Latest / Sarah Knows Support Workers / From Drama Teacher to Care Trainer: Yvette’s Pivot to Ethical Training

Transcript

From Drama Teacher to Care Trainer: Yvette’s Pivot to Ethical Training · Sarah Knows Support Workers

0:00
Hi, everyone, It's Sarah from the support worker store today.
0:04
All right, I'm going to. I've got a confession.
0:06
Anybody that is named a vet, I call Spaghetti, so a Betty
0:09
Spaghetti. I have quite a few events in my
0:11
life, but you're the only event that I've got in trading in
0:15
RTO's Congratulations events. And you know what?
0:18
Everybody calls me Betty or Evie or Vettles or you know that I
0:23
think about it. Well, you can add spaghetti onto
0:26
your list now. So if halfway through this
0:28
podcast I refer to he was forgetting, please no, I mean a
0:32
bit. Goodbye mate.
0:33
So I'm going to dive right into it.
0:35
You ready? I'm.
0:37
Ready. I think so.
0:39
How did you first get started in the care and training sector?
0:44
Ha ha. Well, that is a very
0:48
interesting, strange, bizarre little journey I have been on.
0:53
So originally back in, oh, the 90s, I want to say maybe
0:59
something like that. I qualified as a teacher, right?
1:02
You're stuck. Standard drama teacher.
1:05
But I somehow, Yeah, I like, what the hell am I doing
1:09
teaching drama? But which is fun and I loved it.
1:12
Hey, why not? And like I kind of was really
1:16
young. I was like, I don't know, 22
1:19
when I graduated and I was teaching high school.
1:22
So I'm teaching like your nines, your tensing your lens.
1:25
So I'm not very far in age, you could say.
1:29
And you know, it was just like it was OK, but I thought I'm
1:33
going to have more fun teaching little people.
1:36
So then I went on to qualify in early childhood and primary
1:40
teaching and then did all that, taught little people, loved it
1:44
so much. Started up my own drama school
1:46
teaching little people. Somehow when I kind of teach the
1:51
little kids, I somehow ended up in outside school hours care.
1:55
And then I was managing this and directing these programs and
2:00
doing this, that and the other. And then I fell into training.
2:08
Yeah, it's like, wow, I'm teaching bigger kids now, bigger
2:12
kids, adults. But hey, sometimes there's not
2:14
much difference. So what take a training has
2:16
always been in your blood. Yeah, teaching, training men,
2:21
quarry, all that sort of stuff. Yeah, I've, I've always been,
2:26
even when I was like at school, I remember I was doing peer
2:29
support. So like I was in secondary
2:31
school tutoring and looking after the kids in primary
2:35
school. So that's how far back my
2:37
teaching goes, I guess you could say.
2:40
So you talked about how you did teaching, you've gone into drama
2:45
school, you did little kids, you did big kids, and now you're an
2:47
adult. So what inspired you to start
2:49
Ethical Training Solutions? Wow, that's a very not a really,
2:56
it's strange to know how things happen.
2:57
So in this instance, I was working for a registered
3:01
training organization and I was the training manager, training
3:06
coordinator for early childhood, you know, the diploma room that
3:08
said three. And I was like, OK, this is
3:11
pretty cool and loving it. Whatever.
3:14
And then the owner of that sold out to a larger corporation and
3:19
I quickly found out my ethics and their ethics weren't
3:22
aligned, shall we say. And so I'm like, hmm, time to
3:26
go. So I left and I partnered with
3:30
some RTO. So I had some partnerships going
3:33
on and we managed to get students up skilled and trained.
3:37
And then I got them jobs as well working in childcare.
3:40
And that was in 2015, in September to be exact.
3:45
Yeah. So what kind of training does
3:49
your company offer? Well, we offer accredited and
3:53
non accredited training for the care industry.
3:55
So you're looking at, you know, your CPD type courses, there's
3:59
your little short courses, and also we do have diplomas and you
4:03
know, set threes that we also deliver through our training
4:06
partners as well. So any support workers watching
4:09
this, would they be able to do any training with you?
4:13
So which one would they do? Yeah, there's, yeah, there's so
4:18
much out there. So we have got heaps.
4:23
So we have got a whole lot of even short courses.
4:26
Like this week I just had 9 enrollments in our autism
4:30
spectrum course. That's an online course that
4:33
we've been offering and I just literally made that course of
4:37
the week in the past seven days and we had about 10, no more
4:41
than 10, probably more than 10 enrollments in that course.
4:44
And that's childcare centre directors who want their staff
4:47
to upskill and also support coordinators and disability
4:51
providers. That's been a really big course.
4:54
So we've got courses like that in mental health as well.
4:57
Also hopefully all the sponsoring take up for this
5:01
year, but we're waiting to see what happens next year in terms
5:04
of your bigger courses for individual support and all that
5:08
sort of thing. That's a next year one because
5:10
it is all full. Yep.
5:13
So is it all online or is it in person?
5:17
It's mixed. Do a lot of we well, we do a lot
5:21
of in person and online. I prefer in person.
5:25
I think people need to get out there and get involved in
5:28
classes, and the best way to do that is to get A and get into
5:32
class, and that's where the fun happens.
5:35
But hey, I understand you're going to make learning and
5:38
education accessible to everyone, and that's where
5:40
online comes into it as well. Yeah.
5:44
So what's the favorite? Like what is your favorite part
5:47
from teaching in your own business?
5:50
Think seeing the outcomes, you know, you see someone come to
5:54
you who wants to work in the care industry, whether it's as a
5:57
support worker, child care, whatever, or just say care
6:00
industry and you watch their journey from when they started
6:05
to their progression through the course to then working.
6:08
On the What's the favorite part of random?
6:12
Yeah, that's right. I was, yeah about seeing the
6:15
student outcomes, seeing people progress in their career.
6:19
That's really rewarding for me do.
6:21
You get to see them out and about.
6:23
Yeah, I do. I have one student actually
6:26
who's blown me away. She's actually a maturation
6:28
student. So she came to me when she
6:31
pretty much retired from her corporate type role and she
6:35
decided she wanted to go into child care.
6:37
So she went in, She did her Cert 3, did her diploma.
6:42
I still see her. She's now room leader at a
6:45
childcare centre. So I've seen her progress right
6:48
through all these years and I still speak to her every, you
6:52
know, every few months I see her at Christmas time and she sends
6:55
me photos of, you know, displays she's done.
6:57
Oh, look how far I've come. Thank you so much.
7:00
It's really great seeing things like that.
7:02
I. Think you're touching on a
7:03
really good topic? It actually doesn't matter where
7:06
you are in life, your age, your career, you can always pivot and
7:10
change. Yeah.
7:11
Definitely. Age is just a number.
7:15
It means nothing really. I look at this like I was
7:18
talking to somebody the other day, One of the best hires that
7:21
I ever had in the disability sector was a man that's probably
7:25
in his late 50s, maybe early 60s.
7:27
He was a diesel mechanic and he was the best support worker I
7:30
ever had by far, hands down. And this was somebody that had a
7:34
career pivot. Do you get any?
7:39
I do actually. You know what?
7:41
From post COVID I have noticed a lot of career pivoters of career
7:47
changes come in. That's more prominent now I
7:50
would say in the last few years than pre COVID.
7:52
Is it just for people looking for because the industries that
7:56
you provide training in used to care industry, Is it people
8:00
pivoting to get to, you know, like have that, that warm fuzzy
8:05
feeling when they turn out to work because that's what, you
8:08
know, aged care, disability, childcare, any care teaching
8:12
gives us. Yeah, I think it is.
8:15
I think it's, I think a lot of people over that period of time
8:19
kind of thought about what they were doing, what their future
8:23
holds. I mean, it was a difficult time
8:24
for everyone and a lot of people questioned, I guess their career
8:27
choices and wanted to do something more meaningful.
8:30
And that's where the care industry comes into it.
8:32
You're actually helping people and making a difference as
8:35
opposed to other things that you might be doing.
8:38
One male Burnie into another. We didn't suffer at all.
8:42
Not a time I want to remember. No, it's not.
8:46
I've never been so fearful of a puffer jacket in my life.
8:50
And Andrew's, thank you very much, I was.
8:53
Thinking, well, I was looking back on my Facebook memories.
8:56
You know how they come up? You know, every day it says
8:58
Facebook memories. And they had the doughnuts, like
9:01
how many doughnut days we had from all my years back.
9:05
And I'm just like, did we live through this?
9:07
My goodness, it's like crazy. Got to wear the suit on the Papa
9:11
jacket. I just want to be free.
9:16
So now I did a deep dive because I'm NO0 a bit.
9:21
I am so nosy that I know that you enjoy volunteering roles
9:26
within your company and how it works, and you've done a heap of
9:29
volunteering in the past. Tell me more, How did
9:31
volunteering tie into the company that you currently run?
9:35
Yeah, so all the volunteering work I do is care industry or
9:40
welfare community focused. So one of yes, I know, right.
9:45
So I do 2 at the moment, one of my roles and I don't want to put
9:48
which one I love more, but they're both really cool.
9:51
So one that I do is with Delta therapy dogs.
9:54
So the I go out with my dog Daisy and we're placed in a
9:58
nursing home, but we do other things as well and we provide
10:01
care and support to people via animal assisted therapy, which
10:05
is the most amazing outcomes and things I have ever seen.
10:10
I'm so grateful for doing that, you know, helping the community
10:14
that way. It is phenomenal things that go
10:16
on. It really is.
10:19
So that's really cool. And then the other one they do
10:22
is a little bit closer to home is to do with my cultural
10:24
heritage. So I'm the secretary of the
10:27
Gusto Larizian Association of Victoria.
10:30
So that's a Greek association. We're quite a large association
10:34
here in Victoria and around Australia and we've had our
10:36
centenary year this year. So I've been promoting and
10:41
supporting our community all sorts of different events.
10:44
And one event that I did do with one of my friends was a big
10:48
history and cultural event for the community showcasing our
10:52
history over the past 100 years. And that was really, you know,
10:56
awesome. Love that.
10:58
How do you fit it all in? Someone said to me a very wise
11:03
piece of advice. They said busy people make time.
11:07
And you know what? That's true.
11:09
The busier you are, the more things you you can tend to fit
11:13
in your schedule. And that's where busy people
11:16
make time. So how do I do it?
11:19
I do it 'cause I love it, you know, I do sometimes I'm working
11:23
seven days. If it's work combined with
11:25
volunteer work, I wouldn't change for the world because
11:28
volunteering, it gets me out in the community.
11:31
It opens my eyes to actually what's going on, especially in
11:33
the care industry because it's both those roles are very care
11:36
focused and it's like I'm seeing it from a different perspective
11:40
as well, which is really important.
11:42
I'm not just the trainer training people.
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I know the support that people need because I'm out there
11:47
living it from a different angle, so to speak.
11:50
So what can't you into it? Because volunteering, it's
11:54
something, it is a love job and it's something that you enjoy,
11:57
but what got you into it that you're so passionate?
11:59
They continue because a lot of people start volunteering and
12:02
then they stop. Yeah, well, funny enough with
12:06
Delta Therapy Dogs, that was another let's see where it takes
12:10
us thing and other random things.
12:12
So back in 2019, my dad was quite sick and he was in a
12:18
hospital, rehab sort of thing. And he had a dog come visit him,
12:22
which was from Delta Therapy Dogs.
12:24
And he used to love walking around with the dog and he had
12:26
photos of the dog. And then in 2020, dad passed
12:30
away, but mum decided let's get a dog.
12:32
So he rescued a dog called Daisy, the RSPCA.
12:36
And it turns out Daisy loves people.
12:39
Well, and I mean loves people. She needs to be with people.
12:44
And at that point, I'm like, it would be really cool to do some
12:47
volunteer work. Maybe I should try and deal with
12:49
therapy dogs. And that's how that started.
12:51
But I'm it gets to going, seeing the outcomes from the residents
12:55
at the nursing home that were placed at seeing how happy they
12:59
are, how stress free they come, they become when they see Daisy
13:03
because a lot of them had animals that had to leave behind
13:05
as well. So, you know, seeing that is
13:08
what keeps you going. And then on the group side of
13:10
things, well, it's MyHeritage, it's my background, it's to do
13:14
with my grandparents and my parents.
13:16
And I guess that's just supporting my community and
13:19
having a closer connection to my cultural heritage.
13:23
That's how that comes into it. What keeps you so motivated
13:26
after working in this sector for so long?
13:30
Really, it's the people I meet, the students I see as well,
13:36
knowing that I'm doing something good to help people and help the
13:39
community, That's what keeps me going.
13:42
It keeps me motivated. I mean, sometimes there's bad
13:46
people out there and good people, and I hope the good
13:48
people outweigh the bad people and I'm one of the good ones
13:51
that help do that. I guess it's the best way of
13:53
putting it so. We've got such hands on
13:56
experience in our sector, what's something that you wish people
14:00
understood about care industry more?
14:03
Yeah. Well, they, they need to know
14:06
that it's not just, you know, it's some people when it comes
14:10
to support work, they think maybe it's just taking someone
14:13
to appointments or take them out for a coffee or, you know,
14:17
sometimes it's that general kind of feeling.
14:19
It's not. It's about empathy.
14:22
It's about having the skills as well.
14:24
It's about helping people. So yeah, those type of things.
14:29
It's not just all giggles and fun.
14:32
There's actually a lot of work behind it in both industries
14:36
where it's childcare or, you know, the disability industry,
14:39
you know, childcare. You're not just playing with
14:40
kids. It's not babysitting.
14:42
You're actually educating the kids.
14:44
So people need to think about that as I go into the industry.
14:48
Have you, when you do your training, there's also
14:51
placement. Have people being given like
14:54
people that you've sent on placement being given a quite of
14:56
a shock or a wake up call on placement?
15:00
Yes, some have I I would say some some kind of common, like I
15:06
didn't realize we had to do whatever it was.
15:09
Oh, we had to do personal care. As a support worker, I go, well,
15:13
you're doing the course. It's kind of part of it.
15:15
Yeah. You know, like it's not all just
15:18
taking someone out for a coffee there.
15:19
There is personal care involved in it or in the childcare.
15:22
What? I have to document a child's
15:24
learning. I'm like, well, yeah, you're not
15:26
just there to sit and read a story.
15:28
You're helping educate this child as well.
15:30
So yeah, you do have to do a bit of documentation.
15:33
Those sort of things. I come across a lot, especially
15:36
when they're being on placement and they will start going.
15:38
I don't want to go up at 7:00 in the morning.
15:40
It's like, tough. This is the industry welcome.
15:43
It's like, that's it. Yeah, there's been times I
15:53
wanted how some people pass their courses.
15:56
It's like you've got to provide care and care is in all parts of
16:01
somebody's life. It isn't just going and having
16:04
the fun stuff like the movies and, you know, going out and
16:06
buying groceries. There is that personal care
16:08
element to it. And it's, it's people's undoings
16:12
at the best of times. I believe that every, I believe
16:18
that every business has clues. And when I say leaves clues of
16:22
how they got successful and how they're able to build.
16:25
And in your case, you've been around for 10 years.
16:27
I is that right? 10 years, yeah.
16:29
Yeah, yeah, 10 years, Celia. What who?
16:34
Has anyone along the line helped you build your business or
16:38
supported you through your build?
16:41
Look, my family, like they've been, you know, pushing me along
16:45
all the time and teaching me. I come from a business family.
16:48
My dad was a pharmacist, had his own business, my mum worked in
16:53
it. So I've kind of been around
16:54
business my whole entire life. My brother runs his own company
16:58
as well. It's in our blood.
17:00
People actually say, people who come from Gustalozo, where my
17:04
grandparents came from, we've got this crazy work ethic in our
17:07
DNA because our grandparents are such hard workers as well.
