My Pathway - Self-Employment Assistance

We love seeing one of our own featured by the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations!

A huge congratulations to Wylie from Artisan Bakehouse on this well-deserved recognition.

You can read his story here:

From side hustle to sourdough success: How Wylie built Artisan Bakehouse - Department of Employment and Workplace Relations, Australian Government With support from Self-Employment Assistance, Wylie has turned a passion into a thriving regional business.

Want to start your own business?

Maybe you’re already a business owner and could use some support?

We can help!

My Pathway provides fully funded small business mentoring, advice, business planning and training across the North, North-West and East Coast of Tasmania, Cairns, Mackay and the Northern Territory.

Whether you’re at the beginning or somewhere in the middle of your small business journey, having the right support can make all the difference.

Get in touch today and let’s get your business moving!

https://mypathway.com.au/self-employment/

WE LOVE SEEING OUR PARTICIPANTS SHINE!

A huge congratulations to Wattle Hill Olives, one of our previous participants, on taking home the Agricultural Business Award at the Local Business Awards!

From nomination, to finalist, to WINNER. What an achievement.

Starting and growing a small business takes courage, persistence and plenty of hard work. There are the exciting moments, the long days, the uncertainty and all the things nobody sees behind the scenes.

One of the most valuable things about My Pathway's Self-Employment Assistance program is having a mentor alongside you while you are finding your feet. Sometimes it is practical business guidance, sometimes it is helping you work through a problem and sometimes it is simply having someone there who understands what it takes to build something of your own.

The real measure of a program like ours is not just what happens while someone is participating. It is seeing what they go on to build afterwards.

We are incredibly proud to have been part of the Wattle Hill Olives journey and absolutely delighted to see this business recognised by its community.

Here’s to all the small business owners out there who are quietly building something wonderful. Take a moment to stop, look back and recognise just how far you’ve come.

🥂🏆 WE WON 🏆🥂🫒 What a night!!

Firstly… we were nominated!
Secondly… we became a finalist!
Finally… we were announced WINNER of our category ‘Agricultural Business’

Thank you to Local Business Awards and Commonwealth Bank and The Examiner Newspaper, Launceston for putting on and sponsoring this event! It was such a good night.

Thank you to all our very loyal customers, the local North TAS community Latrobe Community News & Information for supporting us through the ‘highs and lows’ of agriculture… we love you all!

Thank you to Kaliba Nicole Schultz Latrobe Council North X Northwest The Tasmanian Mark Business Tasmania for all your business support.

Starting and growing a business is tough! Us as owners do not take the time to reflect on our growth and development. We focus too much on the negatives and not the positives. To all business owners take some time to reflect on what is good!

Additional thanks, whether its for harvesting, coaching and mentoring, behind the scenes guidance, emotional support or work on site:-

Georgeandronnie Tahu
Devonport Farmers Market
Margaret Davies
John Davies
Josh Davies
John Wilson
Julian Rand
TC Taylor Building
Clive Gareth and Steve and Max
Taztanks Pty Ltd
Tony Treloar
Where's Wally Cleaning
My Pathway - Self-Employment Assistance
Steve Greenhalgh
Judith Whiley and John
AND our local farmer (you know who you are)

Great to see other supporting local business WIN including Basalt Restaurant at The Cove

My Pathway has been privileged to support Selena Furnari Indigenous Art as she builds her creative business and brings her vision as a Mamu artist into the world.

Selena is a contemporary Indigenous artist and proud Mamu woman from Far North Queensland, creating work deeply rooted in Country, culture and the stories held within the land. Her artistic practice is not simply about creating beautiful work. It is about honouring culture, preserving knowledge and creating space for people to listen, learn and understand.

Through the My Pathway Self-Employment Assistance 12-month Small Business Coaching program, Selena has been supported by her mentor, Tegan, who has worked alongside her as she develops the business foundations to support her artistic practice.

And what a journey it has been.

In 2026, Selena was commissioned by the Community Support Centre Innisfail to create The Colours of the Water as part of their Reconciliation Action Plan. Inspired by the meeting of the North and South Johnston Rivers in Innisfail, the artwork speaks to connection, Country, memory, community and the ways different stories can come together while still carrying their own histories.

The work was created for National Reconciliation Week 2026 and reflects the theme “All In”, inviting us to consider what it means to actively participate in reconciliation through listening, respect, understanding and action.

For Selena, art is also a way of advocating for the natural world. Her work reflects her passion for biodiversity and the importance of protecting the ecosystems and Country that sustain us.

Selena is the artist. Selena carries the stories. Selena leads the work.

Our role is to support her with the business knowledge, confidence and practical foundations to help her take that work forward.

We can't wait to see where her journey takes her next.

Who wants a tropical sea change? Did you say ‘I do’?

Last year, Jade reignited her childhood dream to become a wedding planner, packed in her career in Melbourne and moved thousands of kilometres north to take over and reinvigorate Weddings of the Whitsundays.

Just months into her new business she found herself reflecting on the amazing journey she had made to grow the business into one of the Whitsunday’s premier wedding planning services.

“I was listening to my first ever booked couple speak the most tearfully beautiful vows to each other on Whitehaven Beach,” she said.

“The sun was on my face, and I remember thinking that not even six months ago I was in a role my heart was no longer in, wondering if there was anything else out there for me.”

..read more about Jade's amazing small business journey here:

Sea change helps rings to exchange - My Pathway Weddings of the Whitsundays owner Jade has been supported by local My Pathway Small Business Mentor Brian Ward through the 12-month business coaching option available in the Self Employment Assistance program and credits much of her success today to him and the program.

“Before joining the My Pathway Self-employment Assistance program, I had no real direction. I was taking a few classes a week, but my goals weren't written down, and I hadn't truly stepped into the identity of being a business owner. That has completely changed.

The coaching calls and in-person sessions with Roberta have been invaluable. She brought structure to what felt overwhelming including financial forecasting that makes growth feel visible and achievable. Every session has given me fire in my belly. She thinks outside the box, shares her own lived experience, and brings an abundance of knowledge, recommending books, podcasts, and resources I wouldn't have found on my own. She reviewed my website, helped me build systems, and always shows up with a smile and a genuinely warm belief in you and your vision.

There are also free online workshops, and the option to study an accredited business certificate at no cost, the support goes far beyond what I expected.

Since starting the program, I have launched my website, I'm picking up business cards this week, I have invested in equipment, had 1:1 clients, a corporate session, group sessions, collaborations in the pipeline, and events in the diary for later this year. But honestly, the biggest shift has been in my mindset. I now say out loud, "I have a business. I am Helen from A Space to Breathe .

If you are thinking about taking the leap and turning your ideas and dreams into your own business, I cannot recommend the My Pathway SEA program enough. It is so much more than business coaching.”

We love hearing these stories from our participants. If you would like to find out more about Helen's offerings, please visit her website at https://www.aspacetobreathe.com.au/

If you would like to become one of our participants and build your own small business dreams - let's get started! https://mypathway.com.au/self-employment/

When our Cairns Small Business Mentor Roberta got her new puppy Koby recently, she knew just who to call for his training.

One of her first participants almost a year ago was Nadine from FNQ Paws, and with the business still thriving, it made perfect sense to close the loop again!

Koby graduated with flying colours and is now considered an 'adolescent' (good luck with your teenager Roberta!).

If you have your own pupper in Cairns that could benefit from some positive reinforcement and training, make sure you look Nadine up!

National Employment Services Association.