The most important characteristics you need to succeed in business are resilience, determination and persistence.

You don't really do much in life unless you take risks, push yourself and find your passion.

We've got to start making people realise that it's a proud thing to run a business, to export your goods around the country.

By the time I sold Birmingham City football club in 2009, 75% of the directors were women, which I take great pride in - that's unique in business, full stop.

The characteristics of successful business people, whether they are male or female, are very similar. It's about determination, it's about enthusiasm, it's about strategy, it's about communication, it's about integrity. And sometimes men and women display those differently but fundamentally they are the same qualities.

My greatest mistake? I once took a three-day maternity leave. I had my daughter on a Wednesday, and then went back to the office on the Monday to sack a manager.

Running your own business can be the loneliest job in the world. You are the MD, answer the phone and make tea, handle the invoices and have to make payments on time.

The world is divided into three types of people in business: those who make things happen, those who watch things happen, and those who wonder what happened.

Any board executive can forget just how many people helped them get where they are. Those women who have got to the top need actively to ensure there is a pipeline of younger women, whether by networking or mentoring, who in turn are encouraging those below them.