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By Josh Galvin, Pioneer Member, The Brilliant Foundation
Left to Right: Alba Gomez, Dr Renée Ralph, Josh Galvin
To Whom It May Concern:
As 2021 draws to a close, it gives us an opportunity to reflect on our first year of operation. We set out to bridge an existing gap between academic writing and the world of professionals and individuals with multi-faceted life experiences; I think we’ve done that.
I was fortunate enough to be invited by Dr Renée and Alrick, our Co-Founders to create and develop the website alongside them. Being 16 years old at the time, I was totally shocked that anyone would put that much trust into me. A year down the track, I will forever be grateful for that opportunity; to be a part of something that has become so Brilliant.
: Note to self, Brilliant is the most Brilliant adjective :
The final push to get our website launched for Jan 8 resulted in an international business call at 11pm on New Year’s Eve 2020. Not many 16 year old’s can say they’ve been on an international business call- and you’re mad if you’ve been on one at 11pm on New Year’s Eve; unless you are Renée and Alrick (and me I guess), two professionals, passionate about bridging the gap and inspiring others. The initial tribe they established of our Brilliant founding members reflects their values, and impedes a lasting legacy on my cohort of peers.
Website Drafts
We’ve written, we’ve read, we’ve shared, we’ve contributed; but most importantly, we’ve connected to bridge the gap. At our last sundowner, Students from Curtin, UWA, WAAPA and Murdoch made connections with industry professionals. I too, during my final year of school, made invaluable industry connections through The Brilliant Foundation. Renee and Alrick had the hope to inspire and guide the youth to make better career choices, through the human life stories on our platform; something which along with the help of the Brilliant founding members, they have achieved.
Left: Dr Renée Ralph with Curtin University Students. Right: Alexander Circosta, Sharing his Inspiring Story. @ November 2021 Sundowner
Through LinkedIn and Instagram, we’ve been able to grow our following and build our community. You’ve seen our funky social media designs and our questionable template choices, but you didn’t let that cloud the true heart and Brilliance of The Brilliant Foundation. You stuck with us and had faith in the fact that we would establish a brand and a community built upon the same initial idea.
Left to Right: Our First attempt at Instagram, Second Attempt, Our Current Brilliant Template
If you notice, the filament of our lightbulb is a pen nib- that was Elizabeth Richards Brilliant stylistic idea which reflected her vision for The Brilliant Foundation. Everyone in our community has their own way of expressing their ideas and visions for the better of their work and our platform.
Madeleine Antoine for example, using her passion for violin and music to notion the importance of environmental protection; or Don Bosco, creating a company where he gets to work with his two young sons, creating stories and carving a successful life, balancing his love of writing and homelife as a father.
Over the course of the year, we’ve gained over 700 Brilliant followers on LinkedIn and slowly but surely, we’re building a following on Instagram (please follow us there). We’ve had more than 7000 total article views and our members spend an average of 17 minutes on our site.
The community has obviously seen the good in The Brilliant Foundation. We’ve forged some brilliant community partnerships- United Nations Association of WA, WA Asian Business Awards 2022, ASEAN Business Alliance- It’s absolutely incredible and more than we ever expected to achieve in our first year of operation.
From our first sundowner in Perth where I was the token male, to our most recent, where no one was a token, it’s amazing to see what The Brilliant Foundation has become, and the tribe of peers that have joined us along the way.
November 2021 Sundowner
There’s been strong opinions, malfunctioning technology, long days, long nights, sweat and tears, we even had a rabbit join the team, but to leave 2021 on such a high, it was all worth it.
Bungee Rabbit
In our giving, we are hoping to further establish our global online community which nurtures self-awareness, leadership, creativity, lifelong learning, kindness and respect. We walk into 2022 with big plans and new goals but with the same passion and drive we had from the beginning- memores acti prudentes futuri.
Best regards,
Josh
Copyright @ The Brilliant Foundation
Enquiries: editor@thebrilliantfoundation.com