Why Good HR Practices are Good for Business Good HR is about building a business that is more productive.
MARKETING
for Painters and Decorators Marketing is not just about putting an advert online.
Guide to Profiling
Your Clients Understanding your clients and what makes them tick is the key
Painting Your Career
Continues to pave way for Queensland school-leavers!
www.aussiepaintersnetwork.com.au
From the
Editor
CONTRIBUTORS
Hey Everyone,
• Anthony Igra
Welcome to the 163rd issue of the Aussie Painting Contractor Magazine.
• Caroline Miall
This month also marks 15 years of Aussie Painters Network. Looking back, there’s a lot to be proud of the apprentices we’ve helped train, the businesses we’ve supported and the friendships we’ve made along the way. Thank you to everyone who has been part of those 15 years. Your support has helped us keep building opportunities for people in the painting industry. It’s also been a busy month as we’ve moved into our new home at the Everthought Training Facility, Building 4, 460–492 Beaudesert Road, Salisbury QLD 4107. If you’re in the area, drop in and say hello. I’m looking forward to showing people around and continuing to support painters, employers and apprentices from the new location. We’ve welcomed Kellie to the team this month too. I trained Kellie as an apprentice, and she’s now taking the first steps towards a career in training. That makes two of my former apprentices learning to teach the next generation alongside me. It’s pretty rewarding to see them come through the trade and then decide to pass their skills on. It’s a reminder of the influence we can have on people entering our industry. An apprentice you train today might go on to run a business, employ others or become a trainer themselves. Taking the time to explain a task, answer questions and encourage them can make a difference well beyond their apprenticeship. A big thank you to our team for their work during the move. There’s plenty involved in getting a new space up and running, and I’m looking forward to settling in and seeing what this next chapter brings. I hope you enjoy the issue.
Til next month, Happy Painting!! Nigel Gorman
nigel@aussiepaintersnetwork.com.au
07 3555 8010
• Celeste Louro • Leo Babauta • Malte Jauch • Nigel Gorman • Oliver Kay • Robert Bauman • Sandra Price
EDITOR Nigel Gorman
GRAPHIC DESIGNER J. Anne Delgado
Advertise with us... 1800 355 344 07 3555 8010 info@aussiepaintersnetwork.com.au www.aussiepaintingcontractor.com
Contents 06 Painting Your Career
Continues to pave way for Queensland school-leavers!
08
How to Stop Trying to Optimize Your Life
26 MARKETING
for Painters and Decorators
30 The Power of Site Diaries 33
The Mental Habits We Practice the Most
38
Fixed Fee Business Legal Services: Your Guide to Upfront Pricing
42
Guide to Profiling Your Clients
48
Can you teach yourself to detect AI writing? Maybe
Good HR Practices 12 Why are Good for Business - Are yours holding 18 ROLES you back?
20 22
How AI could make us work even harder 9 reasons to switch to Cloud Computing
50 Industry Idiots 51 Important Contacts
Opinions and viewpoints expressed in the Aussie Painting Contractor Magazine do not necessarily represent those of the editor, staff or publisher or any Aussie Painters Network’s staff or related parties. The publisher, Aussie Painters Network and Aussie Painting Contractor Magazine personnel are not liable for any mistake, misprint or omission. Information contained in the Aussie Painting Contractor Magazine is intended to inform and illustrate and should not be taken as financial, legal or accounting advice. You should seek professional advice before making business related decisions. We are not liable for any losses you October incur directly or indirectly as a result of reading Aussie Painting Contractor Magazine. Reproduction of any material or contents of the magazine without written permission from the publisher is strictly prohibited.
r e e r a C r u o Y g ntin
rs! e v a e l olo h c s nd a l s n e ue Q r o f way e v a p o t s e u Contin
Pai
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The Painting Your Career School to Work Transitions Program, proudly funded by the Queensland State Government, continues to create valuable pathways for young people interested in exploring a career in the painting and decorating industry.
of participants enthusiastically embracing the opportunity to learn. Across every group, we continue to see growing confidence, increased knowledge of the industry, and a willingness to explore career pathways that may previously have seemed out of reach.
Running until mid 2027, over recent months, the program has evolved significantly, with individual students joining other participating school groups, sometimes alongside apprentices and other young people who share a genuine curiosity about the trade. This approach has created dynamic learning environments where participants can develop practical skills, build new connections, and gain a realistic understanding of career opportunities within the industry.
As many of our participants approach the end of Year 12, interest in the painting pathway continues to grow. Apprenticeship application numbers are increasing, reflecting strong demand from young people seeking practical career opportunities and meaningful industry connections.
This year, more than 70 students from across 14 South East Queensland schools have participated in a sustained and meaningful experience in the trade. Rather than a single introduction, students engage in a range of handson skills training, receive industry mentoring, and develop employability skills that will support them well beyond the workshop environment. One of the most rewarding aspects of the program has been the diversity of participants and learning settings. Every student and school is different, bringing their own unique culture, strengths and challenges. Some groups have been small and highly focused, while others have seen larger numbers
Our team is currently working hard with employers and industry partners to place students into quality work trials and employment opportunities. These experiences are invaluable in helping participants take the next step from learning about the trade to have confidence becoming part of the industry itself. We look forward to those full-circle moments when students who first attended a program like this one walk through the doors of their first official training session as apprentices, ready to begin the next chapter of their careers. Programs like Painting Your Career demonstrate the power of collaboration between schools, industry, training providers and government. Together, we are helping create the next generation of skilled painting and decorating professionals for Queensland.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Caroline Miall
caroline@aussiepaintersnetwork.com.au www.aussiepaintersnetwork.com.au
2026 October Issue | 7
How to Stop Trying to
Optimize Your Life
These days, so many people are trying to optimize their lives in every way — and I’m as guilty as anyone. Life optimization seems to be the theme for many of us. But the thing is … it never ends. You can spend months trying to optimize every facet of your life … and you will still feel like more needs to be done. That’s because underneath the optimization mindset is the hidden message: My life as is at the moment isn’t good enough. We want to optimize our health because our fear is that we’re not going to be able to handle the future without it. We want to optimize our productivity because we judge ourselves for not being more productive. We want to optimize our morning routines, sleep routines, finances, and more … because we fear that we’re not doing good enough at life.
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This mindset stems from a fundamental dissatisfaction with our lives and ourselves. We’re always looking toward a better future, instead of just living with gratitude in the life we already have in front of us. This comes at a cost: we put pressure on ourselves, it stresses us out, we are comparing our lives to everyone else on social media, we’re rushing (because going slow isn’t optimal), we always feel behind, never done. Does any of that sound familiar? So what can we do instead?
