelling public adequate information about the "hottest destination for 2013" so they can make a fully informed decision about whether they choose to visit or not.

Racism
For anyone who wants to use this a platform for racism think very carefully about blanket assumptions about any group which has repressive attitudes towards alcohol, women and sexuality. Right wing, fundamentalist men in many religions including Christianity and Judaism as well as Islam have more similarities than differences in this regard.

So called christian men in the US and Australia profess very similar brutal attitudes towards women and are keen to impose repressive, backwards ideas onto the rest of us. Some make laws about what women can and cannot do regarding pregnancy, others are determined to impose their creationist views and disregard for science onto schools. In Australia, men have used their position as priests to sexually abuse children and have systematically, knowingly and deliberately covered up the crimes.

All countries have their share of both progressive and fundamentalist groups - thankfully, so far in Australia they haven't managed to gain as much power as those who make the laws in the UAE.

Let's keep it that way.

........
https://www.facebook.com/smartraveller.gov.au

http://www.smartraveller.gov.au/zw-cgi/view/Advice/United_Arab_Emirates

http://www.qantas.com.au/travel/airlines/flights-dubai/global/en#local-culture

http://travelinsider.qantas.com.au/a_date_with_dubai_travel_city_guide.htm

http://www.smh.com.au/travel/travel-news/dont-kiss-dont-swear-rules-of-a-dubai-stopover-20130326-2grsc.html

http://www.smh.com.au/travel/travel-news/get-to-grips-only-with-rules-on-dubai-transit-20130323-2gmef.html

http://www.news.com.au/travel/travel-advisor/qantas-answers-questions-on-emirates-deal/story-e6frfqfr-1226609581728

http://www.jewishnews.net.au/qantas-no-need-to-fly-via-dubai/27830

 

.

Happiness and its Causes - Do you want sugar with that? Part 2

David Gillespie is among many people who believe sugar is an addictive substance and that we should consume significantly less of it than we do. But is it easy to break an addiction when the substance is crammed into most convenience foods which are so readily and enticingly available?

I mentioned here how sugar, MSG and other salts are being added to a greater variety of foods and in grossly larger quantities than ever before in the history of mankind. And we’re paying the price of a fast food lifestyle with obesity, depression, type two diabetes and other damaging and costly health effects.

A number of people have mentioned to me how difficult it is to break the addiction to convenience foods. So, how do you begin to break the vicious cycle?

I'll mention some today, and share information about "The Happiness Diet" later on.

Jan Morrison over at This Crazy Writing Life (here) has been talking about Kaizen – adopting small, achievable steps to change.

In contrast, one of the moderators at the conference talked about removing all sugars from her diet in the space of a week. She suffered horribly the first week, found it really hard for the second week, but after a month she began to feel better than she had for years. It's not something I’d encourage without sound medical reasons. Not only are you going to have withdrawal effects, but your brain will likely panic, have a bit of a hissy fit and retaliate by craving more - just in case it's going to be deprived for ever! That seems to be how it works all too often for most of us, and the result is yo-yo dieting and grumpy mood swings.

I’m more comfortable with the Kaizen path. Instead of munching on a whole Mars bar, choose a smaller one, or leave a bit and keep the rest for later, or throw it away if possible! If you’re used to chewing through a museli bar (they’re packed with sugar, but appear innocent) for morning tea, try eating 2/3 of it and wrap the rest for another time.  Celebrate every mouthful not munched with a loving pat on the back and a verbal "Well done!" It might seem daggy, but it's worth it, and your brain will enjoy the novelty.

Bush turkey finishing off some ice-cream in Noosa QLD.
If it's not good for us, it's not good for other creatures, and should be in the bin.

I've been known to suddenly realise I'm scoffing something sweet, mouthful on mouthful, not really conscious of what I'm doing and suddenly notice what's happening. My choice at that instant is either to swallow or not. I try to remember that even one mouthful not swallowed is worth it. And occasionally if I've chosen to spit out one mouthful, it's easier to put the rest aside.

That's a pretty good feeling. I celebrate with a pat on the back and sharing with someone who cares. My husband and two friends have offered to support and celebrate with me. We don't talk failure, we share the success of a mouthful not eaten, or a smaller portion consumed. Every tiny step is worthy of our attention.

