Four women. One room. Real stories.

At the Women Who Hustle Breakfast Panel — Thursday 5 March, 7.15am, The Greens — the conversation went far beyond the highlight reel. Over coffee on a Thursday morning, what unfolded was honest, grounded and deeply relatable: a conversation about business, confidence, and what it really means to back yourself.

From the very beginning it was clear this panel would go deeper. What followed was an open discussion covering confidence and self-belief, financial and mental wellbeing, money stories, growing a business in regional Australia, and the ongoing balance between life, work and purpose.

We saw in real time the permission it gives others when we back ourselves and share our story. Suddenly this business breakfast — on the wins, the doubts, the pivots, the money stories, the juggle — connected everyone.

It doesn’t always start with a plan

Possibly the biggest not-so-secret myth discussed was that business begins with certainty. Sometimes it starts with a phone call. Sometimes with a push from someone else. Sometimes with a moment where life quietly says: this way.

“It wasn’t some grand plan… it was just a phone call that I took one day.”

Eliza Whiteley, Owner, Whiteley Optometry

And yet — those moments become turning points.

Borrowing confidence (until it becomes your own)

Confidence came up again and again. Not as something people had — but something they built.

“I had to borrow my confidence… I just set it up and it had to work because I had no other choice.”

Fliss Haylock, The Creative Marketing Co.

This landed deeply in the room. Because confidence isn’t always natural. Sometimes it’s practised. Sometimes it’s performed. Sometimes it’s just taking the next step anyway.

The decisions no one talks about

Behind every business is a series of quiet, difficult decisions. When to hire. When to invest. When to take the risk.

“You’re investing, hoping that growth will match that… it’s a really hard decision.”

Jacqui Martel, Director, D.A.N.S. Inhome Care

And often, especially in the early days, it means doing everything yourself. Until you can’t. Until growth asks more of you.

Money stories are real (and they matter)

One of the most honest parts of the conversation was around financial wellbeing. When one of the panellists shared “I would consider myself… terrible at finances… but I have mentors and I’m never scared to ask,” there was a shift — from shame to support.

Because sustainable success isn’t just about making money. It’s about understanding it. Owning it. Talking about it.

Regional doesn’t mean limited

In fact — it might be the opposite. In Dubbo, and across the Orana region, business is personal. You know your clients. You see each other. You collaborate.

“People expect you to come in, sit down and have a coffee… it’s about relationships.”

And that changes everything.

Collaboration over competition

One of the strongest threads of the morning: there is room for everyone.

“You can lean into fear… or lean into collaboration and make everyone better.”

In regional communities, success isn’t built in isolation. It’s built through connection. Through shared conversations. Through showing up. Through supporting each other — loudly. Take the armour off. It’s time to open up and be real.

Connection is the secret sauce

Without a doubt the best reminder was the recognition that we all walk around carrying stories about who we are, what we can do, what we’re not good at. But the moment we drop that — connection happens.

It’s built in rooms like this. In conversations like this. In communities like this.

A big thank you to panel host Teena Allen from CBA for the saucy questions that set the tone, and to the rest of the team at Commonwealth Bank in Dubbo for their support of Every Woman. Also on the panel: Sarah Hamilton of Three Moody Heifers, who leads the Women Who Hustle Markets, and Social Gain’s Sharon Quill.

Watch the full discussion

Two days later the Women Who Hustle Markets took over The Greens. The breakfast returns as part of the Orana Every Woman Festival 2027.