TRANSCRIPT
Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman Bruce Billson interview with Nicole Overall.
2CC Canberra
Subject: Small Business – “looking after yourself”.
Nicole Overall
Well this afternoon I am going to be talking a little bit about small business from varying angles, because there’s no denying that the last few years have been bloody tough on them, as if being in business isn't difficult enough at the best of times.
I'm very happy to have on the line to have a conversation around this, Bruce Billson, the Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman.
Bruce, thanks for joining me and Happy New Year even though we're a week into it.
Bruce Billson
And same to you Nicole, and to your listeners.
How good is it describing the temperature today compared to the weekend?
Nicole Overall
No, Bruce it’s supposed to this summertime.
Bruce Billson
It’s nice to have a respite though, otherwise all those Elvis impersonators will be a little bit more like “sweaty betty” in the heat of that big event.
Happy New Year and best wishes and all those enterprising men and women, I hope it's a positive and prosperous year for them, particularly.
Nicole Overall
Yes, I do too. And I'm sure that all of us do, but the truth of the matter is they haven't had an easy time Bruce. And it's not looking that great.
Holiday time it's been for many of us, but for business owners, it's not just a matter of hanging up a shingle and saying we'll see you next year and just leaving behind the stress of running a business is it?
Bruce Billson
For many its make or break time.
I know with the one of the businesses I owned, if we didn't have a successful Christmas festive season, we had a real problem having any sort of backing for the whole year and so for many of our small and family business owners, this can be the big time of year. Busy, often hard to get staff, heavy demands and a real need to make it a go of it while we're kicking back.
It can be a really traumatic time knowing that success for the year has such a dependency on this season and also it can be a time of reflection where business owners think about how the business is travelling and maybe taking stock of prospects for the coming year and what the best steps are they can take.
Nicole Overall
And you're absolutely right there Bruce, when you suggest that so many of the things that may not be a difficulty for them throughout the year and may still be difficult, but when it gets to that holiday period - staffing arrangements, getting people, the additional pay, so if people are working overtime etc, you've got surcharges and things when it comes to customers as well, all of these things that if you're not in business, you just don't necessarily get it and how much more difficult it is compared to a 9 to 5 job with benefits.
Bruce Billson
Yeah, that's one of the things with the research really highlights is that enterprising men and women running on their own business, know it's a big responsibility.
So they have stepped-up to take on those additional responsibilities around compliance obligations, even livelihood, not just of their own but of their teams. At this time of year you know, you mentioned penalty rates and extra costs and extra imposition and even finding people to take on shifts, knowing that the business owner is the last person to be paid and more often when there's a difficulty finding team members to make sure rosters are full.
If there are gaps, guess who fills those gaps in? So it can be a really challenging time and that's why we're saying to business owners - think about how the business is going. If you can find a little bit of time to think about how you can work on the business, not just in it, but also look at your own well-being and your own health.
Not just the businesses health, but your own because we know that in the right place with a positive emotional wellness then better decisions can be made. Some of that heavy burden and responsibility that might feel overwhelming we can map a course through that, and we can tackle those challenges one at a time rather than feeling like we are swamped with them all at one moment.
Nicole Overall
And that is really great advice and I want to dig down into that a little bit more Bruce, but just before we get to that - are businesses articulating what their concerns are for the New Year? What’s top of mind for them at the moment?
Bruce Billson
What they're talking about business conditions that are as tough as many can remember. So what we understand and your listeners understand as cost of living pressures in households are cost of doing business pressures for small and family business owners,
Now, while wallets are being tightened and that's the effect of higher interest rates to tackle that inflation drag, and that can mean customers are spending less. They're more discerning on where they're putting their hard-earned money, discretionary expenditure might be put to one side.
Or even if you do treat yourself to a night out at a restaurant or something like that - rather than have one or two courses, you might have a main and share a sweet or share an entrée. That still represents people in the business who need to be fully supported and fully serviced by the staff, the kitchen that’s fully operating, the inputs and ingredients still needing to be purchased, but a lesser spend at that point of a customer coming in, which has a real impact on profitability and viability.
So these are the sorts of challenges that business owners are facing not seeing a lot of relief in the short-term around increasing energy and insurance costs, and really knowing that their customers most often consumers, but in some cases other businesses, are really looking for a bit of relief, a bit of a positive sign, hoping and praying that an interest rate cut isn't that far away, so that they can reach out and make the most of what small and family businesses offer the community and the economy.
Nicole Overall
And then tapping into that Bruce, some of the statistics emerging around small business owners and their mental well-being, or as it turns out, not really great wellbeing at all, are pretty concerning.
