Business Fit Magazine January 2019 Issue 1 | Page 34

Interview
How do you take care of yourself
on a holistic level?
Yoga, meditation and affirmations. Yoga
incorporates body movement, breathing and
is free from judgement. That is judgement of
yourself as well as judgement of others. Some
days I can stretch out further than others
and that’s okay and it’s not a competition
between myself and/or anybody else either.
Yoga is a solo journey, which can be enjoyed
in the company of others. My sport may sound
contradictory to yoga, however I believe that
competition can be enjoyed in the right arena,
for me it’s the race circuit. The breathing
techniques have been invaluable in business
and my racing career. At the start of a race,
my harnesses in the race seat are done up
so tightly that it is physically fairly difficult
to breathe normally. I use yoga breathing
techniques to ensure enough air and oxygen
fill my lungs in anticipation for the competitive
sport I am about to take part in. In business, I
use yoga breathing techniques to aid decision-
making because it helps the brain to function
at a higher level.
What will be the biggest
challenge for the generation of
women behind you?
That they forget the value and importance
of men being men or they lose their inner
mildness! Women are strong yes but men and
women are different and the meek moments
of a woman are not to be shunned, rather
that they are one of her strengths. Something
that makes a woman even more powerful and
able to get ahead is her ability to embrace her
femininity so women of the next generation
must keep this in mind and play to all her traits
and characteristics.
Women have tenacity, ability and can do almost
anything. That’s been apparent throughout
history. Look at the land girls in WWII, look
at Beatrice Potter and ancient American
Indian women – all strong women capable of
taking on the world! Powerful women is not
a new phenomenon. However women in the
boardroom and at directorship level is fairly
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new. A great book by Sheryl Sandberg, COO of
Facebook, called “Lean In” calls for women to
do exactly as her title suggests; speak up, lean
in, be heard, seize the opportunities if they are
there and create them if they are not. That’s
exactly what I have done in my career whilst
being blissfully unaware for many years that
some – maybe even a lot – of women need to
learn these skills and attributes.
What is it about racing that
appealed to you?
I love driving a car on the edge of traction; it and
my capability at the max. Throw in a tussle with
other competitors and you have the perfect
recipe for my inner happiness. It is the true
definition of mindfulness because when I am
on circuit, I am completely focused on the task
at hand. Driving the car and competing with
the other drivers takes my entire attention.
Even if I need to speak to the team over the