What is more important, talent or drive?
Drive. You can be talented in one or many special areas, however, if you have no or little drive you might not achieve anything with your talent.

On a scale of one to ten, how significant a role does luck play when it comes to success?
Five. You can argue that we were lucky to become the Pandora agency for Australia. Pandora has agencies in more than 20 countries. Australia is the highest-performing country per capita and sales volume per store - that has not happened by accident.

Which is more critical, the idea or the execution?
Execution. Many people spend years on having all kinds of ideas for businesses but are never able to execute the idea. Without the skills to execute, the business will not get off the ground.

Is it better to be passionate or objective?
Passionate. You have to be passionate about what you do. If you don't live your dream and are passionate about it, the business is more likely to fail. I am very passionate about Pandora, our retailers and staff. Our staff has often commented on that, and my passion has become contagious. We have a very passionate team working for Pandora. - And we have very passionate retailers selling Pandora. At times it is almost tragic as we can't stop talking about it - but we have so much fun doing it!

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

1. Drive
   Relationship skills
   Confidence
   Talent
   Organisational skills

What one trait has helped you most in business?
All five are very important, but number one for me is drive. Introducing Pandora was an uphill battle as the jewelers found it so different to anything they had seen before. The drive was crucial in getting Pandora out in the market. Number two is relationship. Pandora is all about relationship. For me as a leader, it is instrumental that our team has "buy in" and feel they are part of making a difference. Number three is confidence. I have had to work hard at this one as we have grown very fast. At times I have doubted my own abilities to take Pandora to the next level, but once I start thinking what would happen if someone else took over I pull myself up. I also had a personal coach who has helped me to build my confidence.

What is the one trait that has hindered you most in business?
Trying to keep everyone happy. Once reaching the size we have, it is simply not possible. Sometimes decisions have to be taken which might not be the best for everyone involved, but you have to focus on the main objectives and do what is best for the business.

What is the hardest lesson you've learned and how did you learn it?
That I have to be careful when trusting people. I fundamentally think the best of everyone, but one of our staff in the early days went off and started to import a similar line to Pandora using knowledge she had learned from us. That was very disappointing and made me more cautious.

What is the one piece of advice you would offer other women in business?
Don't believe you need to be good at everything. Recognise when you need help and don't be afraid to ask for it. When Pandora really took off a couple of years ago, I realised I didn't have the expertise in certain areas like finance and HR, which are crucial to running a larger business. So I hired a strong management team who look after the areas where I initially lacked confidence.

What are the biggest mistakes you see women making in business?
Believing they can't do it. Trying to please everyone and ending up not pleasing anyone, nor being happy themselves.