Survive and thrive this Business Fest

THE B31 Ballarat Business Festival is back this month with a calendar of events aiming to support enterprises to not just survive but thrive in their pandemic recovery and beyond.

Commerce Ballarat’s Zoe Becker there’s a huge range of events that cater to all ages and experiences, from professionals to school students.

“From the Wellness Wednesday exercise classes, to workshops on tender writing, a session about how businesses can address waste, and the Surviving and Thriving Panel by Runway HQ, there’s such variety this year,” she said.

“Year 10 students will again be involved in the interactive Mindshop Excellence work experience program, and we’re looking forward to the Biznet Breakfast at Housey Housey next Tuesday morning with guest speaker Dean Pearson, NAB’s head of behavioural and industry economics.

“The Festival is a way for businesses to look at how they’ve been doing things, how they can better themselves and their business, and attract new clients.

“There is something for everyone – bigger and smaller businesses, employers, and employees.”

A half-day Uncover Your Strengths to Thrive at Work workshop run by the Committee for Ballarat will be presented by leadership programs lead and workplace psychologist Ellen Jackson on Tuesday, 30 August.

“It’s designed around a strengths questionnaire that participants will complete, and then get a profile on their psychological strengths and the essential things that give them energy,” Ms Jackson said.

“This is useful for understanding why people enjoy a particular task or work style, and it’s useful for teams to understand each other and their motivations, so they can work collaboratively as a team and capture the best of every team member.

“We know from research that if we play to our strengths and do more of what lights us up in life and work, that’s key to wellbeing, mental health and happiness.”

Ideal for any professional who’s got a leadership responsibility, whether they’re a supervisor or a senior manager, Ms Jackson said the session will be a lot of fun.

“It’s quite interactive, and the strengths concept comes from positive psychology, so it does have a positive lens looking at who you are at your best and most energised, rather than weaknesses that need to be fixed,” she said.

“Let’s understand who you are at your best and see if we can capture more of that.”

Head to bit.ly/3PRcSGi for the full calendar of events, and to book.