What is more important, talent or drive?
Drive. As an entrepreneur, we face so much adversity, we're like those clown punching bags that you hit and keep bouncing back up. You have to have drive, persistence and passion. You must truly believe in your purpose and keep going as if this was the last day to get it done. I have met some very talented people who have no real drive. Even if I look at those people who got the best scores at high school - they were not necessarily driven to achieve. I, on the other hand, was a total "middle of the roader" with a not-very-impressive academic record, but wanted to prove that I could make something of myself and change gifting in Australia forever.

'''On a scale of one to ten, how significant a role does luck play when it comes to success?
''' Eight. I have always believed that I am a lucky person. When I was about seven, I won a whole jar of jelly beans because I guessed the right number in the jar. When I joined the cross country team in high school on the first run I found a $10 note. I've always thought that I am lucky...but I do think that positivity attracts luck. Of course, I was going to get the job in New York City straight out of university - because I believed in my heart that I was lucky. To not think of yourself as lucky doesn't mean that you won't be successful, it just means that you will have to work a lot harder at it. Persistence plays a big role in success too.

Which is more critical, the idea or the execution?
Execution. I have a personal motto: "If it's meant to be, it's up to me." This does not mean that I have to do all the work, but it does mean that I have to stay focused on the outcome and never give up until it gets done. At RedBalloon, we have hundreds of ideas daily, but success comes through absolute focus. An idea is useless without delivery - execution is everything.

Is it better to be passionate or objective?
Passionate. One phrase I hear regularly from people is, "she is so amazingly passionate'. Even in a one-minute conversation with someone, they will often comment, "you clearly love what you do." But passion is not enough, so I have surrounded myself with great people at RedBalloon who can take an objective view of the world and look at all the various outcomes of a given idea. This offers a great balance.

What is most and least important? Please rank your priorities.

1. Relationship skills
   Drive
   Confidence
   Talent
   Organisational skills

What one trait has helped you most in business?
Values. People can copy what you do but they cannot copy who you are or the relationships you have. Every day I use my values to make choices and decisions - it makes it so much easier to recruit people if you know what they stand for!

What is the one trait that has hindered you most in business?
Being focused and single-minded can be a good thing, but not when it comes to the point of being myopic or fixated. It is important to listen to others, evaluate, incorporate and respond. I keep working very hard on listening and questioning, making sure I know the right questions to ask. There have been times when I have not listened to the details and I have suffered the consequences.

What is the hardest lesson you've learned and how did you learn it?
I'm sometimes very gullible - I believe what people tell me on face value. I am unbelievably trusting of people. I have such a naive view of the world I think everybody operates based on values and I have been hurt when I have discovered that they don't. I remember in the first year of RedBalloon a customer wanted to negotiate a discount - because they were going to spend $1 million with us in a 12 month period. I believed them and offered a deep discount. In reality, the customer spent a total of $99 in a 12-month period. The cost of legal fees and my time in negotiation clearly never recovered. They had negotiated this to drive down the price of an existing supplier. I approach big negotiations in a completely different way now.

What is the one piece of advice you would offer other women in business?
There are three things that I think all business people need to know when starting out.

1. Why are you going into business - be really clear about your purpose.
   Know the metrics, understand money as no business can thrive without cash.
   Surround yourself with people who you can learn from and give knowledge to. The teacher learns when they give the lesson. It is one of the reasons I write a blog - naomisimson.com - about what I have learned. It is great for people to have such a resource, but it is just as important for me to have a repository of all the things I have learned.

What are the biggest mistakes you see women making in business?
A male entrepreneur that I know recently challenged me that Australian women "dabble in cottage industry businesses". Of course this was red rag to a bull, but it did get me thinking, why don't women found and then run bigger businesses? Or, do they and we just don't know about it? My challenge to women is: dare to dream bigger than you can imagine. Allow yourself to experience failure, then pick yourself up and do it again. Many famous business owners tried again and again before they succeeded. As one of my mentors once said to me, "It may have been a very expensive lesson, so you better have learned something very big from it."