Jason Harris
1. Tell us your name and something about yourself.
My name is Monique Jeremiah and at age 25 I am the sole director and owner of the Exceptional Group Companies on the Gold Coast: Exceptional Tuition and Resumes, Exceptional Training and in late 2012 Exceptional Graduate Recruitment. This year I was delighted to win one of the top Australia Day awards, the 2012 Gold Coast Young Citizen of the Year along with making the finals for the prestigious Australian Small Business Champion Awards in both Educational Services and Young Small Business Champion Entrepreneur. As a result my deepest passions are business and education and helping people to succeed in their education, career and entrepreneurial goals.
2. Give us a brief description of what your business is all about and tell us what makes your business unique from all the other businesses out there.
Exceptional Group is a set of education and employment based companies aiming to help all clients achieve exceptional results academically and professionally. The companies are unique because each company was purposefully started and developed to solve the key issues experienced by students, jobseekers and new entrepreneurs in their education and careers.
Exceptional Tuition and Resumes offers quality one-on-one home and online tutoring services to high school, university and international students in all subjects at all levels. The company also strives to provide professional resume writing services for both graduate and professional jobseekers applying for employment.
Exceptional Training is a business training company on the Gold Coast which delivers highly practical short business courses to individuals who want to learn how to start their own business. Exceptional Training also offers a wide range of writing services for small businesses including customised marketing plans, website content, training materials development and training room hire for RTOs and other training companies.
Exceptional Graduate Recruitment is currently being planned to become an online recruitment agency tailored just for university and college graduates to assist in finding employment in Australia.
3. Do you remember the last time you noticed the sound of your own breathing?
I hear my breath every time I am on stage singing. Singing is my secret to relaxation and a passion which keeps me balanced.
4. Decisions are being made all the time. Now the question is: Are you making them for yourself, or are you letting others make them for you?
Every decision I make is based on my own intuition and logic combined together. I trust myself and my instincts, I may listen to others’ opinions, but in the end I will always make the final decision myself.
5. What would you do differently if you knew nobody else would judge you?
I suppose I would be blunter. However, as a woman in business I need to stay poised, controlled and courteous even when I completely dislike someone.
6. How would you rate your career right now?
I couldn’t be happier in my career right now. Since starting the Exceptional Group companies back in 2010 my life has never been more stimulating and rewarding both personally and professionally. I am extremely lucky to be developing three separate education companies which I am so passionate about and dedicate my life to. Through my companies I am very fortunate to do what I love everyday and I simply cannot wait to grow them rapidly over the next few years.
7. What would you say is your personal mission in life?
I believe that my mission in life is to prove that anyone can achieve success through passion and persistence. Through my journey in life so far, I have found that these two factors have been the outstanding elements which have helped me to achieve all of my goals in business and in my personal life.
8. Are you scared of not ‘making it’ and achieving your dreams?
In my eyes, I have already achieved everything which I had set out to achieve to date. I have achieved these dreams as I believe failure is not an option in my book of life and I am prepared to do whatever it takes to ensure the dreams continue to be achieved.
9. Take a pick: would you rather lose all of your old memories, or never be able to make new ones?
I would rather lose all my old memories as I choose to live in the present and future and not the past.
10. If you wake up one morning and discover that you have somehow switched genders, what’s the first thing you would shout and why?
“Thank god I don’t have to wear makeup anymore!” I find that as a woman who runs a business I can never look scruffy and I constantly have to look professional at all times just in case I run into any clients on the streets. I’d rather be a man sometimes so that I can roll out of bed and just get on with it.
11. What are you most sorry about in your whole life?
I’ve always wanted to be a famous singer. As a teenager I won a few singing competitions and I used to actually be the lead singer in a Gold Coast church band. However, when I turned 18 I set aside this dream and I decided to get a real education so that I can become an entrepreneur one day. Now when I look back, I realise that being a famous singer may have been a more relaxing, yet an exciting career and one where I didn’t have to think as much as I do now when running multiple companies. Anyhow, I have reignited my passion for singing this year and I’ve also taken up song writing as my way of expressing my emotions and getting back on the stage.
12. Let’s say you’re currently looking at a mirror right now, what do you see and what would you like to say?
In front of me I see a young female entrepreneur who is ready to take the next step in building her companies. After 2 years of being in these companies I am now ready to expand outside of the Gold Coast. Although I know that my ambitions are high and some people may think they are impossible, I am unafraid to do whatever it takes to make everything a success. I also see a woman who is very happily married and feels very lucky to have both a great husband and a successful career.
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Jason Harris
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