National Young Leaders Day

Good morning, it is a great honour to address so many students this morning at the 2022 National Young Leaders Day.

I begin by acknowledging the traditional custodians of the lands around Brisbane, the Turrbal and Jagera peoples, and extend respectful greetings to Elders, past, present and emerging.

When I was sworn-in as Governor of Queensland in November last year, I made a pledge to be a Governor for all of Queensland, and to uphold the constitution, ceremony and community duties entrusted in me as The Queen’s representative.

While my constitutional duties are the most important aspect of my role, it is the community role which I find most fulfilling.

It is in this role that I visit communities after natural disasters, act as Patron of more than 150 community-minded organisations, and visit schools all over the State to encourage students in their studies, and to thank teachers for their incalculable contribution to Queensland.

The opportunity to speak to more than 2,000 students from all over the State, and some from northern New South Wales, was therefore an attractive proposition for me!

I am very much looking forward to shortly answering some of your questions about leadership and community service during the ‘question and answer’ session.

However, I thought I would provide you now with two pieces of advice I have learnt throughout my life, and my career as a doctor, Chief Health Officer and now Governor.

The first is the importance of perseverance.

Being the best at something is a commendable achievement, and I know many students strive to be the best.

However, prodigious talent rarely translates into success without perseverance.

So, perseverance in all aspects of life is key.

And I encourage you to persevere – with your schoolwork, at home in helping your parents and guardians, in the workplace if you do part-time work – without the expectation of acknowledgement or reward, other than the deep personal satisfaction which comes from doing your best.

The second key lesson is to learn how to use screentime to your advantage!

Your generation is unique, because you are the first generation to have grown up with technology in your palms at all stages of your development. 

Now I am not advising students to delete their TikTok or Instagram accounts – in fact, it is my sincere hope some images from today will end up on my official Twitter and Instagram accounts (I don’t have TikTok)!

We cannot ignore reality nor deny the immeasurable improvements of technology in our lives.However, it is very important to maintain a balance in life. As a doctor who has made promoting healthy lifestyles a key objective as Governor, I encourage you to look after your physical and mental health.

This is particularly important for the older students in the room today, who are preparing to transition from high school into further study, training or the workplace.

I thank Ronan McGinniss and all the staff and supporters of Halogen Australia for arranging these impressive National Young Leaders Day events all over the country, where students can come together to learn from each other, expand their horizons and meet new people.

I further thank all students for their attendance and attentiveness this morning.

Our community has demanded a lot of young people over the past two years.

But I have been so deeply inspired by the strength, maturity and agility of all the students I have met, in schools all around the State.

You make me very proud to be the Governor for all of Queensland.