I think she's an inspiration and I admire her achievement, but... I prefer to see these awards go to people who serve others, rather than to people who have extraordinary individual achievements. She sailed solo because she wanted to, not for anybody else's sake. And I'm not saying that's a bad thing, just that I don't think that's what these awards should be about.
I would not award this for individual achievements, eg adventurers, sportspeople, entertainers, business leaders, etc.
I prefer to see the award used to recognise community contributions, such as philanthropy, working with the homeless or disabled or other disadvantaged groups, teaching, amazing medical and emergency services staff (above and beyond performing their expected duties), fostering children, etc.
I'm not saying that sportspeople, entertainers, and adventurers don't make a valuable contribution; I just think that 1) those pursuits already attract plenty of accolades, and 2) that the motivation for doing those things is personal, and I'd rather we used the honours system and "Australian of the Year" awards to recognise people who serve others, who often don't get recognition commensurate with their contribution.
But to reiterate: I think Jessica Watson's achievement was amazing.