Tuning in…
Tuning in…
Castaway
1 appearance
One of the City of London's leading lights, a CEO who introduced a four-day week and founded the Thirty Percent Club to boost women on UK boards.
On the island
Eight records
My Sweet LordFavourite
for me when it's played, I just immediately picture my entire family. At my eldest daughter Florence's wedding to Benjamin Clementine. My eldest son was playing the guitar and all of the other children besides Flo were singing. Fitz wasn't with us and we had him recorded on his guitar playing and you know they really put a lot of work in just to make it special. And at the end my youngest picked up the tambourine and skipped down the aisle and the happy couple followed him.
Polonaise in A-flat major, Op. 53 'Heroic'
every time I hear it, I think of that time in my life. My dad spent so long listening to me practice. I mean, he was a saint with hindsight, and I hope I didn't take it for granted, but it reminds me of those happy times when I was playing and he would listen.
when I first heard it, I just could not believe how beautiful Karen Carpenter's voice was. And very sadly, of course, she died at the age of 32 of anorexia or complications around that. And I actually suffered from that in my teenage years. I think she died about a year, two years after I had recovered. So that, unfortunately, is a poignant connection.
the words in particular summarize so much about young people. And also there's a line in it where it talks about listening to people who open closed doors. And I try to do that.
She's always been an icon for me and hugely inspirational, not just because she's so elegant, but did a huge amount of humanitarian work in her later years and just seemed to be a very giving person.
I just obviously has resonance for me because this is my own daughter and son-in-law, but also I love the intent of the song. They're talking about calming down within a couple, but I think it can apply in so much of our lives.
in it he talks about giving condolence to fear and to insecurity. And when I first heard this, I thought, wow, this is almost how I feel now that there is a moment when you're on top of all of that, and I'm not saying I never suffer from it, but my main focus in life is on positive things and this song just seems to me to capture in quite a it's quite an it sounds almost an angry way, but it's a really defiant way and I want to give my condolence to fear and insecurity.
I really admire what Kanye West has done. Talking about his religious conversion, I think he's he's obviously a very controversial figure in some terms of some of his views. But this is what diverse thinking is. I'm a religious person and you know this song is played in our house most nights.
In conversation
Presenter asks
1:02What is the key to inspiring people?
Well I think starting with listening and understanding what's important to them and understand that lots of us have aspirations. We want to achieve whatever we can in life. But I think inspiring people to sounds cheesy, be the best version of themselves requires first of all understanding what that is.
Presenter asks
1:54What qualities do you think leaders need now?
Well, I think they need empathy and I think they need to understand that if everybody's anxious, then they're going to need reassurance, even if sometimes that means being honest and saying, actually, we don't have a crystal ball. We don't know exactly what will happen. But actually, we can all take one step in front of the other. We can get there. And I think sometimes just reassuring people by being there, by being available for talking to them, and not just assuming that because you put out some massive email to everybody in the company that they understand that everything is being looked after, people need the human touch.
Presenter asks
5:07How do you feel about not getting that position [Bank of England governor]?
I obviously feel slightly disappointed, but on the other hand, I certainly did not presume that I was going to get it. I entered the race partly because I encourage other women to go for things. And I felt that perhaps at this juncture, because I'm not a central banker, I've worked in the city for a long time, but I felt that maybe someone with a bit more lateral thinking, some different perspectives was needed. And so it was no good me saying that theoretically if I'm that possible person. And actually, I think it was good that I was interviewed in the sense that my application was taken seriously.
The keepsakes
The book
P. G. Wodehouse
chosen [P. G. Wodehouse]'s much obliged Jeeves. It would make me laugh, which would be important.
Presenter asks
5:59Why is that [diversity of opinion] important?
Well, obviously I care a lot about equal opportunities, but I also want businesses to be well run. I want them to serve their customers and clients well, and I'd love to see the British economy do brilliantly. And all of that's only going to happen if we have the most creative, most inspired ideas and people around the table. And I think the financial crisis of a decade ago showed us that actually if you just have one type of person around the table, often not just because they were all men or all white or all a certain age, but often very similarly educated, hung out with each other in the same social circles, then it's really difficult to get that creative spark and to have the challenge. And I really see the point of diversity as being yes, about equal opportunity, but also just as importantly about having better thinking, better companies and a better economy for everybody's benefit.
Presenter asks
14:10How did your fellow students react to you [being the only girl doing maths]?
Well, I put it that I was teased, but I probably would be described as being bullied these days. My problem was I wasn't that great at maths, which people might say, why did I study double maths? But I, you know, as I've already intimated, I like a challenge. Anyway, what transpired after that was I could have either given up or I could have worked out a way through it and I tried the latter and there were twelve subjects on the syllabus and six were supposedly easy and then six were regarded as very difficult. So I realized that if I learnt the hard six I could predict the questions. So very slowly, over six terms, I mastered six topics and I noticed that the dynamic changed a bit. The boys would compete with each other a lot, but because I then caught them up like very much the tortoise in the tortoise and the hair race, they suddenly looked at me differently and they would also ask me when they got stuck or I would ask them and everybody started sharing.
Presenter asks
22:47To what extent has that [fear of not being liked] been your experience in your career?
So, I think we often do hold ourselves back for all sorts of reasons, and I'd be quite open about the fact that I know I like to be liked. I don't like aggressive confrontation at all. And I think that's been something that certainly I've had to work on and recognize that sometimes you have to make unpopular decisions as a leader. I think that we also need to try to change the nature of what it means to be powerful and to be an effective leader. And actually, I think this is where I mean, I applaud what Sheryl Samberg has done on so many levels in terms of using her power to create a conversation about all of this. But I do feel that leaning into the status quo is not the answer, that actually we should be contributing as women feminine characteristics, particularly empathy, particularly listening, particularly collaboration and building consensus and not having that sort of rather stereotypical macho, I'm telling you what to do approach to leadership.
“I was this manic brownie when I was, you know, seven, eight, nine, and I wanted to break the record for the most badges. I mean, now I sort of half laugh, half cry at that thought.”
“when I first heard it, I just could not believe how beautiful Karen Carpenter's voice was. And very sadly, of course, she died at the age of 32 of anorexia or complications around that. And I actually suffered from that in my teenage years.”
“I said yes when a lot of people would have said no. When it wasn't that easy, I I didn't have any training, I'd never run a business and I also had five children. The youngest I just turned one, two and three. So this was a full on time in my life, and there's no two ways about that.”
“I do feel that leaning into the status quo is not the answer, that actually we should be contributing as women feminine characteristics, particularly empathy, particularly listening, particularly collaboration and building consensus and not having that sort of rather stereotypical macho, I'm telling you what to do approach to leadership.”
“Success, obviously, if you have a family, is very much about seeing them happy and healthy and thriving as well. But Richard, I mean, he has done such a huge amount in terms of bringing up nine happy people and devoting himself to that. And if something like that is not important, I mean, obviously he is important and everyone will say it's important. So why do we not consider that when we're assessing people's value? I I do feel we've got to be more honest about the fact that success has many, many facets, and real success is much more than a big job title.”