Hello and welcome to the start of Volta Consulting’s journal.

I’m a tad excited that I can now introduce myself as the Founder of a small business. It seems a little surreal, and yes, it’s early days, but I think I’m going to enjoy being an entrepreneur.

Since I have officially launched my website, I thought I would write a short post and tell you more about me (being Narelle) and what you may read and learn as my blog takes shape.

You can read more about my journey on the About page. To summarise, I have spent the last 15+ years working in corporate with a background in Accounting and Business Law. A few years ago, when the pandemic started, I decided to return to study but focus on a course that simply interested me and that I was likely to learn something new from. So, I enrolled in a Grad. Cert. in Gender, Peace and Security at Monash University. I loved it so much that I enrolled in their Master of International Relations program, which I am halfway through.

The turning point

Then mid last year, my husband had a health scare. The kind of scare makes you take a good, long hard look in the mirror and wonder if you’re on the right path or the path that makes you happiest.

It was no secret amongst my family and friends that I had been getting itchy feet in my work role for the past few years. I had previously been a small business owner and dabbled in a few side hustles to see if I could find the right fit, but it just wasn’t time back then. Then, one day, during my long service leave, my husband said to me, “Why don’t you quit and start your own business. I know you will be great at it, and it will likely make you happier.”

With his encouragement, I started to think about what I could do. Then it dawned on me, what if I could figure out a way to combine my corporate experience with elements of my new learnings? It would make for a pretty good business. I would be making a difference in the community. So, I spent my leave planning and working out what the business would look like and making an action list (thank you, Trello).

I returned to work, handed in my resignation, and close to 4 months later, I officially started working full-time in Volta. Well, almost full-time as I am determined to maintain a 30-hour week – another principle in the changing work environment that I support. And it’s been an incredible, nerve-wracking, sometimes frustrating, but oh so freeing 2 months!

We need to do better

My vision for Volta is to help other small business owners find a better way of doing business. A way that not only returns profits, gives owners purpose, but also leaves a positive impact on the ecosystem in which we all operate.

I don’t believe we can continue to do business the traditional way, with no or little thought to the consequences of our actions or inactions. We need to be conscious of our decisions and the impact they have. And, I believe that if small businesses can make the change, then we have the potential to drive positive change that will rival big businesses. We may not have their budgets, but we have less red tape, a more entrepreneurial spirit and an innate drive to make things happen.

What now?

The road for Volta will be curved and likely to take many turns. But, it will be guided by you and what you want to see change in business. I hope I can help you with your changes and tackle some of your most pressing issues head-on and with a firm action plan. I also hope that we will become a community of knowledge sharing business owners who help each other find more sustainable solutions to doing business. Together we can #bethechange.

I look forward to getting to know you. Feel free to say hi below in the comments or let me know if there is anything particular you’d like more information on. And, if you haven’t already done so, pop on over to my Facebook group, When business and purpose collide. Join other socially aware business owners on their journey to a purpose-led business. Or you can sign up for my newsletter, The Purpose Effect.