17:11
So I could say my family is what has pushed me is the best way of
17:16
putting it. What advice would you give
17:18
anyone that's wanting to build a business like yours?
17:21
First of all, you have to eat some concrete and harden up is
17:26
the first thing because it's a tough world out there.
17:30
That's my honest truth. If you're going to set up a
17:32
business, be ready for so many ups and downs.
17:36
It's not all Lamborghinis and mansions.
17:39
It's actually a lot of sleeping. Late nights, lack of sleep,
17:44
catching flights, early flights, weird flights, working from
17:48
airport lands, working from planes, trains, automobiles.
17:51
It's tough, right? Be ready for that fast.
17:55
You know that you can do it if you're doing something that you
17:57
love. Like when I'm doing the work in
17:59
the industry, that's what my company is about.
18:00
I love the care industry. I love, you know, helping
18:03
people. So to me, it doesn't feel like
18:05
work or hard work. Yeah, it's tough, but I don't
18:08
mind because I love what I do. So you have to love what you do
18:11
to make it work well as well. It's beautiful.
18:15
Have you been able to like, is it just you that in the business
18:18
or have you been able to hire anybody else?
18:21
Yeah, I was just going to, I do. I mean, there's trainers.
18:25
I've got a trainer in Adelaide who's does first aid.
18:28
I've got staff here as well. I've also got this most amazing
18:32
admin assistant. He's offshore, located overseas
18:37
and he's been with me for nearly three years.
18:39
He's amazing. Like he puts up with a lot for
18:43
me, but yeah, I he helps a lot too.
18:48
What makes ethical training solutions different from any
18:51
other provider on the marketer? Well, I know my stuff.
18:56
I guess we know what we're doing because we live and breathe the
18:59
care industry and also an answers at all ethical training
19:04
solutions. So what we do is backed by
19:06
ethics. It's not some quick get rich
19:09
scheme to conflict. Training is actually real.
19:22
How do you make training interesting for any learners out
19:27
there? Make it fun and interactive.
19:29
That's what I say when it comes to training.
19:32
I have famously done some really crazy batshit things in
19:37
training, but they're all compliant and all ethical.
19:39
One very famous one is I was teaching at the time.
19:44
It was quite, I was teaching, it was work health and safety.
19:48
I was actually teaching that unit and I looked out my window
19:51
and a fire truck pulled up to do just some safety checks as they
19:54
do. So I just stopped the class.
19:56
I went out and hijacked the fire truck and said, hey, fireman,
20:00
you know, I'm teaching work health and safety.
20:02
They're like, Oh yeah, we can help with that.
20:04
So they did some demonstrations of the gear.
20:06
We talked about safety, fire, all that had photos taken as
20:11
well. I remember we went back in the
20:13
classroom so. Yeah, that's how I make training
20:17
fun and interactive. That's a true story.
20:21
Was all legitimate. Amazing the right opportunity.
20:25
Yeah. And when I see the right
20:28
opportunity, I do it like another one.
20:31
There was another safety, there was a safety unit again we were
20:34
doing. So we went for a walk in the
20:37
market. There was a market nearby, so we
20:40
went for a walk in the market to see how unsafe that was.
20:43
And you know, it's relevant as well.
20:45
I make it a little bit different, I guess, but relevant
20:49
because it's a real world. I want to sit down with a
20:51
PowerPoint if I can help it, and read off a bunch of slides.
20:55
Yeah, I have to do that too. But if I see an opportunity
20:58
that's relevant to what I'm teaching, let's make it a little
21:01
bit different and fun and you'll never forget it.
21:03
Sounds like a very memorable, but it's that thing, isn't it?
21:06
Because training really is like, you could do all the teaching
21:09
stuff on the board, you know, decks of what do you call it,
21:13
slideshows and all that stuff. But you got to get.
21:15
Yeah, hands dirty. And you've got to be able to
21:18
have these skill sets that that expand and then only expand
21:22
because you're using them outside a classroom.
21:25
I I get it. Yeah.
21:27
So in your opinion, what skills do you think every day good
21:31
support workers, carers, childcare workers, aged care
21:36
workers should have? They need to have empathy to
21:40
start with, ethics as well, but also really good skill set, lots
21:45
of really good training and lots of relevant training as well.
21:49
And then use that training. Because if you're not skilled,
21:52
yeah, you can be as empathetic and as you know, as ethical as
21:56
possible, but you kind of need to know what you're doing at the
21:59
same time, right? Combine all that together and
22:01
you'll be an all worker. So.
22:04
With your courses that you deliver, how do you make sure
22:06
that you stay up to date with any changes that are happening
22:10
in the NDIS and aged care sector?
22:13
Yep. So I myself like a student, I'm
22:16
always reading things, I'm always doing professional
22:19
development. If there's a webinar, I will
22:23
join up to it. If I can't watch it, I'll watch
22:25
the replay, you know, to do with the NDIS sector, disability,
22:28
childcare. I'm forever reading.
22:32
I'm participating in networking sessions.
22:36
I'm forever updating so I've got the correct info always.
22:40
I don't have any changes there can be in both sectors.
22:43
So I'm constantly learning and that's what I do as a trainer
22:48
and as an educator. I can't educate my students if
22:52
I'm not up to date myself. So do you help your students
22:55
find a job after they complete their course, or is that
22:58
something that they've got to go on to look for themselves?
23:02
Yeah, no, I do help them the best of my ability.
23:05
I do have contacts out there in the industry, so I will put my
23:09
feelers out and try and find them.
