“I sort of reached a point at Beetaloo where there probably wasn't the opportunity to keep going up, and then I needed to sort of take a step back and look at where I was, and probably assess where I wanted to be.”

When we last spoke with Hugh Dawson for episode 25 of the Humans of Agriculture podcast in 2020, he was on his now  “infamous” six year gap year, camped in a Donga with some pretty dodgy wifi.

At the time, he was Head Stockman on Beetaloo Station, flying a mustering chopper and enjoying the landscapes (and weather) of the Northern Territory, a stark contrast given he’s traded the cockpit for the classroom and the sunshine for, well… Geelong -  a pretty big shift!

We wanted to check in and see what he’s been up to since he brought his gap year(s) to a close. What better way for Hugh and Oli to sit down for a chat and find out a little bit more about what the journey and year has been like.

We’ve always been blown away with Hugh’s maturity and his self-awareness is enviable.

“I think probably one of the biggest things for me was that I have always been interested in trying to identify areas of sort of personal growth and improvement and development. I think the greatest investment you can make is in yourself, and in understanding yourself and bettering yourself. Did I think I would go to uni? I think I definitely saw myself going and pursuing further education, I didn't know if it would be at uni or where it might end up.”

Hugh’s involvement with the Zanda McDonald award broadened his network and from there he decided to expand his knowledge of the “back end” of business. A deep thinker, Hugh did a lot of introspection and self-work to get to a point where he could detach from the identity of being Head Stockman on Beetaloo Station, and take on further education at Marcus Oldham.

“If you're familiar with yourself, and you understand who you are as a person, then it makes it pretty easy to drop yourself into different environments and different situations, and be able to make that change well.”

Hugh continues to be a huge advocate for men’s mental health, and this year as part of his Movember, he has an impressive moustache to show for it. 

“You think about if you have a broken arm, you end up in a sling or with a cast on, it's a very clear visual indicator that you're not, you know, physically at 100% with mental health, you don't have that visual indicator a lot of the time, and so when you do have a dirty, great big massage on your face, it's pretty easy for people to pull up and go, ‘hey, what's with that?’”

With the summer holidays now underway, Hugh is off to spend some time calf marking before travelling around Western Victoria and Tasmania before returning home to South Australia. 

We’re hoping to catch up with him again to hear all about it soon, but for now we’ll leave you with a taste of his infectious positivity. 

“There is just so much good to take out of every day, and I think if you have the mindset that there is a good reason for everything happening, even in the face of pretty significant adversity, there's an opportunity to learn and an opportunity to grow. I think it's pretty much impossible to not enjoy life.”

Listen to our chat with Hugh wherever you find your favourite podcasts.

While he is studying, Hugh is still active in the Northern Beef Industry as the Vice Chair of the Young Live Exporters Network.