Outside the Lanes with Sophie Pascoe

Hilary Barry probably needs no introduction. As New Zealand’s favourite award-winning broadcast and journalist, and current co-host of TVNZ1’s Seven Sharp, she is regarded as the ‘Mother of the Nation’ and has won the hearts of many households across New Zealand through her upbeat and open personality which is as authentic on-screen as it is off-screen.    In this episode, the course of the interview takes a turn when the interviewer turns interviewee, and Sophie Pascoe and Hilary Barry talk, through laughter and tears, about authenticity - how to live an authentic life on and off the stage when you’re responsible for upholding an image that other people rely on - and the pressure this brings.   With a central theme of balance that threads throughout this discussion, Hilary talks about how her career and personal goals have evolved over time, and how as a mum, wife, journalist, baker, walker, and advocate for gender equality and body positivity, she’s built up enough thick skin to manage the armchair critics.

Australian born and raised, Jimmy Spithill is a long-time Skipper of the America’s Cup who’s accolades include the youngest ever skipper to win the America’s Cup, and the famous recovery win that is still considered the greatest ever come-back in sporting history.   In this episode, Jimmy reflects on his sailing career and talks through his main motivators - the hard work of his wider team and family, the challenging nature of sailing, and his passion for adrenaline.    He talks about how a high level of commitment is needed to achieve goals, whether you can really adequately prepare yourself to make the right decisions in extreme, high-pressure environments, and the personal sacrifices him and his family make due to his demanding sailing schedule.  It is fair to say that  Jimmy shows determination and dedication like no other.

Jessie Wong and Yu Mei are not separate entities, explains Jessie. “They’re all one… I am my work”.    Jessie Wong is the founder and creative director of Yu Mei, a luxury leather-goods label founded and designed in New Zealand. With a new flagship store recently opened in Auckland’s popular Commercial Bay precinct, Jessie has plans for growth, collaboration and digital initiatives, all in the near future.   Having initially hand-produced the bags, Jessie believes she has gained valuable insight by learning each step of the production process before hiring other people to take over. She explains that running a small business in New Zealand requires work across all areas - the supply chain, marketing, key relationships with creatives within the industry… ending up with a wide range of experience.   Women in leadership is a key theme in this episode, with Jessie acknowledging her scholarship for a year-long course of women in Leadership, her forward thinking great-grandma, and how grateful she is for her membership to regular online meetings with other female CEO’s in New Zealand. An additional theme is sustainability, with Yu Mei emphasising the origins of the materials used, the aim of reducing waste, and the sustainable life cycle of the bags which can be traded back for credit, refurbished, and sold on to the next person.   When she’s in her home environment, Jessie can be found in active-wear and a hoody, hosting a BBQ, entertaining guests at home, and enjoying sunshine in the garden. Jessie is incredibly relatable, she is a wonderful example of an entrepreneur, from New Zealand, who started with an idea and persevered to turn a dream into reality.

Being able to incorporate her own personality into her role is something Emma Watkins, best known as the ‘Yellow Wiggle’, finds particularly helpful when navigating her personal life in the public eye. With her down-to-earth attitude, enthusiasm for performance, and love of children and animals, it’s not hard to see why Emma is adored by fans both young and old.   When a diagnosis of stage 4 endometriosis took Emma abruptly off the stage and into surgery in 2018, Emma made the decision to talk openly about her journey with the disease in the hopes of raising awareness and starting conversations that would impact women’s health in a positive way. Emma manages to use both her social media platforms and her Wiggles platform to build on inclusiveness, and has been incorporating sign language into performances for years to create content that is accessible for deaf and hearing-impaired children.   In this episode of Outside the Lanes with Sophie Pascoe, Emma discusses her life-long passion as a performer, how she maintains health and wellness with a demanding schedule, and why she can’t wait to be back on New Zealand soil.

Raelene Castle is no stranger to criticism, sexism, and media pressure, and after a tumultuous ride with Rugby Australia, Raelene is enthusiastic about her role as CEO of Sport NZ.    Raelene lives by a strong philosophy that learning, in any capacity, is beneficial for navigating through the highs and lows of following opportunities. The experiences, or “battle scars”, help to build resilience, empathy, and loyalty.  Raelene and Sophie discuss personable traits to leadership and why women in general need to match their male counterparts by confidently taking a leap of faith by saying ‘yes’ to opportunities. Raelene often comes back to her core values of bravery, honesty and good manners, and how these attributes play a key role in approachable and authentic leadership.  Raelene is calm and considered. She sleeps at night knowing she’s put forward her best work, and outside of her demanding role as a top sports executive, she enjoys sitting around the table with loved ones enjoying a glass of wine and great food. What motivates her on a daily basis is the role that sport plays in bringing communities together, wherever you are in the world, and the lifelong friendships that are formed as a result.  Diversity and inclusiveness are key themes in this episode, and Raelene is passionate about ensuring Sport NZ is representative of all New Zealanders. As a female leading in a male-dominated industry; who is part-Maori of Ngāpuhi descent; and who lives with alopecia areata, Raelene is a role-model to many. She is focused on ensuring that equal opportunities exist for everyone.   This podcast is rich with valuable insights that are relatable to anyone, whether you play sport or not, are in a leadership role or not, it’ll leave you feeling inspired. All the best, Raelene, as you embark on this new journey.