Check out the labels on the foods you habitually consume.
I’d become quite complacent about checking labels and had been encouraged to use low fat yogurt (which I don't like at all) instead of the full milk style I usually enjoy. A house guest was scathing about the low fat version, and said his wife wouldn’t touch it, but had no idea why. When I looked at the label, I found that the unpleasant no fat yogurt had 4 times as much added sugar as the full milk one I usually buy. (Handy chart here) There is a big difference between brands too, so it's worth checking.

In the previous post I mentioned that David Gillespie's goal is to have no more than 2 teaspoons of sugar per meal. Yet in one very small 100 gram serve of yogurt, which it's possible to eat in seconds, you can consume twice that. And you’re not even had a sweetened drink yet.

The above picture is from Choice, and whilst it doesn't specifically focus on sugar, you can see some of the other frequent additives in foods. The article is available here, and makes for interesting reading.

It's best to purchase your foods from the perimeter of the supermarket and do some preparation yourself. For all the clever, manipulative advertising, convenience foods packed with chemicals don't make for a balanced diet, and the massive multinational companies don't have your best interest at heart. Their bottom line is profit, not your well-being.

So, take small achievable steps, and celebrate every gram of sugar not consumed.

.

Happiness and its Causes - Do you want sugar with that?

How does your diet affect your state of wellbeing? Are you really depressed and grouchy, or could it be the state of your digestion?

What role do the additives in our food have on our moods and wellbeing?

For millennia sugar was a rare luxury. Our hunter-gatherer forebears would have consumed it rarely, and mostly in the form of honey - when they could find and extract it from wild bee hives.

Our bodies and brains then said: “yummy, let's scoff as much as possible!” Our brains apparently turned off the ‘full’ receptors to allow us to keep scoffing, because we didn’t know when this lovely sweetness would be available again. It was a response that had been developed over millennia and was supremely appropriate for a scarce resource.

David Gillespie spoke forcefully at the ‘Happiness and its Causes’ conference about the research that supported his belief that the added sugars in our foods are having a massive affect on obesity with enormous health impacts. His web site is here.

He attests that is isn’t a lack of willpower that makes dieters feel helpless at their failure to lose weight and keep it off, but that the added sugars turn off the “full receptors” and make us want to eat more food in general. It's a vicious cycle that we are unlikely to win whilst we keep eating sugar which he calls 'sweet poison'.

A little bit of history:
According to some historians, throughout much of recent history (at least the 1600’s onwards) the Western diet consisted mainly of bread and large quantities of fruit and vegetables, which supplemented fish, and smaller amounts of meat. Processed foods were unknown. If you wanted something, you had to prepare it yourself, or buy it from a local supplier. Foods were mostly grown and consumed locally. Exotic ingredients like spices and sugar were transported from distant lands at great expense, and as such were considered a luxury and used sparingly.

Until relatively recently it was impossible to over-consume sugar. It wasn’t ever added holus-bolus to foods, and when it was added, it was with great ceremony and reverence. The stuff was simply too expensive to waste unnecessarily on unappreciative guests. It was a very impressive status symbol.

Sugar was purchased as a solidified lump in a form known as a cone. The hard cone of sugar needed to be further processed in the home before use. Chisels and mallets were used to break off smaller lumps, which were broken down further for kitchen use with strong tongs. In the dining room, even smaller nippers were used to break off pieces for addition to tea or the meal. A mortar and pestle was used to make powdered sugar. Quite a bit of energy was expended to get the cone of sugar into a useable form!

According to Bill Bryson in ‘At Home’ “in 1770 per capita consumption of sugar was running at about 20 pounds per head … Britons today eat 80 pounds of sugar per person annually, while Americans pack away a decidedly robust 126 pounds of sugar per head”.

Just to put this into perspective, 20 pounds is approx 9kg. That's about the comfortable weight of a sweet little lap dog. 80 pounds is approx 36kg, which is equivalent to a big dog such as a Labrador. 126 pounds is approx 56 kg. That’s as heavy as Bull Mastiff - that's a huge animal! A whopping increase for a substance that we are designed to have in meagre quantities.

Food for thought:
David Gillespie describes lethargy and sleeping problems being associated with a sugar rich diet. He believes that the over-consumption of sugar leads to insulin resistance, type two diabetes; that it promotes ageing, feeds cancers and is highly addictive.

David has eliminated all foods with added sugars from his diet including sweets, biscuits, juice and soft drink. If his family wants sweet things, they make them from scratch. This enables them to appreciate the item, they know what is in it, and it is eaten with a mindful attitude.

