Name: Sara

Title: Export Manager

Organisation: Wade World Network Italia Srl

I am a lawyer specializing in contract drafting writing and a passion for travel has always made me love different peoples and cultures. I founded my own company to do just that and bring together food and people around the world. I developed software that matches the Italian producer with the right importer abroad.

Thank you to the 2,000 leaders who’ve generously done the 7 Questions on Leadership!

I hope Sara's answers will encourage you in your leadership journey. Enjoy!

Cheers,

Jonno White

1. What have you found most challenging as a leader?

The biggest commitment was overcoming my fears and to do that I had to work hard on myself going deep. I believe that a good leader in order to lead others must first know how to lead himself. To lead yourself in my opinion you have to know yourself and know who you are. This question comes back to me from time to time and it is always difficult to give a single answer.

2. How did you become a leader? Can you please briefly tell the story?

I think you are born a leader then you have to study in order to improve and bring out your potential. A lot is done by the context in which you live, your family, and above all the teachers you meet on your path. I was lucky enough to always meet them at the right time and to be chosen. Ever since I was a child, I was chosen to be with others, but not because I imposed myself, I was the child who knew how to hold the group together with joy and happiness. Sport then taught me the importance of the group, of the team, working together to achieve the same goal. Travel taught me to adapt and the conviviality and beauty of exchanging ideas and perspectives.

3. How do you structure your work days from waking up to going to sleep?

My day is marked by a series of ordinary steps and a routine that allows me to always be in line with my feelings and goals. I get up early in the morning and takes time for me to think, meditate, and eat in a slow way, healthy breakfast. I write down in my diary the most important things and appointments for the day and start working. At lunchtime, I always come home to disconnect have lunch, and be with my little dog. Three times a week I do sport to keep my body flexible and relieve stress. I like to read motivational books and follow leaders in my field on social media to learn new things and new habits. I also care a lot about my spiritual side.

4. What's a recent leadership lesson you've learned for the first time or been reminded of?

So many lessons I learnt from life and being with others. The best one I can relate is to knowing how to handle emotions, especially negative ones. If someone offends you in front of others they are only talking about themselves and not you so non-violence is the best weapon to be able to defend yourself. I believe in the law of karma and that everything comes back, so if someone hurts me I prefer to go away.

5. What's one book that has had a profound impact on your leadership so far? Can you please briefly tell the story of how that book impacted your leadership?

Robert T. Kiyosaki's Rich Father and Poor Father changed the way I think about money and success.

All of us should have two fathers and two different perspectives in order to better understand who we are and what we have come here to do but most importantly our mission. Different viewpoints and different perspectives can sometimes turn you around in life and this book taught me just that.

6. If you could only give one piece of advice to a young leader, what would you say to them?

It is said that a leader must have several characteristics perhaps the main one is to know how to lead others and to have charisma. I think that today we live in a world full of hatred and anger and that a leader of the future must know how to influence others with his or her values and two I consider indispensable: honesty and kindness.

7. What is one meaningful story that comes to mind from your time as a leader, so far?

I remember when I started training to become a lawyer and I showed up for the interview and started the process not knowing how to even write a registered letter. Well, the resistance I learned during my competitive activity as a child helped me to never give up. I remember that for months I wrote the structure of a judicial act on sheets of paper and that despite the errors I managed to move forward. When you understand the steps you will be able to write on the computer this is what my teacher told me when I went to the evening correction in the evening. After many months I had finally learned and the lesson was to be humble and have patience.