career tips Archives - Don't Stop Us Now

Not Your Everyday Lawyer – Sarah Davis

December 6, 2023December 6, 2023
by Claire

Our guest this week is someone who’s never been one to sit around and rest on her laurels. What’s more, Sarah Davis is not what you’d describe as your everyday lawyer.

Sarah’s high profile career in the UK has seen her garner much recognition for her legal career including being shortlisted for the Black British Business Awards and the UK’s Hot 100 Lawyers to name a few.

London-based Sarah, has a broad non executive board career these days and also advises other organisations as a General Counsel. During her executive career she spent more than 15 years as General Counsel at The Guardian Media Group. That meant she was there in the thick of it when The Guardian was publishing the first Wikileaks stories, the Edward Snowdon stories, and of course so much more, which we’ll hear about.

We think you can tell from Sarah’s Board career which includes Unicef UK and the Women’s Prize Trust (which awards the highly regarded Women’s Prize for Fiction) that Sarah has a huge heart and clearly a love of the written word.

In this episode you’ll hear more about Sarah’s love of books as well as:

How she came to be a lawyer and what drew her to the Media
How Sarah made a transition after nearly 17 years at one company
The challenges she faced (& lessons learnt) when things just didn’t feel right whilst navigating her new role during lockdown
How Sarah’s coped with the micro aggressions and slights she’s received during her career as a woman of colour; and
Her advice to others who are at the receiving end of similar behaviour.

There’s lots of great insights in this conversation so enjoy this episode with the warm and impact-focused Sarah Davis.

Useful Links

Unicef UK

Women’s Prize for Fiction

RGSI – global think-tank for the legal industry

International Catalogue Raisonné Association

Interview

Smart Operator – Vered Raviv Schwarz

March 8, 2022March 8, 2022
by Claire

We have a smart operator and a great champion for women on the show this week.

Her name is Vered Raviv Schwarz and she’s spent the past 20 years in disruptive tech companies, based in Israel.

These days Vered is President and Chief Operating Officer for Guesty, a property management platform offering software that’s used by people renting out short term and vacation rental properties around the world. With Guesty’s multiple features they can easily list and manage their rentals on multiple sites such as AirBnb and Vebo.

Before Guesty, Vered spent nearly 6 years at the freelancer marketplace Fiverr as Chief Operating Officer. And prior to that she was a lawyer and General Counsel at other tech companies.

We’ve been struck by what a smart operator and thinker Vered is.

In this episode you’ll hear a lot of great advice including:

How some of the best advice Vered was given, and now gives herself, changed the course of her entire career
Why she’s passionate about making tech companies more diverse and what she’s doing about that
How she helps companies successfully scale and grow globally
And why Vered’s a great believer in being able to make decisions quickly.

Without further ado enjoy this episode with the switched on and dedicated Vered Raviv Schwarz.

Links

Guesty Website

Vered on LinkedIn

Vered on Twitter – @VRavivSchwarz

Future Proof Me Mini Episode

Future Proof Me – Manage Energy Not Time

December 7, 2021December 7, 2021
by Claire

Our mini episode this week is a cracker… we revisit the advice of high achieving changemaker, speaker and author, Holly Ransom, who’s thoughts on managing her energy not her time really struck a chord with us and many of you.

Not only that, in this episode we’re sharing some valuable advice from Holly that you haven’t heard before.

So if you’ve been thinking you want next year to be different to this year, then get ready to be inspired and provoked by hearing how Holly’s approach to managing her energy has been an absolute game changer for her in terms of her schedule, her mindset and her productivity.

It all began when she made some big changes as part of her recovery from depression.

Enjoy this mini Future Proof Me episode with the inspiring Holly Ransom.

Useful Links

Holly’s website

Holly’s new book – The Leading Edge

Holly’s podcast – Coffee Pods

How to Shine on LinkedIn

November 16, 2021
by Claire

With so much talk about the ‘Great Resignation’ and all the job changes that are occurring as a result, what better time to make sure your LinkedIn profile is working for you?

In this episode we share some valuable ‘insider’ tips and gain an insight into how recruiters use LinkedIn to find the right people. We’ll also hear from US based Executive Resume writer and expert Donna Svei who will share insights you may be surprised to learn.

And you’ll glean some valuable tips to ensure that you are doing yourself justice on this all important platform.

You’ll learn:

How you can optimise your LinkedIn profile
What parts of your profile get shared by recruiters with their clients, the hiring managers
And, a simple step you can take that could make a surprising difference.

Here’s to you having an ‘All Star’ profile and shining bright! Enjoy.

Useful Links

Executive Resume Writer, Donna Svei’s website

Future Proof Me Mini Episode

Future Proof Me – Mastering Your Ego

July 13, 2021
by Claire

This week’s Future Proofing mini episode is all about not letting your ego get the better of you.

We were blown away by the maturity and wisdom of young New Zealand entrepreneur, Brianne West, the founder and CEO of Ethique, the global and sustainable cosmetics company. We spoke to her on the show last year.

Brianne’s mission is to rid the world of single-use plastics and Ethique replaces bottled products like shampoos with solid bars of concentrated product.

Brianne has won all kinds of honours including New Zealand’s Young Entrepreneur of the Year and she was named an Obama Leader for Asia Pacific.