23:11
The position through my network doesn't always happen because
23:15
some people, you know, due to location or you know, things
23:19
like that, you know, might take up a job and that's up to them,
23:23
that's fine. But I try and give people as
23:25
much opportunity as I can, so. For sites that you also run a
23:30
Facebook group that involves the community and I've noticed
23:35
because of no Z right that you have begun doing some more
23:41
networking opportunities. Can you give us some examples or
23:44
what you've got planned in the next couple of events for
23:47
networking opportunities? Yeah, so we have just started
23:51
just this year doing some free networking opportunities, and
23:55
that's really just bringing people together because I
23:57
believe we learn better as a community, not from just, you
24:00
know, being separate. And also, let's be honest,
24:03
Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, whatever it is, it can be toxic
24:07
as hell out there, right? And sometimes we just need to
24:09
come together in a safe space and that's what I'm trying to
24:12
provide. But I kind of come up with that
24:15
idea. Let's do a bit of a connection
24:18
and learn. So let's combine professional
24:20
development with networking to make it a useful opportunity for
24:24
everyone. So that's what we're currently
24:27
working on. We're going to hopefully soon.
24:29
We were going to do it in November where we had to no, in
24:33
October, we had to cancel a few sessions because I got sick.
24:36
So we're trying to find another opportunity to do them, but
24:39
we're looking at doing mental health training and networking
24:42
in one. So about mental health support
24:45
for first responders and combining that with networking.
24:48
So you're networking, but you're learning.
24:50
So you're connecting and learning.
24:52
So do you do this at a cafe? In a library?
24:54
Where do you conduct these events?
24:57
Yeah. So the free ones that we've been
24:59
running, which are just purely networking, we've been doing it
25:02
at cafes, we've been doing it online.
25:06
There's a cafe in Adelaide. Hi guys at Soho Coffee Roasters
25:10
who have put up with me having little sessions there with
25:13
people. They've been great.
25:15
And here in Melbourne, little Chloe's cafe have been helping
25:18
me out with a little spot when I've got little meetings going
25:22
on. But I've also got my office
25:23
space here in Melbourne as well, so I have access to a room
25:26
there. But I also do it online because
25:29
sometimes it's just easier because people live in so many
25:32
different places. So a bit of everything, but I'm
25:34
trying to connect and learn mental health ones in person
25:38
because it is mental health. I think we need to come together
25:41
as a group to do training on that because it can be a little
25:44
bit confronting and it's kind of, you know, you're all
25:48
tickets, you can support each other through it if something
25:50
does come up within that session.
25:52
A live wire, You've got energy, you have got energy.
25:56
So when it comes to networking, can you get anyone out of any
26:01
advice that would like to attend your event?
26:04
Like if you're shy, what they could do to, you know, engage
26:07
with you. Just just turn up.
26:10
You don't even have to talk. I'm going to have for you to sit
26:12
there and other people do all the talking.
26:15
If you're going to get something from it or make a connection, I
26:17
do not mind. It's a safe space.
26:19
I don't want anybody to feel threatened.
26:21
What happens in the session stays in the session.
26:23
If it's an online one, yes, I record it, but it just stays on
26:27
my files just for me and never gets broadcast anywhere.
26:31
No one's e-mail addresses get shared without anybody's
26:33
permission, No photos, dead without permission.
26:36
It's a very, very safe space and I call it the kind of silence.
26:40
So whatever is said in any environment stays in that
26:44
environment unless there's something you want it to be out.
26:48
And I will happily share it for you all, but I'm just very
26:52
conscious of that. And I also said to people, you
26:55
know, if you're going to talk about your work, don't use
26:57
people's real names, your clients real names or their last
27:00
names or anything like that. You know, just keep it very
27:03
generic because we want to make it as safe as possible and not,
27:07
you know, keep confidentiality at the same time.
27:09
So yeah, you don't have to come and participate.
27:11
You can come and listen. Whatever.
27:13
I'll just, you know, lurk in the background.
27:15
I don't mind as long as you get something from it and feel safe.
27:18
That's all I want from it. So oh, do you post them all
27:21
through Facebook group or LinkedIn?
27:24
Where can we find your events if somebody would like to attend?
27:28
You can find them everywhere. You can find them on LinkedIn.
27:32
You can stalk my Instagram, which is just my company name,
27:36
ethical solutions, my Facebook groups, go to my Facebook page,
27:41
my personal profile on Facebook. I'm an open book.
27:45
Really. I really have nothing I'd so oh
27:48
I've got Tiktok. I forget about that.
27:49
I've been playing with that lately doing Tiktok live so
27:53
still make it in. I don't really get it, but hey,
27:55
it's just something else to play with.
27:58
It's not for me. I did the Instagram lives for a
28:02
bit and I enjoyed it, but I just, I think, yeah, just got, I
28:06
don't know, like I think I felt a bit paranoid, like, oh, who'd
28:10
want to listen to Sarah? Like silly I I don't like we
28:13
all. I'm not you, but I at times
28:14
suffer from impostor syndrome. Like what have I got to give?
28:18
I've only done this for 17 years.
28:20
Whatever. I just find it weird, like, like
28:23
people will sit there and you can see little names, you know,
28:26
they're watching you, but no one's like, participating.
28:29
So you're like, am I talking to people?
28:30
They could be sitting on the toilet watching me for all I
28:33
know. Like, that's a bit weird, right?
