Terry Young (Longman, Liberal National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Over the last couple of months, I've had the pleasure of attending leadership investiture events at many of the 44 schools in the Longman electorate. I find these events one of the most enjoyable aspects of this job. That's because they're positive events, and I love talking to the students, who are just excited about their future and couldn't care less about politics.

I've been privileged to have been asked to speak on leadership at some of these leadership investitures, drawing on my life experiences in this area. I've shared my journey of being led and inspired by great people in my life—and the little bit of leadership experience I've had as well. I always try and reinforce to these students that the greatest leaders that I've followed have also been the greatest servants, that they put the needs of others before their own, that they see the best in people and believe the best in people. But one of the greatest attributes of great leaders is that they understand that failure is not a final destination but actually one of the vital steps to success. No successful leader I have personally known has ever not failed or not had to face some type of adversity.

Yet we now live in a society that, in many cases, encourages that you're better off not having a go in case you fail. Children aren't allowed to climb a tree in case they fall out. Some parents, teachers and guidance counsellors are pushing and even forcing young people to take up career paths that simply don't suit them—and which, in some cases, they actually hate—simply because those pathways have university degrees, which are admirable but no good for these particular young people. I talk to so many people that have started a university degree and, after one, two, three or even four years, dropped out because they hated it, and they shouldn't have been there in the first place. Then, to top it off, they start a job as a tradie, which they love, and they have a HECS debt.

I often ask students what Janine Allis—who started Boost Juice—Lindsay Fox from Linfox, Frank Lowy from Westfield, Melanie Perkins from Canva, Kerry Packer, Gerry Harvey, Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, Richard Branson, Henry Ford and Walt Disney all have in common. These people all had one thing in common: either they didn't start university or, if they did, they didn't finish. These people are the people that the universities write and lecture about. They are the players in life, not the spectators. To young people: don't ever think that the story writers are more important than the actors. They both matter. I say to you: follow your dreams and live my mantra. It's better to have a go and fail than not to have a go at all. We are a better nation when we let our youth explore and follow their own passions and dreams rather than tell them what is best for them.