2026 October Issue | 9
Let’s lay out some credos of the Unoptimized Life. 1. Let some things be sub-optimal. It’s worth asking yourself why you want everything to be optimal — is there a fear that if it’s not the most optimal, you’ll be doing things wrong or failing? Entire industries have been formed on people wanting to optimize everything, and being afraid of missing out on what’s the absolute best. It’s OK to be inefficient or suboptimal, if it means hours of less stress. Have fun with a task, enjoy the activity, don’t worry about perfection. Wander and explore. 2. Let yourself do things without an outcome in mind. What if you could start something and not need to get to a certain place. I’m learning the game of Go right now, and it’s fun to just learn for the sake of learning, without needing to “get good” or achieve a certain rank. 3. Practice getting to “good enough.” Not everything needs to be absolutely perfect — in fact, most things don’t. You might explore getting to good enough … and then stopping there, and being satisfied with that. 4. Don’t focus much on metrics. Sure, some things need to be tracked, but not everything does. Lots of meaningful things are better without being tracked or measured for progress. 5. The big one: from improvement to appreciation. Instead of asking, “How can I make this even better?” … you might ask, “What’s already beautiful about this?” The practice of appreciation is deep and powerful. Let yourself be human. You’re not an improvement project. You don’t have to always upgrade. Growth is fun, but having a death grip on progress and perfection takes all the fun out of it. Let it be joyful! Let it come from curiosity and enjoyment, rather than all the ways we feel inadequate. And practice just being here, without having to get anywhere. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Leo Babauta ZEN HABITS
brushhand.com.au
Why Good HR Practices
are Good for Business
How Tradies Can Build Better Teams, Better Client Relationships and Better Profits For many tradies, human resources (HR) can feel like something that belongs in a big corporate office rather than on a building site, in a workshop or in the back of a work ute. But the reality is that good HR practices are just as important for a small painting and decorating and other tradie business as they are for a large company. When you have the right people, clear expectations and a workplace where employees feel respected and supported, the benefits flow through every part of your business. Jobs are completed more efficiently, mistakes are reduced, clients receive better service and business owners spend less time dealing with staff problems.
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Ultimately, good HR isn't just about looking after employees. It's about building a business that is more productive, profitable and professional.
Your people are one of your biggest business assets For most trade businesses, the quality of the work depends heavily on the quality of the people doing it. A skilled tradesperson who turns up on time, communicates well with clients, takes pride in their work and solves problems professionally is incredibly valuable. They don't just complete a job — they contribute to the reputation of the entire business.
On the other hand, an employee who regularly arrives late, leaves jobs unfinished, treats clients poorly or doesn't follow workplace procedures can quickly cost a business money and damage its reputation.
quality standards and expectations around client service.
Good HR practices help business owners get the best from their team by creating clarity around what is expected and providing employees with the support they need to succeed.
A straightforward employment agreement, position description, workplace policies and regular conversations can provide a solid foundation.
That starts with getting the basics right.
Hire for more than technical skills Technical ability is obviously important when hiring a tradie or other employee. But it's not the only thing that matters. A great employee also needs to be reliable, trustworthy, willing to learn and capable of communicating with clients and colleagues.
This doesn't have to mean creating a mountain of paperwork.
When expectations are unclear, problems can quickly develop. An employee might think a particular task is someone else's responsibility, while the business owner expects them to handle it. A client complaint may then result, or a job may need to be revisited. Clear expectations reduce ambiguity and help employees make better decisions without constantly having to ask the boss what to do.
Keeping good employees saves real money
For client-facing trades, these qualities can be just as important as technical expertise. A client might not know whether a particular fitting has been installed perfectly, but they will certainly notice whether the tradesperson was respectful, kept the work area tidy and explained what was happening.
Employee turnover can be expensive. When an experienced tradesperson leaves, the business loses more than the cost of advertising a replacement.
Having a clear recruitment process helps businesses assess candidates against the qualities that matter.
The business then has to spend time recruiting, interviewing and onboarding someone new. There may be a period where the new employee isn't operating at full productivity, and existing employees may have to spend time training them.
This can include: • Clearly defining the role before advertising. • Checking qualifications, licences and experience. • Asking behavioural questions during interviews. • Checking references. • Explaining workplace expectations before someone starts. • Making sure the person is a good fit for the business and its values. Taking a little more time during recruitment can prevent a lot of headaches later.
Clear expectations prevent costly problems One of the simplest HR practices a business can implement is making sure everyone knows what is expected of them.
It also loses knowledge, productivity and potentially client relationships.
Good HR practices can help reduce unnecessary turnover. This doesn't mean trying to keep every employee forever. Sometimes an employee simply isn't the right fit. But businesses should make an effort to retain the people who are reliable, skilled and committed. Simple things can make a significant difference: fair treatment, clear communication, recognition for good work, opportunities to develop and a workplace where people feel respected.
Employees should understand their responsibilities, working hours, pay and conditions, safety obligations,
2026 October Issue | 13
Good HR improves productivity — and productivity improves profit One of the biggest financial benefits of good HR is improved productivity. Consider two businesses with the same number of employees and similar hourly rates. In one business, employees regularly arrive late, jobs run over time, materials are wasted and the owner spends hours resolving workplace problems. In the other, employees know what is expected, jobs are properly organised, communication is good and everyone takes responsibility for their work. The second business can potentially complete more work with the same resources. That difference goes straight to the bottom line. Even small improvements can have a significant impact. Saving 15 minutes on several jobs each day, reducing callbacks or avoiding unnecessary material wastage can add up to thousands of dollars over a year. Good HR practices aren't about creating unnecessary corporate processes or burying a small trade business in paperwork.
14 | Aussie Painting Contractor
They're about creating a workplace where people know what is expected, have the tools and training to do their jobs properly, and are treated fairly and professionally. For a tradie business, the benefits can be significant. Better hiring leads to better employees. Better employees lead to better workmanship and service. Better service leads to happier clients. Happier clients lead to repeat business, referrals and stronger reviews. And all of that contributes to better profitability. The key is to remember that HR isn't separate from the business's financial performance. Your people are the link between the work you sell and the experience your client receives. Investing in them is therefore an investment in the future of the business. Feel free to book a call with me straight from my Home page at www.straighttalkat.com.au to arrange a FREE Business Health Check that focuses on productivity through good HR practices.
Copyright © 2026 Robert Bauman.
