JOBS & CAREERS SPRING 2018 - 37

G U E ST E D I T O R

Totton, who won in 2013 and went on to set up a chain of botox
clinics, was also great - very calm and very bright.

What's coming up for you in the next 12 months?
As well as the Channel 5 documentary, I'm currently presenting a
new ITV series called Give It A Year, which follows start-ups
through the highs and lows of their first 12 months in business.
I'll also be on the new series of The Apprentice later in the year.
This will be my ninth series as Alan's adviser.

You helped set up the Barclays
LifeSkills Programme in 2013
to create work experience
placements for 14- to 16-yearolds. How is that going?

I find that if you
plan things that
nothing goes to
plan anyway!

Really well - over four million young people
have been through the process so far. It's so
important young people know how to get
ready for work. LifeSkills shows them what
will be expected in the workplace, how to
get work experience, how to write a good CV and what happens in
interviews. You can get involved through your school or visit the
website, barclayslifeskills.com - and it's free.

Is it worth going to university, or is it better to
get work experience and work your way up?
It depends on what you want to do. If you want to be a doctor or
lawyer, you have no choice. But when it comes to some degrees
versus the apprenticeships now available, there is a fine line.
Apprenticeships are great because you earn and learn. People
think they're second class to degrees, but they absolutely are not.
In fact, some higher level apprenticeships are degree level now.
Apprenticeships can also tell you what you don't want to do, which
is just as important as knowing what you do want to do.

What advice do you give your
children about what they
want to do with their lives?
It's important to let them make own
decisions and show your support. One
thing you realise as a parent is that the
most important thing is that your children
are happy. I'd hate them to be doing
something that didn't make them that way.

Have you had to make any
sacrifices in your career? Do
you think a man would have
had to make the same ones?
As a working mum, the guilt you carry
around because of the constant juggling of
sports day versus boardroom is an absolute
killer. I don't think men have the same
agonies because predominantly they have
a wife who does it for them.
But it's important working women don't
feel guilty. You need to teach children
the importance of being independent by
having your own money, having opinions,
championing your career and pushing
yourself as a woman.

You were married young and
had children relatively early.
Was this part of your plan?
It just happened! I was 25 when I got
married. I didn't think about or debate it. I
wanted to get married, so I did. I was 26
when I had my daughter. You just have to
go with the flow. I find that if you plan
things, nothing goes to plan anyway!

You had a health scare in
2006, when a brain aneurysm
was discovered during a
routine health check. Did this
change the way you view life?
It changed it 100%. When you have a neardeath experience or confront the fact that
you won't live forever, you realise there's
more to life. I've been travelling more and
spending more time with my family. I've
stopped saying yes to things when I want
to say no. I only do what I want to do and
I've got rid of the negativity. It's sorted
now - the only way to look is forward.

What would you like more
(and less) of in your life?
More time and less aggravation!
Give It A Year is aired on Mondays at 8pm
on ITV. Series 14 of The Apprentice will be
shown on BBC One later in the year
J O B S & C A R E E R S /// 3 7


http://www.barclayslifeskills.com

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