28:35
You know, my little mind starts ticking overtime.
28:37
I'm going, this is a bit weird. I don't know what they're doing.
28:40
Yeah, weird. It's.
28:42
Yeah, I look, I am my social media present presence is very
28:49
when it comes to lives. I just, I don't know, I just
28:52
don't do them. I don't get a kick out of it.
28:53
I if I'm going to do it, I want to make sure that I have created
28:57
educational content that, you know, people will watch and
29:00
watch and watch. And I just felt like the lives I
29:02
didn't get as much people watching to get that kick out of
29:05
it, but they learned something from it.
29:07
So like a take home. I always that if I'm going to do
29:10
it, that's the reasons why do it, if that makes any sense.
29:12
Yeah. But yeah, ask you this question.
29:16
How did you come up with your business name?
29:18
What made you pick your business name?
29:22
That was probably the one of the most easiest things I've had to
29:26
do. I was at work as I was planning
29:30
to set up this company and I'm like, what is lacking around me?
29:34
Oh, that's right. So that's how the epical part
29:38
came to it. And then of course, what am I
29:40
doing? I'm training people and giving
29:42
them solutions, ethical training solutions.
29:45
Literally gained it up in 5 minutes.
29:47
And I was just looking around myself and we're going, Oh yeah,
29:50
lacking ethics, ethical training solutions.
29:53
And then it's got conditions to ETS.
29:55
Well, it worked perfectly. I can see there was a gap in the
30:00
market and you went for it. There's a big gap.
30:05
How do you support others in your team to keep learning and
30:08
improving? Because if you're like you said
30:10
before that you have other trainers in different States and
30:12
I'm sure, how do you ongoingly train them to make sure that
30:16
they're they're compliant to your business?
30:19
Yeah, but I always check in on everyone.
30:21
I always check what they're doing.
30:23
I mean, not micromanaging, but I also give them training as well.
30:27
David, the guy in Pakistan, my VA, he sits in on all my
30:31
meetings across everything. He probably knows more about the
30:33
Australian education system than I do to tell the other street.
30:38
So and I like to give people the opportunity to grow so to come
30:42
with me with ideas. And you know, I, I value my
30:45
staff's ideas. It's not all about my brain.
30:48
They're part of it as well. And they come up with ideas,
30:52
share them with me. Let's try them, let's see if it
30:54
works. And I feel that way.
30:55
I'm mentoring them as well. Do you take on new trainers?
30:59
So anybody that has done their training and assessing or has
31:03
been a teacher would like to get into this sector.
31:05
What is one way to get your attention?
31:08
Well then for you to consider them as a hire.
31:10
Just send me a message, say hi, let's start a conversation and
31:13
see where it goes. I never say no, but I like to
31:17
see where it goes. You know, you could send me your
31:19
CV and we're going to have a chat and then, you know, six
31:22
months down the track, something might happen.
31:23
I'm like, I remember talking to that person six months ago.
31:27
This role would suit them. So don't ever think if you send
31:30
me something now and nothing comes of it, you never know.
31:32
In this industry, things happen fast.
31:35
Yeah, and if anyone wanted to pop in, where is your office
31:39
located? Yeah.
31:40
So in Melbourne, I'm based in South Yarra in the Como
31:44
building. So I have a little office there.
31:46
I'm not there that often because I travel a lot, some between
31:49
Melbourne and Adelaide quite a bit.
31:52
So usually I always say it's appointment, don't just turn up.
31:55
Simon at the desk will be like Nah, she's not here because most
31:59
times I'm not there. Tell the honest truth.
32:02
So I always say by appointment, that's the best way just to
32:05
schedule appointment with me. And yeah, happy to meet you.
32:08
When I'm ever here in Melbourne or wherever I am, Adelaide, I
32:12
just use a cafe at the moment on my apartment and you know if I,
32:17
I've got other venues so that I can rent out and that.
32:19
So yeah, but just best send me an e-mail wherever I am in this
32:24
world, even if it's on a plane somewhere.
32:26
Hey, I'm going to meet up with you if I can.
32:29
So where do you see your business 10 years from now?
32:34
Hey, yeah, well, if you told me 10 years ago it would be where I
32:37
am now, I'd be like, huh, Well, just recently, in the past
32:42
month, we signed a new training contract with a national
32:47
training provider, which opens up the doors nationally.
32:50
Hey, that's right. Now I can do things in more
32:53
things in Adelaide, more things in Melbourne, and we're slowly
32:56
branching out to Perth as well. So we're just kind of creeping
33:00
around this side of Australia. It's a slow burn.
33:04
I'm not just waking up and going, hi, let's do it.
33:07
A lot of research has gone into this and a lot of thought.
33:10
It's not just an overnight process.
33:12
So, so far, Melbourne, Adelaide, but I want to add some more sort
33:15
of states as needed when I see a need for training in those
33:19
areas. So maybe 10 years time, the
33:21
whole of Australia, maybe New York is next, who knows, I don't
33:25
know. I go with the flow.
33:26
So when you got this provider that you've been able to work
33:30
for, did you have to tender or was through networking?
33:34
How did you get yourself into that position to be able to grow
33:36
your business? Yeah.