Prior to cutting out most sugars from his diet, David was 40kg overweight; he doesn't appear overweight now. He says he now knows when he feels hungry, and is able to stop eating when he is full. He trusts his body to let him know when to eat or not and is enjoying the experience of being in control of his food consumption.

David set a limit of 10 grams of sugar per meal, ie 2 teaspoons. 

Back to some history:
What it means is that in the space of a couple of hundred years, we’ve gone from sugar being a luxury and treated with great respect, to it being shovelled into a vast array of foods, beverages and condiments by businesses that have a vested interest in us consuming as much as possible, no matter what the consequences to us, the consumer. It is now so ubiquitous that we are unaware of it infiltrating foods at a greater and greater rate and at higher and higher concentrations than ever before in history. We don’t have to work to get it, and our bodies haven’t adapted or evolved to process it any differently than in the past.

If the foods you eat are processed and have an abundance of sugars as well as MSG you are facing an uphill challenge. Anecdotally, MSG is associated with an increased desire to eat the food in question – think potato chips, and even rice crackers. One of my friends talks about how MSG is added to make us want to continue eating. Some people believe it should be labelled as an addictive substance. How do you detect it? Have a look at the label: It’s number 621 and is usually called a ‘flavour enhancer’. Taste-wise, it’s when the food tastes unnaturally scrumptious and you just want to keep munching – but because it is a salt, it can leave you feeling thirsty – and what do you drink? Another item possibly packed with sugars and more MSG – addictive indeed!

So we have two apparently addictive items being increasingly added to many processed foods. In case you aren’t feeling a bit manipulated already, spend a moment thinking about the advertising industry. They target the psychology of eating, and carefully and deliberately select the words associated with encouraging you to eat more, and more, and more. “Don’t stop at just one!” “ You can’t say no”.

Is it any wonder many people struggle with their weight, their moods and general well-being? How does what you eat affect you?

This theme is continued in the next post here, where I talk about weaning yourself off the sugar habit.

.

CDAA Workshop: 31. To do list

(This post forms part of a series of powerpoint slides from a presentation I gave at the Career Development Association of Australia Conference 2010 entitled: The Roller-coaster Ride from Permanent Part-time Employee to Private Practitioner.)

How does any self employed person become known? Whether you be an artist, author, musician or career development specialist, it seems we all face similar challenges.

I was reading the blog of an author this morning, and she was commenting that whilst she can write well, and her books sell, there is still the need for self promotion - it happens to be a major hurdle for her, and was certainly mentioned by most of the workshop participants. I think it may be one of the reasons why so few people "make a go of it" - it comes back to that feeling of being really exposed and vulnerable. We all have skills, not all of us have the skill of promotion.

Have you also noticed that often when someone does go down the road of blatant self promotion, it can come across as them having an inflated sense of their own EGO, so they get flak for that too. It's a fine line isn't it.

CDAA Workshop: 23 - 24. Web site or not?

(This post forms part of a series of powerpoint slides from a presentation I gave at the Career Development Association of Australia Conference 2010 entitled: The Roller-coaster Ride from Permanent Part-time Employee to Private Practitioner.)

I eventually had a web site created. It was one of the most confronting things I've ever done. I found the whole process extremely daunting, and it took around 9 months. Very like having a difficult pregnancy, but an exciting birth, with due celebration!

I approached a student of mine who I knew had done some good web sites. She was a young mum, and was so supportive, and gave me loads and loads of information, advice, and lots of tactful, kind cajoling. When it came to doing the "about me" segment I did rather stick my heels in. I just couldn't see the point, and as for a photo - there was no way I was going to go there! But, as you can see I did cave in to her experience. And she's right, people do look at the photo, and read the blurbs.

Sometimes it's easy to forget that not everyone is alike. That kind of thing wasn't so important to me, but having gone through the process, I take more notice of what others have done now. I also thought the whole Testimonials page was unimportant, but have been assured people take note of them. I had assumed they were made up, but used real comments from real clients.

I became sidetracked and read research papers on eye tracking, how to write for the web and the like. I found it really interesting. Some people might call it procrastination ;-)

Because of my interest in Learning Difficulties (including Dyslexia) I tried to make it all user friendly, with lots of pictures that would give a feel for the kinds of people I like working with.

I like colour, and it's important to me to be surrounded by tasteful design and complimentary colours. I've got friends who've said they're happy to go with whatever is recommended by their webmaster, but perhaps because I've been burnt by people who say they have in depth experience of writing and design (but ultimately turn out to be novices) that I - how do I say this nicely - take more of a hands on approach.