With these accolades Brianne could be forgiven for running her global business exactly as she pleases. But what’s so refreshing about this entrepreneur in her 30’s is that she’s well aware she’s never worked in any other business and so she knows she needs other people’s expertise to help her succeed.

And that’s where mastering your ego comes into it. Brianne is so authentic and open about what she does and doesn’t know.

In a world where it’s so easy for all of us to think we have to role play and claim more experience and capability than we may have, one of the secrets to Brianne’s success is that she’s learnt her business needs her to listen to the recommendations of others in order to succeed. She leaves her ego at the door when she goes to work and so do her colleagues.

Take a listen and be inspired how vulnerability really can be the best way forward.

Useful Links

Brianne’s Full Interview with us – Brianne West – Running the World’s most Sustainable Cosmetics Company

Ethique Website

Brianne on Instagram

Interview

Michelle Garnaut AO – Fabulous Stories from One of…

December 17, 2019March 19, 2020
by Claire

Our guest this week has taken the road less travelled, and pioneered her industry in Hong Kong and China for more than 30 years. We’re talking about one of Asia’s most celebrated restaurateurs, and a philanthropist as well, Michelle Garnaut AO.

Michelle grew up in Australia but always knew she wanted to travel. The fact she founded and launched her business, the M Restaurant Group, in Hong Kong in the late 1980s makes her one of the first independent restaurateurs to set up shop anywhere in Hong Kong or China.

Time Magazine has even described Michelle as an ‘industry celebrity’ and someone who ‘pioneered the fashionable-dining scene in China’.

Michelle is well known for the upscale restaurants and bars she’s created and launched in Hong Kong, Shanghai and Beijing – including M on the Bund restaurant still delighting diners in Shanghai.

She’s also committed to giving back, and founded the Shanghai International Literary Festival the M Literary Residency, the Village People Project and the women’s initiative, Mentor Walks, which she started in Beijing.

Michelle has won numerous international entrepreneurial awards and accolades, and last year was awarded an Order of Australia for her numerous contributions to business and society.

In this episode you’ll learn:

How Michelle became one of the most successful fine-dining restaurateurs in China
Her hard fought lessons about starting and running a business
Why she started out with her cash locked in a fridge, and
How she had to fight to win back control of her business.

We think you’ll just love Michelle’s amazing stories and all-round fabulousness.

Happy listening!

Interesting Links

Michelle’s Restaurant in Shanghai – M on the Bund

M on the Bund on Facebook

M on the Bund on Weibo

Mentor Walks China

Mentor Walks Australia

Scan to Follow M on the Bund on WeChat

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 39:42 — 36.5MB) | Embed

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Interview

Laura Anderson – On A Mission to Mars

December 3, 2019December 3, 2019
by Claire

This week’s guest has an insatiable passion for learning and the future and she has the career portfolio to prove it! We’re talking about international company director, entrepreneur and global philanthropist, Laura Anderson.

Laura grew up near Chicago in the US. She found out early on that she was good at maths and loved ideas and set about immersing herself in areas that fascinated her. As a girl she wanted to be an astronaut and to this day is convinced the Space Program is critically important. And yes, she’s passionate about humans getting to Mars!

Laura’s “why not?” attitude ultimately led her to a career in the technology industry where she worked around the world for companies such as HP, KPMG and Perot Systems, as well as starting her own successful supply chain company.

Laura is now based in Australia where she has a full and fascinating portfolio of local and international interests and directorships including being Chair of LaunchVic (a Government organisation to foster a start-up ecosystem), the Foundation for the Advancement of Science and Technology in Schools, and SVI Global Pty Ltd.

She’s also on the boards of: the Fulbright Commission, the Australian Grand Prix Corporation, Epworth HealthCare, the National Basketball League, and the Defence Science Institute.

In this episode, you’ll learn:

How Laura goes about influencing people, particularly in a male dominated environment
What tools and tactics she uses to manage her mindset
How she thinks about her global network
Her advice to entrepreneurs
And the reasons why she’s on a Mission to Mars!

Sit back, buckle up and enjoy this episode with the very accomplished and delightful Laura Anderson.

Links of Interest

Laura’s Website

Laura on Twitter

Laura on Instagram

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 37:28 — 34.4MB) | Embed

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How To Episode

How To Manage Office Politics

August 27, 2019February 11, 2020
by admin

Office politics – even the thought of it can make some people cringe!

We so understand because those two words together conjure up images of mostly bad experiences don’t they? Whether it’s the nightmare colleague, the boss from hell or having the goal posts shifted on you without notice, it’s just not fun!

If you’ve ever experienced this or are going through something like this right now, then this is the episode for you. With one research study showing that one in three working people in Britain were unhappy at work because of office politics, we figure that all the great advice featured in this episode is going to come in pretty handy for a lot of you!

Tune in if you want to learn:

How to think about office politics differently
Two great principles to apply when navigating through a tricky situation, whatever it may be
How to approach having an insecure or micro-managing boss
Specific and simple tips for you to survive having a difficult colleague

Whatever your situation you’re likely to feel much better equipped to handle a day at the office after this advice-packed episode!

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 29:10 — 26.8MB) | Embed

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