Her path into business happened by accident. It was in New York that Liz discovered the barre workout and spotted a gap in the Australian market. In 2011 she came home to Sydney with her young family, in the thick of the global financial crisis, and after a year on a 24-hour news desk she decided to back herself and start something of her own.

With plenty of media skill and no business background, she and her husband became Australia's first Xtend Barre franchisees and opened their first studio within six months. Over the next eight years they grew it to four locations, building the brand into a household name on free media coverage alone.

That was when it clicked: knowing what the media wants, and how to give it to them, is one of the most powerful growth tools a small business has. Today Liz teaches that formula through the Media Masters Academy, writes for Women's Agenda, hosts the weekly Media Magnet podcast, and advocates for small business owners across the country. The work is simple to describe and hard to fake. Earn the coverage, do not buy it.