ROLES Are yours holding you back? We each play many roles in life: parent, partner, professional, friend, cook, student, daughter or son—and often many more. When those roles compete for our time and attention, we can become exhausted and feel trapped. We are also taught from an early age that our roles give life meaning. We worry about what we should achieve by 21, 28, 40 or 60. Gradually, we can begin to believe that our roles define who we are, and that our value depends on how well we perform them. But what if our roles are simply roles we play—not who we are? Life has a way of reminding us that nothing stays the same. Kids leave your homes. Careers ends. Relationships change. Illness or unexpected events can suddenly take away a role we thought was
18 | Aussie Painting Contractor
central to our identity. These changes can be deeply painful because we are not only losing something we did—we may feel we are losing who we were. Yet underneath every changing role is something that does not need to change: our capacity to be present, to love, to learn, to experience and to simply be. Perhaps our roles are tools through which we experience life, rather than definitions of who we are. We can care deeply about them without becoming attached to them. We can be a parent without being only a parent, a lawyer without being only a lawyer, or successful without needing success to prove our worth. This is where the ancient teaching of impermanence becomes practical. Everything changes. Suffering
often comes when we try to make temporary things permanent— including our identities. Letting go does not mean you are becoming detached from life. It means staying connected without needing everything to be the same. When we anchor more deeply in our Being, our roles become choices rather than prisons. We can love them, enjoy them and give ourselves fully to them—while remembering that we are always more than any role we play. And perhaps that is where greater freedom begins: not by doing less, but by remembering that we are more than what we do. Sit with that idea. Notice which roles you are holding tightly. And gently ask yourself: Who am I when I am not trying to be anything?
2026 October Issue | 19
How AI could make us work even harder Technological progress has taken more than its fair share of the workload from humans over the years. Washing machines clean our clothes, tractors plough the fields and computers sort out the admin. Meanwhile, economic growth and redistribution of wealth means most workers in industrialised countries do not need to spend most of their waking hours on gainful employment. The 12 hour working day that was common during the 19th century has been largely reduced. So will developments in AI help us gain even more free time? Not necessarily. In fact, AI might actually cause working hours to increase. One reason for this has to do with the effects of AI on people’s bargaining power in the workplace. If workers are fearful that their jobs might be lost to automation, research shows they may be inclined to increase their efforts as a way of signalling to employers that their labour is still valuable.
20 | Aussie Painting Contractor
My research on the rat race suggests that this kind of response is to be expected. Employers must continuously decide whom to hire, promote or dismiss. In making such decisions, employers seek to reward productivity. But productivity is often hard to measure, so employers rely on alternatives metrics such as the amount of time spent working. Checking whether a work station is still occupied after everyone else has gone home is much easier than assessing the accuracy of a complex project. And from a worker’s point of view, increasing the time they spend at work seems like an effective way of setting themselves apart from other (apparently less motivated) workers. But when everyone pursues this strategy, it becomes self-defeating. No one gains a positional advantage, while everyone works more. The introduction of AI to workplaces can turbocharge this dynamic. Existing AI tools have already automated some tasks, like data entry, creating an expectation that entire roles will be redundant soon.
Against this backdrop, the rat race becomes more cut throat. Workers reasonably expect large scale restructurings of their companies and seek to make sure that they will retain their jobs in the process. Researchers recently found evidence for this, noting that workers in AI exposed industries like financial services and IT are literally switching off their office lights later than those in less exposed industries. Another problem is that employers can overestimate the extent to which AI boosts workers’ productivity. The availability of AI tools to improve efficiency creates an expectation among employers that workers can do more than they could before in the same amount of time. However, when these expectations are overblown, they can lead to additional work intensification or longer work hours.
Working nine ‘til…?
Finally, the adoption of AI causes significant frictions. Established routines are overhauled, existing roles change and new roles are created. Workers must be trained in the use of AI tools and must learn to work alongside them. But what makes this particularly challenging is that existing AI tools are continuously being improved and new tools developed at a rapid pace. All of this places additional demands on workers’ time.
It may be sobering to contemplate that AI might not improve our lives by relieving us from toil. Overwork and burnout might even increase over the coming years. But that situation is by no means inevitable or unavoidable – especially if future control over AI’s design and implementation is not left to employers and large AI firms. It is possible in theory to design and implement AI in ways that improve workers’ skills, enhancing their areas of expertise, making their work more valuable and thereby enhancing their bargaining power with employers. An empowered workforce would be able to bargain for favourable working conditions, including working time patterns that fit with people’s lives and preferences. And if developers were to prioritise augmentation and empowerment, AI could be the ultimate tool that helps to tackle widespread resentment and disenchantment with our working lives. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Malte Jauch
Lecturer in Management and Marketing, University of Essex
Dark times. Gorodenkoff/Shutterstock
2026 October Issue | 21
9 reasons to switch to
CLOUD Computing Don’t be left up in the air by traditional IT solutions. Check out the top 9 advantages for small businesses switching to cloud computing. Cloud computing is fast becoming the norm because storing information and using software hosted on the Internet has many advantages. 1. Save money Traditionally, a small business spends money licensing software or buying packages to install or download onto individual computers. Cloud computing, on the other hand, can provide ‘Software as a Service’ (SaaS) – including many programs that are available individually. They’re stored on a service provider’s remote servers instead of on your hard drive so you don’t need a high-end computer to use them. The automation provided by cloud computing also saves costs. Many companies have slashed their IT overheads because their service providers are directly taking care of updates and program maintenance for them.
knowledge or input from the end user. As such, cloud computing has done away with the end user having to install programs, download updates. You won’t have to stop work for a download bar to fill on your screen or an IT staff member to install a program. 3. Share more Staff don’t have to rely on email to contend with location issues. For example, a colleague on a factfinding trip to Shanghai could find a company document online, rather than waiting for co-workers back at the office to find and email it. 4. Flexibility Data storage is one of the core SaaS offerings of cloud computing – it allows even large corporates to access huge databases of information without having to operate their own floors of servers. This outsourcing means that instead of having to invest in more hard drives and servers to increase capacity, a growing business can simply store everything on the cloud. All you need is an Internet connection and devices to access it.
2. Save time Cloud computing was developed to be an on-tap service that requires little
2026 October Issue | 23
5. Improve reliability Cloud computing is proving that software as a service, rather than as a product, is more reliable. With so many people using a single program, instead of everyone using individual copies, service providers are directly managing software and being updated about issues immediately. Fewer problems are arising because software isn’t being downloaded onto individually customised computers containing other programs and systems that the software might not be compatible with. 6. Be mobile It’s almost as if cloud computing was designed specifically for mobile devices because you don’t rely on the device itself for storage capacity. You don’t have to email documents from home to work computers anymore. 7. Improve security Security is the biggest issue people have with cloud computing because users have to hand over responsibility for data security to their service providers. Cloud computing always makes sense when it comes to guarding against physical theft, such as a break-in at a business’s premises. However, the hacking or system failure of servers containing masses of user data remains a concern.
