Photo taken by Taelor Pelusey – TP Creative
Dr Seuss isn’t exactly an entrepreneurial icon, but his philosophies perfectly articulate Carmel Breman’s approach to business: You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself in any direction you choose – Dr Seuss.
Carmel is the founder of Frog Jump – a business development service with an innovative “person first” approach. In real-world terms, that means prioritising the person – or people – at the business’s core, then aligning their unique skills with business and development goals.
“Time and time again, I’ve seen what power there is in building capability within people and teams, and that’s why my business development methods always start with the people,” said Carmel.
Carmel’s passion for business began in her own backyard – literally – with the breeding of earthworms. What began as a hobby soon evolved into a three-tiered business complete with a breeding program, workshops and a series of three integrated resource books for educators. This venture won a WA Recycling and Waste Reduction Award and demonstrated that even the humblest projects can grow into something ground-breaking with the right tools and mindset.
In 2018, Carmel made the life changing decision to move to beautiful Busselton in WA’s South West and launch a brand new business, Frog Jump. Armed with degrees in small business, project management, public relations and education coupled with experience in State Government, public enterprise and small business, Carmel initially focused on general business development and promotion. However, she soon changed gears after being introduced to a cutting-edge profiling tool known as the Entrepreneurial Mindset Profile® (EMP).
“I was part of the South West Development Commission and DPIRD’s pilot program, Join the Dots, which made use of the EMP,” she said. “After using the tool as a participant and seeing the enormous benefit that I got out of it, I decided to become an EMP Certified Practitioner and incorporate the tool into my business.”
Based on extensive research into the skills, traits and motivations of entrepreneurs, the EMP examines people across 14 different areas like Optimism, Need to Achieve, Nonconformity, Risk Acceptance, Independence, Future Focus and Interpersonal Sensitivity. The EMP assesses the degree to which they are utilising an ‘entrepreneurial mindset’. Carmel describes it as providing a benchmark for the business owners’ entrepreneurial skills, helping them play to their strengths and be more confident in their decision-making.
“There are plenty of other practical applications for the EMP results too, and that’s where I come in,” Carmel said. “I help people figure out where they are, where they want to be and how to get there.”
Carmel’s has applied the EMP in all types of situations, from one-on-one online consultations through to large programs like the Small Business Development Corporation’s PIVOT program, which involved 500+ businesses and hosted Carmel as an EMP Practitioner.
“The EMP is an incredibly flexible tool that takes 10-15 minutes to complete online,” she said. “It can even factor in research from specific populations, like rural and female entrepreneurs.”
In fact, rural female entrepreneurs are among the most likely sectors to benefit from the EMP; partly because it offers a valuable resource in regional areas where professional development services are sometimes lacking, but also because it can be a powerful tool for collaboration among rural women. At least that’s what research from the Women’s Enterprise British Columbia (WeBC), formerly the Women’s Enterprise Centre, found.
“WeBC conducted research and used the EMP to see how rural business women stacked up against their city counterparts,” Carmel said. “It found rural women surpassed city women in many areas like Idea Generation, Execution and Self-Confidence. The EMP Practitioners also found it was a powerful tool for bringing rural women together, allowing them to learn from each other, increase their confidence and understand that their uniqueness is OK.”
Regardless of gender, location or level of experience, anyone can benefit from leveraging their strengths, identifying opportunities, building capability and driving innovation – and the road to success doesn’t need to be rocky.
“You just need to make a start – and that starting point should simply be turning the spotlight inwards,” Carmel said. ‘Because just like my friend Dr Seuss would say, ‘sometimes the questions are complicated and the answers are simple’.”
Carmel is the CEO of Frog Jump – an innovative business development service with a person-first approach located in Busselton and online. She is an award-winning program facilitator, educator and Entrepreneurial Mindset Profile practitioner with degrees in small business, project management, public relations and education. Email hello@frogjump.com.au to schedule a consultation.
Carmel Breman
Chief Executive and Creator
Frog Jump
Website link: Business Coaching | Frog Jump | Busselton