Q . WHO WAS YOUR CHILDHOOD HERO AND WHY ?
» If you asked me when I was a child , I ’ d probably have said Wayne Gretzky . With more perspective , the answer is , without a doubt , my dad . He was a dual threat – right brain and left brain ; extremely well read – like a walking encyclopedia . Gifted in maths , but also a dreamer , he was a serial entrepreneur . He lit up every room with his sense of humour and big personality . Most of all , he was a great father who would do anything for his family . He taught me what ’ s most important in life , and I just hope I can live up to that model as I raise my own family . All that said , Gretzky scored 894 goals .
Q . WHAT ' S THE BEST PIECE OF ADVICE YOU EVER RECEIVED ?
» Be good to people on your way up because they ’ ll be waiting for you on your way down . Lesson learned , show appreciation and respect to those who helped you get ahead , and pay it forward to those you can help .
Q . WHAT WAS THE LAST BOOK YOU READ – AND HOW LONG AGO DID YOU READ IT ?
» If you aren ’ t counting the 15 childrens ’ books I read on a weekly basis , the last adult book I read was ‘ Competing Against Luck ’ by Clayton Christensen , which I was overdue to read . It details the ‘ jobs to be done ’ approach for product development , where innovation is about finding the best possible way to solve for a particular job , which should galvanise the culture around a customer-centric mission . Today , JTBD is obviously a well known framework , and I ’ d recommend it for anyone building a product company .
Q . NAME ONE PIECE OF TECHNOLOGY YOU COULDN ’ T LIVE WITHOUT AND TELL US WHY ( EXCLUDING YOUR MOBILE PHONE ).
» Either my daughter ’ s white noise generator or my food processor . The latter helps shave time off my food prep but the former keeps my child asleep fintechmagazine . com 21