33:38
It was a lot of research and and I don't mean like a good, you
33:43
know, nearly 12 months of research, looking at the
33:45
compliance, the training, thinking about it, a lot goes
33:49
into it. And then it was their
33:51
compliance. They had to vet me and that took
33:54
a good three months. They had to go through all my
33:57
qualifications, police checks, make sure that all my calls were
34:02
compliant and that's a long, long process from my teaching
34:07
degrees to my training and assessment.
34:09
I also in that process upskilled and did some short courses in
34:13
mental health as well so I could train some mental health things.
34:17
So that took time. It was a really, really long
34:21
process. And with any training partner
34:23
that I've ever taken on board, it's a long process.
34:26
It's not some, I mean, I've had a lot of RTO's now who contact
34:29
me going, we love to partner with you.
34:30
I'm like, yeah, no, bye, next, please.
34:32
Because I take pride in the fact anybody that I put my name to it
34:37
has to have the same ethics as I do, as my company does.
34:41
So it's a long, long process. How do you filter that?
34:45
Because some people present so well and it's only after a
34:49
couple of months or you know, a bit longer than that you go.
34:52
Our values don't actually align. Yeah, a lot of stalking, like
34:57
you did with me. Be honest, transparent.
35:03
And it's a public forum out there, right?
35:05
You give me your name, I'll put my little FBI cap on and go,
35:09
what can I find out? So yeah, a lot of that.
35:13
And you hear things in the network as well, like the
35:15
training industry is kind of a small industry.
35:18
You meet people on the way, you hear things, you stalk the
35:23
people, you hear about other companies that you hear about,
35:26
and there's government websites and reports from people who have
35:29
reported training organisations. You go there and check, is there
35:33
any little things I should be wary of?
35:35
Look at their compliance history.
35:37
Yeah. And you kind of go with a gut
35:39
feeling as well as something looks right.
35:41
It checks out. Yeah.
35:43
But but hey, I can cancel a contract at any time and I'm
35:46
very careful how many students or whatever the training
35:49
provider to start with because I want to try it out or I, you
35:53
know, till I go any further. So I've got my little process
35:56
but a lot of stalking unfortunately and I hate doing
35:59
what I feel. Feel bad.
36:02
No, I call it investigating. I'm investigating because if I
36:07
thank you, if I'm going to put my name to something and my
36:10
brand to something, it needs to align with me.
36:12
And if it doesn't align, I don't want it.
36:14
It's that simple. Yeah, that's right.
36:17
And you know, if you're putting yourself out in the public
36:20
sphere, you know, on socials and things like that, you're fair
36:24
game and you're there to be stalked or to be investigated,
36:27
right? You can't hide.
36:28
I mean, you can put crap up or whatever, but I'm going to find
36:32
out a little bit more about you. That's how it is.
36:35
You're out in the public. They're just going to see that
36:37
Sarah has a lot of bad Mondays. I've been seeing you on Monday,
36:41
but I can relate to some of your bad Mondays and Mondays are my
36:44
worst day, but it used to be Wednesday.
36:46
I used to have wacky Wednesdays when the weirdest stuff would
36:49
happen on a Wednesday. I don't know why.
36:52
But that's changed to Monday now, so it could be Tuesday next
36:56
year, you know? It's this theory that bad stuff
36:58
happened on a nice day sounds really terrible but like the sun
37:02
is shining, the birds are singing and then ban.
37:05
Nothing bad happens on a rainy day.
37:07
Like it's crap outside, but nothing like terrible happens
37:11
like I yeah, any I'm. So trying.
37:14
To us right now I've got a completely like I honestly feel
37:17
like weather sunny day misleading.
37:19
I, I, I'm actually, yeah, I can see that.
37:22
So if anybody wanted to network with you and to find your
37:26
organization to, you know, be a student, what is the best way to
37:30
get to you? You can go to my website, which
37:33
is just ethicaltrainingsolutions.com dot
37:37
AU. As I said, I'm an open book.
37:39
I'm everywhere in social. So just Yvette Salvaris or
37:42
ethical training solutions. I'm out there.
37:45
Send me a message any way you can.
37:47
I'm open door and I never miss a message because my assistant
37:52
always makes sure I never miss a message because he knows how
37:55
crazy I'll get. And he'll message me saying
37:57
you've got a message so you can find, you know, send me a
38:00
message. And you cater for all levels of
38:03
students that come to you, from ages to different backgrounds
38:07
and such. Yeah, well, really you're
38:10
supposed to be. You should be over 18 or have
38:12
left school. It gets a bit hard winger at
38:13
school to do these kind of courses.
38:16
There's a lot of ethics behind that.
38:18
Yeah. Like there is no barrier to
38:20
learning all cultures, even if you've got a disability, I'm
38:23
sure there's something we can find as well that would suit
38:26
you. Whether it's, you know, the, as
38:28
I said, sometimes it's better for people to a shorter course
38:31
like your CBCPCPD, you know, you continue professional
38:35
development, little skill sets before you go on to a larger
38:39
course because that gives you a bit of a taster as to what to
38:42
expect. So there's different ways to
38:44
doing it depending on how you feel, especially if you haven't
38:47
studied for a while. If you're student going back to
38:49
studying, sometimes it's better to do something really little
38:53
that's not going to affect your funding or anything like that.
38:56
That's a little taster before going into something bigger.
38:59
And have you got any advice for anybody wanting to study?
39:04
Is there things that they should do before getting to a training
39:06
organization? Yeah, make sure you want to do
39:09
the course, but you don't really know until you do it anyway.
39:12
But I always say just give it a go, right?
