Not unlike the title of her best-selling novel Daring and Disruptive, Lisa Messenger’s attitude towards life and business has consistently been a challenge of traditional conventions.
As the game-changing Chief Executive Officer of The Messenger Group, Messenger completely revolutionized the publishing industry in Australia.
With print magazines dying at an unprecedented rate, it took an extreme force to cut through and create a new product worthy of inspiring young people.
Her multimedia business and lifestyle platform – The Collective Hub – comprises of a print magazine (distributed in 37 countries, no less), an online news site and an event agency.
For Messenger, disruption is an important cornerstone of her business. Business would be, she says, boring without it.
“Disruption is great for the business landscape generally as it pushes everyone to do things better. It’s incredible for the consumer because they get a better deal or product and it proves that you don’t always need to be big, with lots of money and resources behind you, to make a significant impact on an industry or the world, which is a huge win for the emerging entrepreneur,” Messenger tells HER Magazine.
“Personally, I do like to break a few rules – within the bounds of the law, of course – and I’m more talking about breaking mindsets and challenging the status quo in business in search of fresh ideas and better results.
“I have never been one to sit back and accept that there is only one way to do things.”
Messenger believes it is important to push yourself out of your comfort zone.
“Life rolls by and can easily get gobbled up by work and family situations good and bad, so if you are passionate about pushing yourself, then you need to check in with yourself regularly about your goals and put checks and balances in place to ensure you are moving forward,” she says.
“For me, I check-in with myself on about 10 different measures every single day.”
“There are also seasons in life when you decide to focus on something else rather than your own personal disruption and I think that is fine too – you need to stop and celebrate the wins and give your mind a break at times; it can’t be pushed its limits all of the time – that isn’t healthy.
“From a business perspective, the trick is to create a culture of curiosity where it’s not only safe, but is expected that people will challenge the status quo naturally, without it being one of their KPIs.”
Messenger’s vision in life is profound. Her goals include moving individuals and corporations to change the way they think, proving there is more than any one way to do things. She has managed to spark the entrepreneurial spirit in millions of people worldwide and helped people create a defined and clear recipe for success.
Read my full interview with Lisa Messenger inside HER Magazine. Access January’s issue by downloading our magazine in iTunes or Google Play.
