Navigating Challenges and Embracing Opportunities: A Conversation with Julia Spicer

In my career, I've been my biggest roadblock, that lack of self confidence.

"If you had said to me in year 12, or at uni, or even when I was living and working in Sydney in the ag world, that I would have my own business as an online yoga instructor, I'd probably laugh at you."

The definition of fun and bubbly, Em Armstrong grew up on a sheep farm on the Hay Plains in NSW, where she loved the freedom of the wide-open spaces (cue The Chicks/Dixie Chicks), riding bikes and having a family “beach holiday" at the irrigation channel.

“I grew up in a fashion/retail world in Brisbane, but we always had a cattle property at Cooyar, QLD so that always kept my interest into the possibility of working in agriculture.

I went to UQ at Gatton and started a degree in Applied Science. After my first six months at Uni I went off to Theodore to start “bug-checking” in cotton, and after my first two weeks I fell in love with the crop and changed my degree to major in Plants and Rural business.

“My weekends and school holidays would often consist of visiting stations across the north with my Dad, even though I never made a very good mechanic apprentice. These are some of my favourite memories growing up and it was also where I was able to gain exposure and make some lifelong connections in the northern agricultural industry, I did not realise at the time how important these would be to me in the near future.”

“Gosh, where do I start…It’s been one wild adventure since we last spoke. But one that did not come without tears of emotion and confusion amongst the breeze of freedom and fresh eyes.

I packed up my Troopy with my best belongings, one being my red dog, Dargo. To then say goodbye to my other ‘belongings’ – the land.

I was sent on my way with the support and love of my friends and family. For what was meant to be and seen as a wonderful new chapter.

“I have always loved media and initially had dreams of becoming a journalist but I got distracted after uni when I landed my first job as an entertainment publicist in Sydney.

Most of my clients were in theatre or dance so there were events most nights, lots of champagne and taking media out for long relationship-building lunches. “

Pip Courtney.

What else should we say?

She started at ABC's Landline in 1993, became the host of the program in 2012, and continues to thrive in the role today - but there’s so much more to the story.

“I did teaching, I didn't do ag as such, however, it's so weird because you sort of get pulled in different directions. So I worked on a lot of farms overseas when I was travelling. I ended up teaching in lots of rural communities and working on people's places, cattle places, cattle stations and things like that… I did learn a lot, it does pay to work for lots of different people to see how different people do it.”

Having experienced a range of working environments across her lifetime, we land on today.

She’s a teacher, a farmer, a mum and a personal trainer. Her business, Off the Track Training, has been going for over 10 years and is currently a training group of 50 people, and there are around 200 people who are part of Joy’s Fitness Hub.

“Everyone that lives in the bush, they love it, they live and breathe it, they choose to live there, but with that choice to live in the bush [there are] these conditions… challenges that are outside of your control,” said Ginny.

“Floods, fires, droughts, financial stress, succession planning, commodity price risk, you have isolation… we are herd animals, we are not meant to be alone a lot, there's a lot of farmers that are alone a lot.”

Young Livestock superstar, Kari Moffat, leads from the front with her passion for agriculture and supporting communities across the world through higher animal welfare in the livestock export industry.

“My interest in the live export trade has primarily been through supporting the interests of producers. The live export trade not only supports the entire northern beef supply chain but businesses, families and communities throughout regional and rural northern Australia.”