Female Founder Feature: Ali Mills
Female Founder Name: Ali Mills
Business Name: Grief Guide
Website: www.griefguide.com.au
Tell us about your business. What products or services do you offer?: Grief Guide is a specialised grief, loss, and bereavement service. I am a Registered Counsellor and Accredited Supervisor with over a decade of experience working in oncology, palliative care, perinatal support, family separation, with children and young people, and with those impacted by sudden and traumatic losses and now provide Counselling, Supervision, and training face-to-face in Brisbane and Nationwide via telehealth.
What inspired you to start your business?: Three reasons;
1) Having worked in the industry for over a decade, I was getting tired of coming up against systemic barriers to being able to do the work and help people.
2) There are not many services available that do this work and do it well. I can only think of a handful of people I would refer to. Many mental health or wellbeing services will list that they support people with grief in a long laundry list of services, whereas to support grieving people well requires a particular skill and knowledge set and I knew I could fill this void in Brisbane.
3) I also have a young family and need work to fit in better with the other very important role I hold as Mum.
How long have you been running your business?: Not long! I started in May 2024 and hustled away, but it really only kicked off for me in November 2024 when clients started coming through the door. Now, in February 2025 I'm looking to build further so that no grieving person needs to do so alone, without support should they want it.
What is the biggest challenge you’ve faced as a woman in business, and how did you overcome it?: Juggling it all! I feel so inspired by this work and by being able to run my business and do more, but I am constrained by having a limited amount of time to do it, wanting to ensure I am giving time to my kids. I also need to fit this work into daycare hours, weekdays and with flexibility when they're sick or have appointments. It's not easy! I also have the tendency to throw everything I have into a project to ensure its' success, which means that any spare time I have goes very quickly and I can become tired. I need to prioritise taking a breath, taking it slow and trusting in the timing of family and business and how they intersect.
What has been your proudest moment as a business owner?: Having something that's mine and that I'm proud of what I'm offering to the community. I can stand behind every part of it with pride; what I post on social media sounds and portrays myself and my work, my website says what I want it to say, the information I ask of clients is relevant and gentle in its' approach, the organisations I collaborate with feels authentic.
What strategies have helped you grow your business?: I ensure that I'm delivering one meaty piece of social media each week; a lengthy instagram reel with commentary that then gets turned into a blog and repurposed elsewhere along with regular resharing of stories. I also offer once a quarter a free community engagement opportunity, a Death Cafe, that is an opportunity to get the community to start talking about death and dying. This is not only a freebie to the community that's putting my money where my mouth is, but it's also become a free marketing tool because I promote this widely on social media. This promotion has been wonderful! It's meant that people in the surrounding suburbs know about the Cafe, know about my service and may recall that "what was that grief thing I saw?" when the time comes that they need some grief support.
What tools or resources have been game-changers for your business?: I have my "financial source of truth" spreadsheet that I developed early on, and continue adapting to suit my needs. This is where I'm tracking upcoming expenses, yearly business costs, actual income, money that's coming in/ outstanding, expenses, trips and associated costs etc etc. For me, as a visual learner, it's been helpful having all of this information at my fingertips, and to quickly be able to see if i'm ahead or where I'm at.
Can you share one key lesson you’ve learned about managing finances as a business owner?: Gosh, to be continued! This is not my strong suit and I'm continuing to learn, but perhaps it's around needing to be upfront with clients about policies and procedures at the start and in an ongoing way, so that if something happens I can have this to fall back upon. What I'm thinking about is a client who did not pay their invoice, and at that stage of the business, I hadn't written a clear cancellation and fee policy. I was left in a position of needing to umm and ahh about how to chase them, how often, what wording to use etc. From there, I've revised my session reminders and interactions with clients to ensure transparency about fee conversations. It's clunky, and not something I'm comfortable with but it's important as a way to value my time and my service.
How do you balance the demands of your business with your personal life?: It's not easy! I love what I do, and I'm really passionate about it. In this early stage of the business, I have a tendency to want to say yes to everything. I feel a lot of guilt about investing time and money in the business that takes me away from my family. For me, it's about constantly reflecting on what's working, what's not and where I need to adjust a big. For example, I'm currently working every second Saturday afternoon and I know this isn't sustainable for my family but I've made a commitment to an organisation I'm subcontracting to. I will honour this commitment for a while but will work towards adjusting these hours to give this time back to my family.
What leadership qualities do you believe are essential for running a successful business?: Passion, authenticity and persistence. You've got to love what you do, keep at it and hopefully do it in a way that's authentic to you. At least in my line of work, my business is absolutely about my skills and experience but it's also about who I am when I'm in the room with someone deeply in grief. You can't fake that. To have someone trust and invest their time, their money and their most vulnerable selves with me- I owe them the chance to know who they're meeting and what they're walking into.
What role does mentorship or networking play in your business journey?: Hugely. I have a wonderful list of mentors in my corner from previous jobs and also a group of supportive friends, family and colleagues who I can turn to. I'm a people person and having supports around me is crucial.
How do you stay ahead of the competition in your industry?: I'm not sure you can. I really believe there is a counsellor for everyone. I won't be the right fit for everyone, but my hope is that the people that could benefit from working with me can have the opportunity to. So, my approach is to look around but also stay in my lane and focusing on being the best I can be in a way that's right for me and my clients.
Who or what inspires you in your business journey?: The mission; wanting to ensure that people feel seen, heard, and valued in their grief experience. And knowing that I can make a difference. That's what inspires me to keep going.
What books, podcasts, or resources have had the biggest impact on your professional growth?: Dr Brene Brown's vulnerability talk, Megan Devine's work on grief, including her book, podcast and social media posts, The Imperfects Gina Chick interview
What’s a fun fact about you that most people wouldn’t know?: I sang at Kerry Packer's funeral!
What’s one thing you wish more people knew about your business?: We exist! I'm Brisbane- based, with face to face sessions available for clients from 5+ (I actually really enjoy supporting children and young people who are grieving), and I offer telehealth nationally.
I also don't just work with death-related losses. Most people see the word grief and associate it with death and dying. Absolutely, but it's bigger than that. Most life experiences that are challenging are underpinned by loss of some variety. End of relationship, fertility challenges, perinatal loss, loss of identity, chronic health issues, ageing parents etc etc. I support these too, from a grief and loss perspective and associated theories and interventions.
Reflecting on your time in business, what is one piece of advice you would give to another woman to help her on her business journey?: Trust in the timing of your life. Hard to do, but if you are passionate about what you're offering, know there's a need, keep plugging away and it will happen.
How can people connect with you or learn more about your business? (e.g., website, social media, etc.):
www.griefguide.com.au
https://www.instagram.com/griefguide_au
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61567496600170
