A Sphere of social and professional support

A COUPLE of years ago, Christine Browning was looking for a new way to connect with other Ballarat women in business, so she could discuss work challenges, seek support and socialise.

“We all have stressful jobs and need to express that stress in an environment that is confidential and helpful,” she said.

In her role as a Real Estate Consultant, Ms Browning already associated with a broad range of professional women, so decided to bring a few together, forming the Sphere of Influence.

“It’s not like a networking organisation, and we don’t want to have a huge organisation, it’s more for us and our benefit, that we can talk about things that are troubling us in a trusted environment,” she said.

“I wanted it to be an intimate group that we do trust and we like, we help each other and talk freely.”

Now established, the safe, noncompetitive group features quite diverse professionals, including a conveyancer, a corporate lawyer, a property stylist, and finance and mortgage brokers.

“It’s really people that own a business or are business orientated that would be interested in what we’re putting out,” Ms Browning said.

Member, Ink Digital’s Sandy McKinnon, works in printing and  marketing.

She said it’s not always easy to find other women who understand the trials and conflicts involved with heading a brand.

“It’s hard for people who aren’t running their own business to understand the challenges of people who are running their own business,” she said.

“Sometimes it is a bit lonely running your own shops, particularly if you work on your own. You’re so busy and so focused. It’s tough.

Sphere of Influence is like a support network for decision makers.

Finance Broker, Barb Berndt appreciates the group’s intimate feel.

“Because we have a small group, you can talk to each other, share things, run things past each other. You just can’t do that once it gets bigger, it’s no longer a trusted network,” she said.

Once a month, the group meets for an hour at a different café or restaurant around Ballarat to support local hospitality business owners.

“That’s super important,” Ms Browning said. “We get seen at different places and we’re supporting our community.

“We are professional and people see us in a place and can associate that we’re making an effort to come to their venue.”