LEADERS WE LOVE
Beccy Garlett
Warlitj Productions
Noongar Yamitji raised in Noongar country
"You can do or be anything you want to be, you just gotta want it hard enough and never tunnel vision your dreams."
Tell us about the vision for Warlitj ?
Our vision is to help break down racial barriers and educate in a fun and welcoming environment. Hoping to help others, Indigenous and non Indigenous people, share their thoughts, beliefs and culture. The more we educate about the beauty the more hope we have for a peaceful future.
How and why does social media play an important part in leadership and innovation for Indigenous Australians?
Being truthful to myself. I work hard. I do a lot of research and I check in with elders to make sure I’m not doing anything I'm not allowed to do. I always ask elders for permission before doing anything culturally. I guess that’s very important and one way I manage to create that balance between business culture and Aboriginal culture.
What value does having this balance bring to your organisation/business?
It has given me a greater sense of cultural pride, it makes me want to learn and understand more about my culture. My professional journey is also my personal journey and I am sharing that with others along the way.
What are the 3 most valuable things you have learnt when engaging with Aboriginal Communities?
1. Be truthful, your stories may be different to what others have been told and that’s OK, there are lots of stories.
2. Be open. Be open to hear and learn others tories and be respectful and lastly,
3. Have humour: that's the blackfullas key to the heart!
Were there any challenges you had to overcome and what tips would you give to others that may be facing the same challenges?
Finding my family stories was very challenging, they got lost along the way, due to the stolen generation, and I had to dig deep to find them. There were tears along the way but it was worth it because I know who I am now. It took 33 years to hear stories from and about my ancestors… and there’s still so much more to learn.
My tip would be the usual, don't give up!. I found it hard to get the stories out of my family, so I yarned with another family about their stories, came back had a coffee with my dad and Uncle and it was like a flood gate had opened up.
How do you see your business continuing to make an impact over the next 5 – 10 years?
Keeping fresh. Gotta mix the cultural tradition with modern, urban traditions and the kids will respond well. I guess coming from an actor's background and doing improvised theatre I can walk in to a room and know if i need to change what I had planned for the day.
There is an increasing interest from the public about what I do and the kinds of services I offer to the community so my business is steadily growing. Its gonna be something big, something we haven't seen before.
What is your advice for those people wanting to get involved in raising the profile of Indigenous people, issues, and communities?
● Do your research
● Talk with elders learn as much as possible
● Use the internet to get the ball rolling.
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