How does your usual day look like?

I live with my husband and our 3 young kids, so plans can change swiftly. A good day starts before the kids wake up, to enjoy a coffee in peace. The morning kicks off by 6.30am and involves getting everyone ready and fed by 7.45am, when I head to work. On office days I usually squeeze in a workout at 6.00am. I am by no means a morning person but have learned that this is the most effective and efficient way for my sanity and our family of 5 to start the day.

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At work, I stay organized by promptly triaging and addressing urgent emails, messages, and tasks. During challenging periods I focus on tough to-do’s first thing in the morning. To understand my workload you only need to check my inbox; it will host all unresolved items and reminders to myself. Everything else gets moved to subfolders once done.

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During periods when work (and life) gets super hectic and challenging I apply the following techniques:

1) 5 a Day: I will block off 5 slots of 15 minutes, where I mute my messages and phone and tackle important projects. They may not get done in that time, but I can take a significant step in the right direction and map out the efforts needed for completion.

2) Write a list of my TOP 3 MUST DO’s and my TOP 3 NICE TO HAVE’s, this breaks the load down into manageable pieces and creates a sense of satisfaction and accomplishment upon completion.

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Since “mom-guilt” is real, I will often apply the above also to my family life and create a ‘reset-button’ on stressful days where we all feel lost, agitated, or disconnected.

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I finish work around 17.30, enjoying dinner with my family by 18.00. Once the kids are in bed my evenings are dedicated to either completing work tasks or household chores. My only downtime is during my workout or daily commute, which is always on the bike granting me some extra movement and peace away from the stuffy London underground.

What are the things you like the most about your job?

First of all, I like the people I work with and think very highly of them. I don’t believe you can enjoy work, if you don’t like spending 50 hours a week with the people around you. I also like working on various projects and solving new problems.

I like watching my team grow, understand the business a little more every day and generate new ideas and insights that are outside my remit. I like working with and sometimes influencing people to do things a certain way, or view them a certain way.

What are some of the skills you utilise the most in your day-to-day at work?

I lean into the flow of my team and surrounding. This allows me to guide them naturally (at their own pace and in their unique style) towards the accomplishment of our priorities. When thinking about the business, I need to give control to my rational brain. When working with my colleagues, I need to listen to their words and my gut. These are very different skills and once combined can lead to outstanding results.

What was one of your happiest days in your career and why?

I had so many happy days over the past 18 years and I am very grateful for that. The common denominator was when I felt appreciated and understood as my authentic self. I got more responsibility more money or a higher title because I applied my unique skills to a job, in a way that fit into my work-life balance.

In particular, WisdomTree has been immensely supportive and accommodating and our leadership and HR team keep paving the way for a more empathic setup in financial markets. I am proud to be part of that movement as I also want to empower young women in being brave and gracefully bold, in shooting for the stars and paving their own authentic way to the career they want.

Anything can be done if you have the right mindset and the right people cheering you on.

What was the toughest career decision you ever made?

I think the toughest decision for me was every maternity leave after my first. I always knew I wanted to have more than 1 child, but it was hard announcing my 2nd and 3rd pregnancy. Whilst my boss was always very supportive, inside I felt like I was letting everyone down for the benefit of my own happiness. Equally, every time I returned to work after 8 months I felt like I was letting my children down for my own happiness. No career coaching or business development course prepares you for that saboteur voice inside your head.

I have now learned that I very much like and need being both – a successful female leader and a loving and caring mother. I pride myself in showing my 3 girls that by loving myself first, filling my bucket first, I have infinitely more love, joy, patience, and life to give to them.

What is something you had to learn to become better at your work?

Your inbox will never be empty and work will never be done!

You accept this and you can move to a new way of life – prioritising, delegating, renegotiating.

1. Do what needs to be done by You and now.

2. Delegate what needs to be done, but can be tackled by someone else, in the interest of time or for the benefit of their learning.

3. Renegotiate the rest and tackle at another time in another way.

How did you get to become a Head of Business and Sales Strategy?

By being bold and asking for a role that was needed but didn’t exist. By being patient and negotiating said role with our European Head of Business over several months. By applying my strengths and bringing it to life in the early days and then by taking over new departments and turning something good into something great.

What's the one piece of career advice you have for anyone interested in following your footsteps?

Have a vision for where you want to be in X years, what you want to achieve personally and professionally and then write down how this makes you feel. Once you are clear on this, trust the process and lean into the flow. You will identify the right opportunities, because they will trigger the same empowering feelings as your initial vision. Your intuition will literally point out road signs if you are willing to listen.

What's your number one productivity hack / when or how are you most effective?

+ By allowing myself 10 minutes in the morning, by myself, to myself.

+ 5 a Day

+ Top 3 MUST Do & Top 3 NICE To Do

+ If all of the above fail: A box of chocolate, a killer workout and a hot shower will hit the reset button.