Michelle was extremely patient, and worked above and beyond what anyone else would have done. I am indebted to her, and so grateful for her persistence with my fine tuning tones of colour, fonts and overall layout.

As I mentioned in the previous post, I have since found some people use LinkedIn in place of a web site. Not a bad idea really; cheap, efficient, and easily updatable.

I also have an artist friend who has used iWeb to produce his own, and it looks great.

I think there's a place for doing it all yourself if spending a lot of money if out of the question.

People get to my website from my listing in the CDAA find a practitioner. I am also listed in the Russ Harris ACT link.

It's always important to CELEBRATE!! our achievements no matter how insignificant, but especially when they have been a long time coming. A pat on the back (even if it's your own hand doing the patting) is not to be shunned.

CDAA Workshop: 20 - 22. Advertising

(This post forms part of a series of powerpoint slides from a presentation I gave at the Career Development Association of Australia Conference 2010 entitled: The Roller-coaster Ride from Permanent Part-time Employee to Private Practitioner.)


The kinds of things I've done and people I've spoken with to promote myself as a private practitioner.

I've had 3 versions of my business card so far -I'm the kind of person who can see room for improvement! The most recent was produced by my lovely local printer in under a week. I knew I was going to work at the Reinvent Your Career Expo in Melbourne a couple of years ago, and it seemed sensible to have something suitable for the event.

I'd been unhappy with the previous card which had been designed by a graphic artist. I'd been procrastinating hugely about getting another done as I knew I'd been ripped off with the earlier one. Thankfully this experience was really different. I got to chat with the designer (no charge!!) and he suggested something cheerful that might appeal to the demographic I sort of expected to be working with. No rip off, AND quick printing! What more could I ask for (apart from heaps of enthusiastic clients)?

We had a general discussion about what worked, what didn't and why. There was some great input from the participants. Interestingly very few people had received leads from psychologists. I had seen us as working in tandem with them, but the general view is they see us as more or less poaching their clients. Hmmm.

I've placed ads in the local paper (got one client - so didn't cover costs), a glossy local magazine that had a bit of an alternative angle and encouraged work life balance/life coaching etc. (no clients). I regularly attend networking functions (no clients) (so maybe the BNI would be better as they are more into marketing, not so much for the social scene.

Generally it was felt that word of mouth was the best marketing possible. Strangely (or not) a friend who is a psychiatrist said he'd be unlikely to be in a position to refer people to me, but has at the time of writing been my best, most consistent support.

A couple of local allied health professionals were very keen when I spoke with them about my business, and appeared to genuinely believe they would have lots of referrals for me: however after 2 years, I've had none.


.

CDAA Workshop: 18 - 19. Resources for business start up - a sample!

(This post forms part of a series of powerpoint slides from a presentation I gave at the Career Development Association of Australia Conference 2010 entitled: The Roller-coaster Ride from Permanent Part-time Employee to Private Practitioner.)

Here's a sample of the websites/institutions available to assist the Career Development private practitioner with business ideas, marketing, and general information.

BNI is unapologetically a marketing organization. Is costs somewhere around $1000 to join and for a year membership. You are expected to attend a breakfast meeting each week and be an active advocate for the other members of your group.

Each group only has one representative of each business, so there is effectively no competition. I can see that it would be beneficial, and everyone I have known who has belonged says it is excellent for leads and generally keeping your enthusiasm going.

Each week you give a little blurb about what kinds of leads you are looking for that week, and the other members try to assist.

Have I joined? For me, the deal breaker was making a commitment to turn up for breakfast each and every week during the year. It is effectively $30 per week to market your business, and may be really good value, as long as you're able to make the time commitment. You're only 'allowed' to miss 2 meetings, and above that need to find someone to substitute for you. 

.

CDAA Workshop: 4. Marketing on a Shoestring

(This post forms part of a series of powerpoint slides from a presentation I gave at the Career Development Association of Australia Conference 2010 entitled: The Roller-coaster Ride from Permanent Part-time Employee to Private Practitioner.)

2004 - ?

How long can it take to find the gumption to start?


This is something I often observe in clients. An idea forms, but it seems that tomorrow will be a better day to begin the process of change. 


The first step sometimes seems too hard to take, and before you know it, years have slipped past... and nothing has changed, except you've got older.