For most of my life my focus was football. I played for Sydney United chasing a full-time career, and before COVID I had an offer to play in Germany. Then, mid-transit, I got stuck in Singapore through the lockdowns.

I kept the dream going as long as I could, training and playing in Singapore and spending five months in Serbia trying to break into the European scene. That's where reality hit. The doors stayed shut. After two years overseas I came home to Sydney feeling lost, football gone and no direction.

While I worked out what came next, one thing kept standing out: plenty of good local businesses had a weak online presence, or none at all. I'd been around digital tech since completing a Bachelor of Cyber Security and Behaviour, so I could see where things were heading. That was the opening.

The early days were rough. My cold outreach was terrible. I messaged, called and turned up in person to pitch my rookie self, and copped plenty of rejection before I landed my first client. But I kept putting in the reps.

Three years on, I've worked with more than 100 local businesses, with 40+ five-star reviews behind them. It started with full website builds. These days I help clients with every touchpoint of their online presence, from the site to everything that supports it. I mainly work with builders and trades, building an online presence that looks the part, earns trust and helps the right clients choose you.

The setup hasn't changed since day one: one person, doing the work, talking to you directly. Football taught me the part that still matters most here: nothing happens overnight, rejection comes with the growth, and you keep showing up and putting in the reps.