I'm honoured to announce that I've been recognised by Adelaide Now in their article "Listed: Meet 50 South Australia innovative business women kicking goals and find out how they do it". It’s a privilege to be included alongside so many inspiring women who are making a difference in their industries and communities in SA! In this blog, I’m sharing the interview I did with Adelaide Now, where I reflect on the challenges, successes, and the driving purpose behind Enliven Outdoor Adventures. I hope it gives you a glimpse into the heart of this business and the impact I strive to create. Thank you for being part of this journey. Your support makes everything possible!

You can hear the full list on Adelaide Now here. Interview with journalist, Ruby Stewart, November 2024

1. What has your career path looked like to get you to where you are now?

I studied a bachelor of health science and education at Flinders University, but more importantly, I grew up in the Mid North on Ngadjuri Country and received the education of an outdoor childhood, after-school bike adventures to the forest and family camping holidays. Between that childhood to now; 31 years old and facilitating outdoor experiences for women, there has been the uni degrees, a gap year of expedition sea kayaking with 4 other women, becoming burnt-out from volunteering with environment groups, an internship with Oceans Research in South Africa, a teaching placement in West Java, a certificate II in Maritime Operations at Tafe, and a string of exciting jobs like instructing shark cage diving in Port Lincoln, instructing abseiling in North Queensland, and kayak guiding in the Adelaide Dolphin Sanctuary. This pursuit of jobs, travel and experiences that (in hindsight), have created a career in outdoor tourism and outdoor education, have all informed my practice as an outdoor guide for women in my two businesses; Enliven Outdoor Adventures and Active Rest Retreats (co-founded with Sarah Hayes). Since being in business, I have obtained Quality Tourism Australia Accreditation, finalist status in the SA tourism awards 2021 and SA woman awards 2022, successfully earned a Nature Based Tourism Grant, and been a semi-finalist in the 7news Young Achiever Awards 2023 and 2024 and being invited to join the Paddle Australia Industry Advisory Panel.

Jessica Fox, me and Noeme Fox at the recent Paddle Australia Awards. What an honour!

2. Tell me about your business/industry area. What drives your passion for this kind of work?

My vision is for a future where the outdoor adventure landscape is diverse, accessible and sustainable. My Mission is to inspire, lower the barriers, and create opportunities for women and girls to get outdoors for their body, mind, soul and planet. Throughout my string of experiences in outdoor tourism businesses and on outdoor education camps, I noticed a pattern. There was a recurring need to prove myself as a woman in the field, and a recurring theme of seeing women and girls taking a backseat and/or being underrepresented in these outdoor spaces. I decided I wanted to help change that, so I founded Enliven Outdoor Adventures in 2020 as a space for women to connect, learn skills and find empowerment through outdoor experiences, while also helping them foster a positive relationship with nature. In the words of Sir David Attenborough, " No one will protect what they don't care about, and no one will care about what they have never experienced", which is why I believe that getting women outdoors not only benefits their physical, mental and spiritual health, but it also has flow-on benefits for the environment.

3. What challenges have you faced/overcome as a woman in business?

I read an article last week that said women-led businesses won a mere four per cent of venture capital in 2023 (NAB). Well, I faced the challenge of having never even heard of venture capital! You don't know what you don't know, and 5 years ago I believed that you needed a business degree and lots of savings to start a business! How could I have known that I could give pitches for venture capital, have handshakes and get in the right rooms when I didn't even know that it was legal for me to start a business? Since discovering I could in fact legally start a business, I've faced many challenges such as two unseasonably wet and windy La Nina summers (forcing the cancellation of tours), and a lack of personal financial literacy (thank you "She's On The Money" podcast for educating me!). However, my biggest challenge has been training myself to believe and know that I belong in the rooms, I deserve the handshakes and I have valuable insights to share!

4. Why do you think women are such an important asset to the business world?

While I believe that it's hard to speak on the strengths of an entire gender, I recently heard an idea that overall, men often make decisions that result in an outcome of action, whereas women often make decisions that result in an outcome of connection. This really resonated with me, and while of course all humans (regardless of where we sit on the gender spectrum) need all different strengths and skills for our societal ecosystem to flourish, I like this idea that women are hardwired for the connection piece of the puzzle. I think women bring this asset to the business world through empathy, play, receptivity, and collaboration, and I've loved experiencing this in action whilst working with other female founders! What a radical realisation that work gets to be fun and playful and creative and mutually beneficial for the provider and the customer alike!

5. Who is your inspiration?

At the moment I'm most inspired by 3 women. 1) Elayna Carausu from "Sailing La Vagabonde", for her entrepreneurialism, feminine way of being, and for inspiring others to pursue their dreams with full abandon. 2) Georgie Stevenson for her ability to grow two 7-8 figure companies in an authentic, fun and purpose-driven way. 3) Florence Given, for encouraging women through her writing to "live deliciously" and to open themselves up to the pure joy that life offers when we turn our attention towards intentionally seeking it out.

@elayna.carasau (source instagram), Elise with @georgiestevenson (credit to author) and @florencegiven (source instagram).

6. In your opinion, what is the key to success?

This depends on what your definition of success is. I wouldn't say that my business has yet achieved a level of "success" that others might aspire to, but to me, I have been successful in fulfilling my desire to empower women through outdoor experiences, while also living a varied, adventurous, and joy-focussed life! My key to achieving this success is following what lights me up, which might not be useful business advice in amongst practical ideas around strategic growth and targeted marketing, but everything I offer in my businesses are things I genuinely believe in and genuinely want to do. I think my clients can feel this authenticity and it gives me daily fulfilment, which is a great indicator of success! I'm not waiting for retirement; I'm living a life of rest and play right now!

7. What has been the greatest lesson you have learnt throughout your career?

Be audacious. My previous employer at Cuttys Boat Tours and Adventure Bay Charters, Matt Waller, has always modelled to me how to "not take no for an answer". I once had a permit application rejected, and I bowed down to the deciding body like they were the ultimate authority, but Matt told me to ask why, to call back, and to negotiate new terms with them and try again! I believe this skill can be harder for women to master, as many of us have been conditioned to be "nice", "not cause any bother", and to avoid taking up space and time. I'm getting more confident the more times I ask for a longer deadline, ask for a better cancellation policy, ask for more clarification on a document, or ask for more of what will benefit me and my business in a collaboration. Ladies, be audacious!

8. What is your favourite part of your job?

Aside from the travel, the nature time, the collaboration with my business partner Sarah, and the creativity involved with making ideas come to life, I love that I get to experience feelings of gratitude, impact, and worth everyday while I work as the catalyst that helps women connect back to themselves, to one another, and to nature.