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8. Quickly recover from disaster Back up important documents on a separate hard drive is important, whether you’re using cloud computing or not. But in the case of a natural disaster that denies you access to your premises, cloud computing can be advantageous. Because you can access your documents anywhere there’s an Internet connection, cloud computing can be a vital tool to ensure business continuity. 9. Bankability The cost and time savings implied by using cloud computing can be promoted as an advantage in business plans. It’s not just an alternative choice to traditional IT set-ups but an evolution of IT thinking. It can be applied to make a business leaner and more effective at service delivery. Studies have evaluated the lifecycle cost savings of cloud computing at up to 50% for companies using high numbers of in-house servers. Add to that, the elimination of service interruptions caused by traditional IT issues, such as downloading updates and fixing system errors, and your company can move forward a lot faster than your competition. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sandra Price
tradiebookkeepingsolutions.com.au
MARKETING for Painters and Decorators The most important purpose of marketing is simple: to attract clients. Without clients, there is nobody to sell to, and without sales, there is no business.
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For a painting and decorating business, marketing is not just about putting an advert online. It is about getting noticed, building trust, showing the quality of your work, and making it easy for potential clients to choose you.
•
Your Marketing Checklist Here are some practical ways to attract more clients: • Define your ideal client—home owners, landlords, property managers, businesses, etc. • Identify your client buying advantage: Why should someone choose you instead of another painter? • Create a professional website showing your services and examples of your work. • Use before-and-after photographs to demonstrate the difference your work makes.
•
• • •
• • • •
Set up and maintain your Google Business Profile so local clients can find you. Ask satisfied clients for reviews and testimonials. Use Facebook, Instagram, or other social media to regularly showcase completed projects. Create useful content, such as decorating tips, colour advice, maintenance advice, and preparation guides. Develop a referral strategy and ask happy clients to recommend you. Build relationships with estate agents, property managers, builders, interior designers, and other trades who can refer work. Use direct outreach to introduce your services to local businesses, landlords, and property owners. Create clear service packages and offers where appropriate. Have a simple process for providing quotations and following up with potential clients. Keep in touch with previous clients so they remember you when their next decorating job comes up.
One good job can lead to:
Your Client Buying Advantage One of the most important questions in marketing is: • Why should a client choose you? • Your advantage could be: • Better preparation and attention to detail. • High-quality workmanship. • Clean and tidy working practices. • Reliable arrival times. • Clear and professional quotations. • Excellent communication. • Competitive pricing. • Specialist decorating skills. • Fast completion. • A strong reputation and excellent reviews. • A guarantee or commitment to putting things right if there is a problem. Being different is not enough. Your difference must be something the client values.
Turn Clients into Your Marketing Team For painters and decorators, word-of-mouth is extremely powerful. After completing a successful job, ask the client: “Are you happy with the work? If you are, would you mind leaving us a review or recommending us to a friend or neighbour?” You can also photograph completed work, with the client's permission, and use it in your marketing.
That is a marketing message because it explains why your service is valuable.
2026 October Issue | 27
The Power
SITE DIARIES of
A well documented religiously kept Site Diary is one of the best things you can do to protect the value of your work in a Payment dispute, yet it is one of the rarest things to find. And I’m not talking about a normal calendar diary in which you scribble a few notes here and there. I am talking about a diary specifically there to capture the great number of details and key events that happen every day on your site. In most payment disputes the parties will argue a different (very different) version of events. It is important that you can prove your version. The way to do that is to keep a daily site diary. If you can demonstrate that you record events each day, then this document becomes ‘contemporaneous evidence’ that you can use in adjudication or other proceedings.
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So what are some of the things you should record? Here are some that will make all the difference in a payment dispute: Contract Work done v Variation Work done The biggest argument for non payment is either ‘the work is part of your scope’ or ‘It was never approved or requested’. You should detail the contract work done by reference to your scope of works. That way there can no argument that it is contract work. By contract you can then record the variation work done. This work will not be found in the scope of works and so is additional. The final things is to record how the variation was requested; written or oral. Record who requested it, and if written include the details of the written instruction.
Old Drawings V New Drawings Another massive are of argument is revised drawings that require additional work. The debtor will argue that the new drawings should not attract any additional cost. The best thing to do is diarise the date you were issued new drawings and note the drawings they replaced. You should also send your client a quote to carry out the additional work in the drawing, and diarise that too. In this way you can follow how the scope required grew, and the dates it grew, and by what value. Many times clients will try to insist that the new drawing is the one issued all along and that there never was an earlier version. A good diary will sort that one out.
Try to get the date stamp on each photo and each day record the photos you have taken.
Oral Directions So often a client will give numerous oral directions that add up to a whole range of additional work. What needs to be detailed here are all those directions that create a variation. That way the client cannot use the usual tactic of simply denying that the work was ever requested. If you can match the date the request was made with other evidence about the work, then one document backs up the other. This makes for great evidence. Staff Onsite Often there is a dispute about labour hours. The client will usually argue that the job could not have taken that long, or that there was no staff onsite. You need to diarise who was onsite every day. That way you can support the hours claimed.
Delays Most contracts will not allow you to claim for delays. However in many contract the client will attempt to hit you with liquidated damages. A site diary can help you record exactly who delayed work each day, and for how long.
Photos Regular readers of my articles will now that I am a great fan of the photo. It really is first class evidence for anything. If you have completed an item of work, take a picture. If another trade has damaged your work, take a picture.
Often the delay is caused by another party or by circumstances beyond your control. Sometimes an authority such as local council or WorkCover, or an energy authority will require work to cease for while.
The most important things to bear in mind is that one day of diary entries is not what helps you: It is the ability to show months and years of entries that will give your diary almost unbeatable credibility.
All this needs to be diarised so you can prove that you did not hold up the work. And always check the contract to see if you need to apply for an extension of time. And if so, do it immediately.
So get those pens at the ready and get it in the diary! It will save you a fortune. ----------------------------------------------------------Anthony Igra
www.contractorsdebtrecovery.com.au
2026 October Issue | 31
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The Mental Habits We Practice the Most
There’s an old idea, often misattributed to Aristotle, that “we are what we repeatedly do.” That idea is true of our physical acts, but also of our mental habits. What we’re practicing the most is what we think every day, and that becomes who we are. For example, if we’re constantly complaining (even just in our own minds), that’s what we’re practicing all the time … and that shapes our experience of life, and how we impact other people. The mental habits we’re practicing all day long are incredibly important in our lives — and yet we’re often not even aware we’re doing them. Some of the most common mental habits that can have negative impacts on our lives: • • •
Complaint Blaming others Telling ourselves it’s OK to put something important off for
•
• • • • • • • •
one more day Deciding we need to check email, messages, social media one more time before focusing on the things that matter Self-criticism Judging other people Worrying about what everyone else thinks Ruminating on past mistakes or past hurts Limiting ourselves by how we see ourselves (I’m not smart enough to do that) Worrying about the future or possible failure Stressing ourselves out with the things we think we need to do Getting stuck in indecision because it’s overwhelming or hard to choose the “right” decision
Do any of these feel familiar? They all have a big impact on our lives if we’re practicing them over and over, every day.
Practicing Different Mental Habits The idea is to come up with replacement habits, and to practice them every day, as often as you can. Start by noticing which negative mental patterns you practice regularly — do you notice any of the ones above? Try to spot them as they happen: if you’re complaining, can you notice when you’re in the act of complaining? Then practice the replacement mental habit. If you do this, you’ll start to replace the old habit with the new one, and it will start to become your default over time. It takes concerted effort, but the payoff is huge.
Let’s talk about how to shift these patterns by practicing new ones.
2026 October Issue | 33
• • • •
Some ideas for replacement mental habits:
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•
•
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Gratitude and appreciation instead of complaint Taking responsibility for your part, instead of blaming others Putting important things as a priority that you’re committed to, instead of putting it off for one more day Focusing on the things that
•
matter first, before allowing yourself to check email, messages, social media Self-appreciation, instead of self-criticism Appreciating the great quality of other people, instead of judging them Caring about what you think, instead of worrying about what everyone else thinks Acceptance, instead of ruminating on past mistakes or past hurts Expanding our view of ourselves, instead of limiting ourselves by how we see ourselves Focusing on what we can control, instead of worrying about the future or possible failure Focusing on one thing right now, instead of stressing ourselves out with all the things we think we need to do
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Making a choice from the gut, instead of getting stuck in indecision because it’s overwhelming or hard to choose the “right” decision
You might have other ideas for replacements — that’s OK, these are just ideas. Decide for yourself what would be most helpful. In the end, it’s about deciding what we want to practice every day — the things that will lead to the lives we want, or that will keep us stuck.
---------------------------------------------------------------
Leo Babauta
ZEN HABITS
A D V A N T A 6 [
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CONTACT US 07 3333 2415
info@tradiesadvantage.com.au 191 Wynnum Road, Norman Park QLD 4170
CHECK OUT THE QBCC’s INDUSTRY SNAPSHOT
The QBCC’s Industry Snapshot provides valuable insights into Queensland’s building and construction industry, including licensing trends, demographic shifts and defect reporting— providing an understanding of industry dynamics, planning workforce development, and improving compliance and quality standards. SOME NOTABLE CHANGES OVER THE PAST TWO YEARS INCLUDE: GROWTH IN LICENSEES • Total licensees under the QBCC Act increased by 6.3% from 96,908 in 2023 to 103,011 in 2025 (total licensees are more than 120,000 under all Acts regulated by the QBCC). • The most notable increases were in the Brisbane region (+7.5%) and the Sunshine Coast region (+11.7%). DEMOGRAPHIC SHIFTS • The proportion of licensees aged under 30 years has slightly increased, indicating a modest rejuvenation of the workforce. • A large portion of licensees remain over 60 years old, especially in key trades like plumbing, painting and carpentry, highlighting ongoing succession challenges. DEFECT TRENDS • Painting continues to top the list of reported defects. • Driveways and paths defects have increased in frequency. • The incidence of footing and slab defects has increased. If you need a refresher on any of these defective work items, the QBCC’s standards and tolerances guide is a quick and easy reference for industry, licensees and home owners, based on recognised industry standards in Queensland.
Licensee feedback and suggestions are welcomed, so the QBCC can continue to evolve and provide the most accurate picture of the industry possible. To read the full and latest version of the Industry Snapshot or find out more on the state of the industry please visit www.qbcc.qld.gov.au
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A006854 APN_10/25
The QBCC will publish the Industry Snapshot annually to ensure the building and construction industry is armed with current and reliable industry data.
Lumbersider Low Sheen Here in the Antipodes we expect a lot from an exterior paint, after all, it needs to stand up to some of the harshest climatic conditions on the planet. That’s why, if you’re looking for a low-sheen, waterborne paint that will stay looking great for years to come, Resene Lumbersider Low Sheen is the product for you. Resene Lumbersider Low Sheen has been formulated to ensure maximum durability in all exposed conditions. It imparts a natural low sheen look that is fully washable, making it ideal for use on a wide range of commercial and residential exterior projects, including landscaping, fences and exterior furniture. Resene Lumbersider comes in thousands of Resene colours or can be custom coloured to suit your requirements, including a huge range of Pantone colours, using the Resene Colour Match service, available via your Resene representative or Resene ColorShop. Additionally, for those looking to achieve a softer, smoother appearance, there is Resene Lumbersider Matt. Available in selected colours from the Resene Total Colour System, including BS5252, MultiFinish, Whites & Neutrals and The Range, Resene Lumbersider Matt builds on the performance of the Lumbersider range, and is designed especially for those after a flatter-style finish on outdoor surfaces. For those after a darker, more contemporary look for their exterior, both Resene Lumbersider Low Sheen and Resene Lumbersider Matt are available in CoolColour variants – available in selected colours from the Resene Total Colour System.
A Resene CoolColour is designed to reflect much more of the sun’s energy than a standard colour, reducing heat build-up and protecting weatherboards and other substrates. Choose from the Resene range of additives to give extra protection or make painting easier: • If the paint is drying too fast in the hotter months, add Resene Hot Weather Additive to slow drying and give more time to get a professional finish. • When painting in winter or cooler conditions, ask for Resene Wintergrade Additive, formulated to assist drying down to 3 degrees. • If the surface being painted is in a shaded area, ask for Resene MoulDefender, a mould inhibitor, to be added to your paint for extra protection. • If you’re painting and there is a risk of light showers, add Resene Umbrella Additive for early shower protection. This will help the paint set up a paint film so it doesn’t run off the surface. • If using Resene Lumbersider Low Sheen waterborne exterior/interior inside, add Resene Fly Deterrent to deter flies from sitting on painted surfaces. Most additives are best used in isolation. Ask your Resene Representative or Resene ColorShop team for the right additive for your project conditions. For more information on this product, and the rest of the Resene range, ask your local Resene representative, your local Resene ColorShop team or ask a Resene paint expert online at: www.resene.com/paintexpert.
2026 October Issue | 37
Fixed Fee Business Legal Services:
Your Guide to Upfront Pricing A fixed fee does not mean every legal matter can be reduced to a standard package. It means the scope of the work is defined upfront and a price is agreed for that scope. This can make it easier to budget for legal work and understand what is included, what is excluded and what may result in additional fees. This guide explains how fixed-fee business legal services can work in practice and what Australian business owners should look for when considering a legal proposal.
How Fixed-Fee Legal Services Work
Under a fixed-fee arrangement, the lawyer and client agree on a price for a defined scope of legal work. For example, a proposal might cover: • reviewing a particular agreement; • preparing a new commercial contract; • reviewing franchise documents; • preparing a shareholders agreement; • assisting with a business sale or purchase; or • preparing and filing a trade mark application. The proposal should explain what the lawyer will do for the fixed fee and any assumptions or limitations that apply. This gives the client a clearer understanding of the legal work being undertaken and the cost attached to that work.
Why the Scope of Work Matters
The scope of work is one of the most important parts of a fixed-fee proposal. • reviewing nominated documents; • preparing a first draft; • providing written advice; • a meeting or call to discuss the advice; • a specified number of amendments; or • particular steps involved in a transaction. The proposal should also identify important exclusions.
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For example, a fixed fee for preparing a contract may not include: • extended negotiations with the other party; • additional drafting outside the agreed scope; • dispute or litigation work; • tax or accounting advice; • financial advice; or • government fees or other third-party costs. Clear inclusions and exclusions help reduce misunderstandings about what the client is paying for.
Business Legal Services That May Be Quoted on a Fixed-Fee Basis
Many areas of commercial legal work can be suitable for a fixed-fee proposal where the scope can be identified in advance.
Business Contracts
Businesses regularly need agreements governing their relationships with clients, suppliers, contractors and other parties. Depending on the business, this might include: • Terms and Conditions; • service agreements; • contractor agreements; • supply agreements; • distribution agreements; • confidentiality agreements; or • other commercial contracts. You can read more about our business contract services.
Terms and Conditions
Well-prepared Terms and Conditions can document how a business provides goods or services, including matters such as payment, delivery, liability, termination and other commercial terms. The appropriate document depends on the business model, clients, industry and the particular risks involved.
Partnership and Shareholders Agreements
Partnership and shareholders agreements can document matters such as ownership, decisionmaking, funding, transfers, exits and other arrangements between business owners.
quoted on a fixed-fee basis where the transaction and scope can be properly identified.
should explain the additional work and the proposed cost before proceeding.
This may include reviewing or preparing the business sale agreement, advising on key terms, legal due diligence, settlement work and related transaction documents.
That additional work may itself be quoted as another fixed-fee component where appropriate.
Because transactions can differ considerably, the fixed fee may depend on the complexity of the deal and the documents involved.
A fixed professional fee does not necessarily include every cost associated with a matter.
Read more about our business sales and purchases services.
These agreements should be tailored to the ownership structure and the commercial arrangements between the parties. Read more about our partnership and shareholders agreement services.
Trade Marks
Trade mark work may also be quoted on a fixed-fee basis where the scope is defined.
What Happens if Additional Work Is Required?
A fixed fee applies to the scope agreed at the start of the matter. Sometimes the work changes after the matter begins. For example:
Government filing fees and other disbursements should be identified separately where applicable.
•
Business Sales and Purchases
Legal work relating to buying or selling a business may also be
Disbursements are costs paid to third parties in connection with the legal work. Depending on the matter, these can include: • government filing fees; • company or business searches; • PPSR searches; • trade mark application fees; • registration fees; or • other external costs. A proposal should make clear whether disbursements are included in the quoted amount or charged separately.
The work may involve searching, advising on a proposed application, identifying relevant goods and services, preparing the application and dealing with particular stages of the registration process.
See our trade mark and intellectual property services.
Disbursements and Third-Party Costs
• •
• •
the other party may request substantial amendments; additional documents may need to be prepared; the transaction may become more complex; the client may ask for additional services; or an issue may arise that was not reasonably apparent when the proposal was prepared.
Where additional work falls outside the original scope, the lawyer
Fixed Fees and Franchise Legal Work
Franchise legal work is another area where a clearly defined scope can be quoted on a fixedfee basis. Franchisee Reviews A fixed-fee franchise review may cover documents such as the Franchise Agreement and Disclosure Document and provide advice on the key rights, obligations and commercial provisions contained in them. The precise scope should be set out in the proposal. If you are considering purchasing a franchise, see our franchisee legal services.
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Franchisor Legal Costs Under the Franchising Code
The Competition and Consumer (Industry Codes—Franchising) Regulations 2024 also regulate when a franchisor can require a franchisee to contribute to the franchisor’s legal costs relating to the franchise agreement. Under section 38, the franchise agreement may require payment of a fixed dollar amount only where the statutory requirements are satisfied. Among other things, the amount must: • be specified in the franchise agreement; • be stated to relate to the franchisor’s legal costs of preparing, negotiating or executing the agreement; • not exceed the reasonable and genuine cost of those legal services; and
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•
not include amounts for later legal services relating to other documents after the franchise agreement is entered into.
The Code therefore has its own requirements concerning certain franchisor legal-cost contributions, separate from the legal fees a franchisee chooses to pay its own independent lawyer.
Reasonable Opportunity for Return on Investment
Section 44 of the Code provides that certain ordinary franchise agreements must give the franchisee a reasonable opportunity to make a return during the term of the agreement on investment required by the franchisor. This does not guarantee a profit or a particular financial outcome. These does not apply to every historical franchise agreement.
Transitional provisions also apply depending on when an agreement was entered into, transferred, renewed or extended.
What to Look for in a Fixed-Fee Proposal
When comparing legal proposals, price is only one part of the picture. It is also worth looking at: • the exact scope of work; • the documents or services included; • what is excluded; • how amendments or additional work are handled; • whether GST is included or additional; • whether disbursements are included or additional; and • when payment is required. A proposal should give you enough information to understand the work being provided and what may result in additional fees.
Legal Advice vs Accounting and Financial Advice
Commercial legal work often overlaps with financial, accounting and tax considerations, but these are different areas of professional advice. A lawyer may advise on the legal structure and contractual consequences of a transaction, while an accountant or tax adviser should advise on taxation, financial modelling and accounting consequences. For significant business decisions, it is often appropriate to obtain advice from the relevant professional advisers before committing to the transaction.
The proposal should explain what is included in the fee and any important exclusions, assumptions or additional costs. Does a fixed fee include unlimited amendments and advice? Not necessarily. A fixed fee relates to the agreed scope of work. The proposal should specify any included amendments, meetings, calls or additional support. Work beyond that scope may attract an additional fee.