Bruce Billson
Well it is and it comes out of this acute pressure of feeling like a business owner needs to do it all.
That responsibility that comes with business ownership, that's taken on and it's understood, but the increasing regulatory burden and the complexity of running a business in a modern economy, that is a bigger responsibility, and sometimes our job is to remind lawmakers and regulators that a small business isn't a ‘shrink-wrapped’ version of a big corporate, that’s got specialist lawyers dealing with compliance obligations, specialist industrial relations experts, that's not what a small business is about.
It's somebody who’s gone into a business with a real sparkle in their eye and a fire in their belly and the joy of serving customers - finding they're spending a lot of time, and there's more risk attached to the business of running the business.
So that sort of builds that pressure point what we also know is the rewards of it have been quite patchy. Some businesses have been doing well in this environment, but many haven’t and in fact, 46% weren’t profitable in the last full tax year.
Nicole Overall
Gee that’s a worry isn’t it, those figures?
Bruce Billson
It is a big number, and when you think about self-employed people in Australia and there's more than a million of those self-employed people who make their own opportunities and three quarters are taking home less than average total weekly earnings.
So there's not the rivers of gold and the joy of being in your own businesses is often being squeezed and suffocated a little bit by growing compliance burdens, and that's why the research is pointing to a real area of emotional concern, that one in five business owners that where surveyed for some Treasury research, actually being diagnosed with a mental health condition by a practitioner.
And then there's more that have spoken about this sense of overwhelmed pressure and demands, episodes of burn out, psychological stress and anxiety, and the feeling of being overwhelmed and that's why we're saying look after yourself.
Because if you're in a good state of mind, and your well-being is in a good place, you're going to make better decisions, you're going to lead that business well and you are going to approach that big responsibility and business ownership with a clear head, and your best self if I could put it that way.
Nicole Overall
And that is exactly what we need to be focusing on now.
So let's move away a little bit from what is a heavy picture for 2025, but what are the positive and constructive steps that they can take in that space, Bruce?
Bruce Billson
Well there’s a couple of things.
One you are not on your own, there's help and support that’s out there. It’s pleasing that the government has extended the funding for the New Access program for small business owners, that's an emotional, well-being coaching program that's being delivered through BeyondBlue and with the support of the Richmond Fellowship.
Jump on to that for business owners that are wanting to understand where they're at, and what help is available. This is also financial counselling support for people that are feeling financial counselling is needed - that they're overwhelmed by debt and financial responsibilities, the Small Business Debt Helpline that’s the help that’s out there.
But what people can do for themselves is really structure their day, think about putting time aside for the important stuff. So that you're not missing reporting dates for business activity statements, that you've got key areas that you know are essential and vital to your business that you've allowed time and the opportunity to do those things well.
Take care of yourself, sleep, get enough sleep, do a bit of exercise, take some time out, be present for your family for those moments and not wake up first thing in the morning and then have your head in business mode, when there's really people around you that are there and want to be a part of your life as well.
And that's about even delineating when you're in business mode from your regular home person mode, so that there's quality and an attention given in both of those important dimensions of your life and also look at what can be delegated. What can you outsource so that you're not feeling like you need to do absolutely everything?
The other thing to thought is don’t forget to celebrate the wins. Every day there are wins that can be celebrated. Take the time to celebrate those things, and I guess my last message is don't isolate yourself.
There are business owners probably who have navigated some of the challenges that other business owners are thinking about that, they have probably dealt with it themselves. Industry Associations, Chambers of Commerce, there are some really active chambers of commerce here in the Capital and right across the country, those business groups and trusted advisors and that ecosystem can be really nourishing.
To know that a business owner is not on their own, to hear other ideas, to benefit from another perspective and other experiences that can be really positive and really helped people keep a spring in their step.
Nicole Overall
And that is all great advice. In other words, Bruce, support is out there and they just need to ensure they take advantage of it.
Bruce Billson
I think so and realise that a lot of business owners are doing that. There is no shame in reaching out for help.
And we want to see enterprising men and women keep that sparkle in their eye and fire in their belly because they create so much for our nation in terms of employment, economic opportunity and livelihoods in our communities, that's why making sure people are a good space to keep making that contribution is in all our interests.
Nicole Overall
Absolutely it is, couldn't have said it better myself Bruce.
Thank you so much for joining me this afternoon and finishing on that very positive messaging.
Bruce Billson
Let's have a fab 2025.
Nicole Overall
A brighter future for our business in 2025.
Thanks so much, Bruce. Bruce Billson there, who is the Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman.