Making waves: Lessons from Britain’s top “accidental” sportswomen

In this episode…Susie Rodgers MBE was born without a fully formed arm or leg on the left side of her body. She turned her disability into a superpower, winning six Paralympic medals during her career as a professional swimmer. She retired from competitive sport in 2017 but says transitioning into the corporate world was tough: “You don’t get much support once you’re out the system. It’s pretty cutthroat.”In 2018, Nikki Henderson became the youngest skipper in history to finish the gruelling round-the-world Clipper Race. She was just 25. Having sailed Greta Thunberg across the Atlantic to the UN climate summit in Madrid at the end of last year, Nikki is at a “pivotal” moment in her career: “I’ve hit a natural break and I’m trying to figure out what to do next.”Susie and Nikki share their triumphs and “soul-destroying moments”, their constant battle for perfection, and their tips on resilience.Top three takeaways:Everything in life is either a victory or a lesson. There’s no such thing as failure.If you’re a leader, you’re a performer. You have to get used to putting on a mask.Luck is when opportunity meets preparation. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Om Podcasten

In each episode, our host Kate Bassett teams up two women from the same sector but at very different stages in their career. They share their wisdom and worries, highs and lows, leadership lessons and nuggets of advice – and they tell us what they’re doing to support and empower other women.This is mentoring on a grand scale… and you’re listening in.It was Madeleine Albright who said, “There’s a special place in hell for women who don't help other women.” This is our version of podcast heaven… thefoldlondon.com/podcast Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.