Rise Legal provides fixed-fee proposals for defined commercial legal work.
The proposal sets out the scope of work, the fixed fee and any relevant exclusions or disbursements before the work begins. Contact Rise Legal to request a fixed-fee proposal for your business legal matter.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does a fixed legal fee mean? A fixed legal fee is an agreed price for a defined scope of legal work.
Can business contracts be signed electronically in Australia? Many Australian commercial contracts can be signed electronically, but the legal requirements depend on the type of document and the law that applies to it. For Commonwealth-law signature requirements, the Electronic Transactions Act 1999 sets conditions that may allow a signature requirement to be satisfied electronically, including requirements relating to identification, intention and the reliability of the method used.
How Rise Legal Approaches Fixed Fees
Our work includes areas such as: • business contracts; • Terms and Conditions; • franchising; • trade marks; • partnership and shareholders agreements; • business sales and purchases; • commercial leases; • contractor agreements; • PPSR and credit documentation; • other commercial legal matters.
Does the Franchising Code guarantee a franchisee a return on investment? No. Section 44 requires certain franchise agreements to provide a reasonable opportunity for the franchisee to make a return during the term on investment required by the franchisor. It does not guarantee profitability or a particular return.
Are government fees included in a fixed legal fee? Not always. Government fees, searches and other third-party expenses are often treated as disbursements and charged separately. The proposal should explain how these costs are handled. Can a franchisor require a franchisee to pay the franchisor’s legal costs? Only in the circumstances permitted by the Franchising Code.
Some documents may be subject to additional execution formalities or State or Territory requirements, so the appropriate execution method should be checked for the particular document. Does Rise Legal assist with disputes or litigation? No. Rise Legal focuses on commercial advisory and transactional legal work and does not undertake disputes or litigation.
Section 38 permits a franchise agreement to require a fixed dollar amount towards the franchisor’s legal costs where the statutory conditions are met, including that the amount is specified in the agreement and does not exceed the reasonable and genuine costs of the permitted legal services.
2026 October Issue | 41
Guide to
Profiling
YOUR Clients
Easily the most important first step in establishing any type of business is to define your clients so that you have the information you need to attract the right audience and generate valuable traffic to your website. Understanding your clients and what makes them tick is the key to any successful business, particularly if you are paying out large amounts of money to drive relevant traffic.
Every business caters to a specific demographic, and while some audiences might be extremely broad, it is still essential from a marketing perspective that you know your clients and how to reach out to them. You'll need to understand your own product or service, seek out feedback, learn about your clients' habits and interests and maintain a consistent and targeted marketing campaign.
One of the most practical ways of defining your clients is by building client profiles that represent the typical types of clients that you are aiming for. As a result, you'll be able to home in on a more specific target audience, communicate with your audience in a more relevant and personalised manner, and ultimately, generate more revenue.
Knowing Your Brand
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There's no shortage of novice Internet entrepreneurs out there who are attracted by the empty promises of making a quick profit by selling a product or service that is in high demand, even if they aren't at all familiar with what they're selling. The reality of a successful online business venture is
quite a different thing, however: you need to be completely familiar with what you are trying to sell, and you need to believe in it. Whether you're a lone entrepreneur or you're planning to start a small business with multiple employees or partners, you'll need to define your mission and come to fully understand your products and services. You simply cannot hope to accurately profile your clients if you do not have the utmost familiarity with what you are trying to sell to them. You'll need to pay attention to every detail before putting yourself in the shoes of your clients. When you know your brand, and it has a clearly defined mission, you'll be ready to start profiling your clients and tweaking your approach to marketing as necessary.
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Seek Feedback Seeking feedback is a critical ongoing process, but you should also start by doing plenty of research before you can even hope to get your marketing strategy off the ground. Your business will inevitably need to adapt over time to the needs and desires of its clients, not least because the client has far more control these days than ever before by way of things like social media and online reviews. Seek out feedback from your clients at every opportunity, but make sure that you don't end up being intrusive, and don't bombard people with too much information or too many questions. Many clients simply won't have the time or the patience to leave feedback, and you'll have to learn to accept that. Fortunately, there are some effective ways of encouraging your clients to leave feedback, such as by offering incentives like promotional codes and other discounts for completing a short survey or answering a few questions about their own preferences and habits. Feedback doesn't always need to come from clients themselves either. You can gain invaluable insights, albeit not quite as accurate, by reviewing reports on your industry. There are many companies, such as eMarketer and Forrester, which provide insights into specific markets by analysing trends in online behaviour to help your business better define its target audience.
Create Your Client Personas Create a profile of your perfect client. If your business has a particularly broad reach, then
Every day, millions of people turn to Google to find answers to their questions, solutions to problems or simply something to entertain them. What sort of queries does your business offer solutions for? By knowing your clients' problems, curiosities and interests, you'll be able to tailor your content, your marketing strategy and your product itself to better suit those criteria. you'll want to segment your target audience and create personas for each client category. Map out the behaviours and interests of your clients based on important factors such as demographics, buying habits, geographical location and more. You can even name these imaginary clients if you like, since this may help you to imagine them in a more practical light. When defining your client profiles, be sure to seek answers to the following questions: • • • • • • • • • • • •
What other, related businesses would they likely choose to work with? What sort of subject matter is most likely to interest them? What are their demographical attributes? Where are they located? What do they need or want? What do your clients do to entertain themselves? What is their income level? How much would they be willing to spend? What are their priorities and goals in life? How do they approach change? What are their past purchases? How often have they purchased from you?
Avoid basing your client personas on a real client, since no single individual can completely represent your target audience. Instead, a client persona should be reasonably broad, and it should characterise your perfect client. Conclusion With your client profiles in place, you'll be able to match each area of your marketing strategy to the individual characteristics of your clients. By targeting smaller and more specific audiences, you should be able to increase the percentage of paying clients and valuable leads instead of wasting time and money on targeting the wrong people. Ultimately, don't forget that it's not about getting more visitors to your website: it's about getting more visitors that go on to become paying clients.
----------------------------------------------------------------------Sandra Price
tradiebookkeepingsolutions.com.au
2026 October Issue | 45
aussie painters network
How Do You Quote a Painting Job?
Quoting is one of the most important parts of running a successful painting business. In this video, we break down the process of creating accurate, professional quotes that win jobs and keep your business profitable.
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Recruitment in the Painting & Decorating Industry Finding and keeping the right people is one of the biggest challenges for painting and decorating businesses.
Smoko – What does it really Cost
Smoko isn’t just a break – it’s a tradition in the trades. In this video, we take a look at what smoko means on site, why it’s important, and the stories that come with it.