39:16
Like, don't be scared. Education is not scary.
39:19
It's not chalkboards, whiteboards, not with me anyway.
39:23
It's not PowerPoint. It's not falling asleep.
39:26
It's not scary. Assessments.
39:28
Yeah, you got to do assessments. But we can help Trainers,
39:32
teachers, we're all here to help you.
39:34
Not to trick you up, but you're in a bad position.
39:37
So do that training. Don't put it off.
39:40
Don't think you're going to get somewhere in the care industry
39:42
without training behind you. Please go out there and do
39:45
something. I know there's a lot of support
39:47
workers working with alcohols who think I don't need it.
39:50
It's a waste of time. No, it's not.
39:52
You're dealing with really vulnerable people here who
39:55
really need your help, and you have to be the best that you can
39:57
be, and you're going to do that by educating yourself.
40:00
Yeah, I, I will put my hands up and say that I have been stung
40:05
by a training organization in the past because they fell over
40:09
and it meant that as they fell over, all the things that I
40:12
learned didn't move across. If anybody is in this situation
40:17
now where the training provider has fallen over or gone into
40:21
administration, can they reach out to you to try and get some
40:24
visit is oh God, I'm going to say I'm going to use a rum over
40:28
here. I don't deal with uphill, but I
40:31
do deal with a lot of students who are in that predicament.
40:34
As long as they've got paperwork from work with some of our
40:37
training providers to help you with that.
40:39
That's we've done a lot of students like that.
40:42
It's not that uncommon, let's put it that way.
40:45
But you know, I'm happy to even have a discussion.
40:48
If I can't help you, I can refer you on to someone who can, but
40:52
it's all about documentation. I won't deal with RPL just
40:56
because the training organizations that mainly do
40:59
RPL, some of them are really, really sketchy and I refuse to
41:02
enter into any ticker flick things.
41:05
I'd rather you do the proper course then just turn up and get
41:10
a tick in a flick because I don't want my name or my
41:12
reputation against anything that's going to harm others.
41:16
And that's my honest. From sitting courses from with
41:21
you, it actually can lead you into other career advances.
41:25
From there. Have you been able to work with
41:28
a student that has started doing a course with you and then took
41:32
the next step up to do more into that sector and expand their
41:36
career? Yeah, well, the childcare
41:39
student that started just doing a set 3 did her diploma, went
41:43
and worked as an educator and is now as a team leader.
41:46
So she's, you know, a room leader and she's gone right
41:50
through. I think she might even go
41:53
further if she wants to, but that's up to her.
41:55
A lot of people like to stop there that don't want to go into
41:58
the the coordination direction, all that sort of stuff.
42:01
Some people are just happy as room leader.
42:03
That's enough. I've got my little group to work
42:05
with sort of thing. That's probably been the main
42:08
student that I was working with to get them there.
42:11
Some people even go on to be trainers.
42:13
I work for five or six years. I'm one of my students.
42:16
She's worked for seven years in the industry and now it's going
42:19
on to be a trainer. Was just finished doing a TAE
42:22
and is now pivoted to go and work in training.
42:25
And she's done long daycare, outside school hours care.
42:28
She's been a director, she's been everything.
42:32
And now she wants to go on and bit of a full circle after seven
42:36
or eight years. And I just helped her get into
42:37
her training for that. So there's different things that
42:41
I've seen. Does that feel good?
42:43
Yeah, I mean, hey, I've, I've nurtured someone right through
42:47
their whole career. I've even nurtured people that
42:49
get to the end and go, I don't want to do this shit anymore,
42:52
what am I going to do now? So I've done that as well.
42:55
So yeah, it does feel good to see the progression of people
42:59
and also know that they're out there doing good.
43:02
I guess you'd say, you know, helping people.
43:04
Is that why you do what you do? Yeah, I like helping people and
43:09
I like to know, and I hope that what I'm doing is making a
43:13
difference not just to the students, but to the people they
43:17
work with as well. So it's a full circle.
43:20
I like full circles. It all comes together.
43:22
Is there anything that you would like?
43:24
I know that you gave me a sneaky before that you're expanding
43:28
into next year. Is there anything else other
43:31
news that you'd love to share in this podcast?
43:34
No, no, I think that's enough, the expanding bit, because
43:37
that's as far as I've got. It's November, I'm not really
43:41
sure what's happening forward from that, but I'm just
43:44
expanding nationally. There's nothing really else that
43:47
I have on the horizon. I'm going to have my hands full
43:50
just expansion wise. That's probably a lot to deal
43:54
with, especially getting staff organised and things like that.
43:58
It's been A to get athletes set up, let alone move into the
44:02
Perth sphere in 2026. That's kind of the next level.
44:07
Sounds all exciting. Yeah, it's a bit of fun.
44:11
Might work, might not. Let's see what happens.
44:13
Can't sit around and wonder. Just got to do it and give it a
44:16
go. Yep.
44:18
Thank you so much tonight. I really thank you are a you're
44:23
a who I hope I get to go to one of your networking events in
44:28
Melbourne. Yeah, that's good energy.
44:31
Yeah, Keep an eye out for them. We like to have fun.
44:34
Easy. Thank you so much for tonight,
44:36
Yvette. And I didn't call you spaghetti,
44:37
so I feel like that's a win for me.
44:39
Thank you so much for the podcast.
44:42
That's OK. Thanks for having me Sarah, been
44:44
a great chat.