Mable home
Log in

‘Mable gave me a whole new career’: Pete’s success story

Support Workers

Last updated

27 Apr 2023

Reading time

3 min read

Share

Pete started his career as a support worker in 2019 and hasn’t looked back since. 

In just two years, he has built a thriving small business on Mable as an independent support worker. In this feature, Pete shares his tips on how he did it.

Q. What motivated you to become a support worker?

I wanted more holistic satisfaction and enjoyment compared to my previous job.

I was surprised it also gave me better pay, more flexible hours, more chances to be creative, and it’s been so much fun.

Q. How long have you been a support worker?

I started in the industry in 2019, gaining a Cert 4 in Disability, Mental Health & Training in Assessment shortly after.

I became a fully independent support worker with Mable’s help in late 2021, and I’ve just ran with the momentum.

There is a massive appetite for good value-add independent support workers.

Q. Do you have any tips for building a successful support worker business on Mable?

  • Create an eye-catching profile that’s detailed, relevant and concise
  • Appropriate contact with your clients is important. It shows you empathise, understand, and can service the job fit
  • The rest is building rapport, trust, reliability, flexibility, reporting client pain points, servicing their priority needs, and creating value for the client and carers.

Q. What challenges did you face and how did you overcome these?

It is a bit hard to understand the industry and how things are billed. Mable makes it easy, though.

A big part of overcoming challenges is to hustle, have gumption, chase down leads, resource training, and to build up your repertoire. The help is out there.

Q. What are some of the highlights of your work as a support worker on Mable?

Some of the most memorable achievements I can think of is helping my clients:

  • Kick substance addiction
  • Return to higher education
  • Perform at the Adelaide Fringe Festival
  • With their passion projects
  • With positive psychosocial engagement
  • Understand themselves better, including awareness of their behaviours.

Being an independent support worker has been so rewarding.

Q. Do you have any advice for support workers on how to engage with or find new clients?

Read the job ads carefully and reply according to their needs. Aim for appropriate job fit.

Be accurate in highlighting your skills, expertise, and how it creates value in the lives of your client.

Q. What advice do you have for someone who is thinking about a career in support work?

Understand your own values, morals and how you live authentically.

If supporting others to grow and overcome obstacles while working on your own terms appeals to you, then being an independent support worker through Mable will probably be your calling.

For me, it’s given me a whole new career. Mable has given me the avenue to advertise, connect, service contracts, and maintain my growing list of clients.

Benefits of being a support worker on Mable

By joining Mable as an independent support worker:

  • You can choose your clients, set mutually-agreed rates with clients and choose the hours you work
  • You’ll be covered by insurance for every session invoiced through the platform, including: General & Products Liability, Medical Malpractice & Personal Accident
  • You have access to over 170+ free training courses and 24/7 counselling and wellbeing support.

You might be interested in

30 April 20265 min read
Disability
Disabled mums are the quiet supermums
As the water trickled over the rocks and my kids explored the bush, their laughter mingling with birdsong, I sat quietly on the wooden seat, taking it all in. The peace, the joy - but also something else. My eyes welled up just as my independent support worker glanced at me. She slipped an arm around me and gave a gentle squeeze. I didn't need to explain what I was feeling but she already knew. That feeling is something that I think every parent living with a disability needs to hear and embrace. A different kind of angst Mum - and dad - guilt is almost synonymous with parenting these days. We worry we're not doing enough, not being enough; that there's never enough time, money, or energy. But when you're parenting with disability, that feeling cuts deeper. It's the sting when you can't do something for, or with, your kids. Like driving them to a birthday party, kicking a soccer ball in the backyard. It's crying quietly in the kitchen when disability and parenthood all feels too much.
30 April 20264 min read
Aged Care
Independent Thoughts: Melissa and Simone
Independent Thoughts digs deeper into what it really means to live on your terms, sharing insights into life for people with disability and older Australians. We invite guests with lived experience to share their perspectives in an open dialogue. From casual chats to asking some of life's biggest questions, Independent Thoughts covers it all. Independent Thoughts is an invitation to join us as we challenge the status quo, shatter stereotypes, and redefine independence – one open-hearted conversation at a time. In this episode, we meet Simone, who manages support for her dad, Con, through Mable. She speaks with host and Clinical Psychologist, Melissa Levi . Finding the right support Dogs, flowers and a veggie garden. These are three things that bring Con joy, according to his daughter, Simone. But as he got older, it became physically harder for him to stay connected to the parts of life he loved. When Con and Simone felt it was time to begin looking for help at home, it was import
30 April 20264 min read
Disability
NDIS reforms announced: What we know so far
On 22 April 2026, Health Minister Mark Butler announced major reforms to the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS). The changes have been described as a 'reset' with the intention to refocus the scheme, reduce spending and ensure long-term sustainability. While the reforms are wide-ranging, they will not take effect immediately and will be introduced gradually over time. The Government will introduce the National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Bill next month, then there will be a lot of debate and community consultation before we see any changes take effect. Here's an explainer of the announcement and the key takeaways. Why the 'reset'? The NDIS was established to support people in Australia living with 'permanent and significant disability' 13 years ago. Since then, its rapid growth has seen the scheme expand much faster than originally forecast. Spending increasing by 10-14 per cent per year. Today, there are more than 75