2026 October Issue | 47
Can you teach yourself to detect AI writing? Maybe AI is quietly reshaping writing. It’s not just that prose is changing — the very structure of written language is genuinely changing too. It’s not just a new technology. It’s not a fad. It’s an undeniable revolution. Did this article’s introduction seem AI generated? What made you feel that way? The truth is, it was not AI generated; I wrote it to emulate synthetic prose, the kind you get when a large language model (LLM) organises words into text. That kind of prose suddenly seems to be everywhere: on low-quality websites built to accumulate advertising clicks, in social media captions chasing engagement, and even book manuscripts. Crime novelist Jerry Falade recently lost a book deal worth more than
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$2 million after his own literary agents said they could no longer faithfully determine how his manuscript had come together. Hachette pulled the horror novel Shy Girl in March this year under similar suspicion. Before generative AI, we could generally assume that written text had been composed by a human. This is no longer the case. So how can we spot AI-written text? There is no single giveaway. Instead, there are patterns: particular words, sentence structure and expressive habits that appear repeatedly in AI-generated prose. LLMs are also updated rapidly and efficiently so what gives away synthetic text today may no longer do a few months from now. Quiet, quietly and genuinely The word quietly is a significant giveaway. Search interest in the word has climbed steadily on Google Trends since Decem-
ber 2021, though this measures searches rather than appearances in writing, so it is suggestive rather than proof. What did change over that period is how many people began writing with the help of LLMs, and these models do seem to reach for quiet and quietly more than the average human writer. Genuinely is a similar story, and a more anecdotal one. I notice it overused in AI output, Claude included, more than I would expect from a person writing casually. No one has run a rigorous study on that specific word yet. The documented version of this pattern is vocabulary that has spiked in scientific writing since 2022: delve, meticulous, underscore, boast and intricate all appear far more often in scanned PubMed abstracts than before, in a pattern researchers have tied directly to ChatGPT-style phrasing.
None of these words is proof on its own. But when words like quietly, genuinely, delve and meticulous appear alongside the same polished sentence framing, it starts sounding like a shared house style among LLMs, rather than an individual voice. A house style of its own The “not X, but Y” construction is another part of that house style, alongside a fondness for the rule of three. It also favours taking a modest claim and then immediately escalating it. For example: “This article presents a useful perspective on language. It fundamentally changes how we think about what it means to write”. Human writers have always used it, but generative AI produces the pattern with remarkable consistency. Then there’s the em dash, the earliest and most mocked AI tell. It never held up particularly well. One writer ran the same prompt through six chatbots and got eight em dashes from ChatGPT in 573 words, but none from Gemini or Meta AI. This reaffirms the lesson that, while individual clues are unreliable, their accumulation matters. Read more: Slanguage: Why AI’s stylistic negation — ‘it’s not X, it’s Y’ — is both annoying and doesn’t work Lengthy text Another clue to generative AI use is text length.
the scene gave way to a lengthy text written in polished prose only half an hour later. When she later contacted a mechanic whose texts had previously been filled with shorthand, his reply came back in the same distinctive AI voice. Human language is shaped by the pressures of effort and time. Generative AI removes much of that cost. Realistically, a person might text: “Sorry, running late. Traffic is awful. Be there in 20”. AI can swiftly turn that into a paragraph explaining the unexpected traffic congestion, expressing sincere regret and thanking the recipient for their patience. Nothing in that longer version is necessarily wrong. It’s simply doing far more linguistic work than the situation generally requires when time is of the essence. The dangers of AI detection Some people believe AI detection software can identify AI-generated text. However, these systems are far from perfect and can worsen existing biases. A 2023 Stanford study found that seven popular AI detectors falsely identified an average of 61% of essays written by non-native English speakers as AI generated, with one tool flagging 97% of them. AI detection has evolved since then, and more recent research presents a more complicated picture: current detectors can perform better in some settings, yet remain vulnerable to evasion and still produce false positives.
At the same time, the question is shifting beyond detection altogether: the European Union is now demanding that all AI-generated content is labelled or watermarked. Are LLMs changing the way we write? A new study in Nature Human Behaviour, analysing more than 880,000 Reddit posts, news articles and academic pieces, found that the spread of LLMs was associated with less variation in writing style. Knowing who wrote something matters because language lands differently depending on who it comes from. Is the person trustworthy? Knowledgeable? Funny? Younger? Are they real? The other reason is dexterity. Humans are excellent at problem solving and creativity, and those abilities appear in the peculiarities of individual language: an unexpected word, a unique comparison, a sentence structure that may reappear across writers but not en masse, as is the case with synthetic text. If the prose across our media begins to sound as though it has been cut from the same automatic, uncreative, underwhelming and repetitive mould, we lose individuality, nuance, and our trust in the authenticity of the written text and its writer. ----------------------------------------------------------Celeste Rodriguez Louro
Associate Professor & Director of Language Lab, The University of Western Australia
A reporter for The Atlantic describes how, after a driver crashed into her in Johannesburg, his frantic and incoherent behaviour at
2026 October Issue | 49
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IMPORTANT
Contacts
Aussie Painters Network aussiepaintersnetwork.com.au
1800 355 344
National Institute for Painting and Decorating painters.edu.au 1300 319 790 Australian Tax Office ato.gov.au 13 72 26 / Ph. 13 28 65 Award Rates fairwork.gov.au 13 13 94 Australian Building & Construction Commission www.abcc.gov.au
1800 003 338
Mates In Construction www.mates.org.au
1300 642 111
Workplace Health and Safety Contacts Comcare WorkSafe ACT Workplace Health and Safety QLD WorkSafe Victoria SafeWork NSW SafeWork SA WorkSafe WA NT WorkSafe WorkSafe Tasmania
comcare.gov.au worksafe.act.gov.au worksafe.qld.gov.au worksafe.vic.gov.au safework.nsw.gov.au safework.sa.gov.au worksafe.wa.gov.au worksafe.nt.gov.au worksafe.tas.gov.au
1300 366 979 02 6207 3000 1300 362 128 1800 136 089 13 10 50 1300 365 255 1300 307 877 1800 019 115 1300 366 322
actcancer.org cancercouncil.com.au cancercouncilnt.com.au cancerqld.org.au cancersa.org.au cancervic.org.au cancerwa.asn.au
(02) 6257 9999 (02) 9334 1900 (08) 8927 4888 (07) 3634 5100 (08) 8291 4111 (03) 9635 5000 (08) 9212 4333
Cancer Council Australia ACT NSW NT QLD SA VIC WA
2026 October Issue | 51