10QUESTIONS
10QUESTIONS with Darshana Patel

Our 10QUESTIONS feature asks members of the Freshfield community ten questions about their working life. Featuring client partners, colleagues and FF friends, our guests share some personal stories, views and fresh words of wisdom.
Our latest guest is Darshana Patel, programmes officer at Freshfield client Lancashire County Council. Her work supports the successful delivery of Boost; Lancashire’s Business Growth Hub, which has helped over 13,000 Lancashire businesses with support to grow over the past 10 years.
How do you like to start your working day?
I like to start my day early with a brisk walk through the woods. I listen to a podcast or ponder on whatever comes into my mind. There’s magic in that period of quiet before everyone wakes up and the madness of the day starts.
Where and how do you come up with your best ideas?
Usually in the most unexpected places, like when I’m brushing my teeth. I also have a notebook of bleary-eyed scribbles from many middle of the night musings.
What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever been given?
My best friend advised me to trust my gut! This doesn’t come easy to me as I’m a logical, facts and figures-type thinker but I’ve learnt to listen to my inner voice.
Tuning into my intuition has helped me to stop overthinking and make better decisions.
What does leadership mean to you?
It’s about forging meaningful relationships with others and guiding and directing them towards a shared vision and purpose. A good leader cares about their people, communicates clearly and regularly, takes responsibility and always has your back.
What’s your top tip for achieving a work-life balance?
Do more of what fills you with joy to balance out against life’s demands and stressors.
Which current or historical business figure do you most admire and why?
My work affords me the privilege to meet and hear the stories of incredible Lancashire entrepreneurs and business leaders creating, innovating and driving forward change and economic growth. I admire their tenacity, resilience and courage coupled with their down to earth and approachable nature.
These inspirational figures not only impact the economy but the people and communities around them.
What is your most trusted source of news?
I tend to dip in and out of the news and skim over headlines as I find much of the news coverage dispiriting. I read Blog Preston for local news and if I want to delve deeper into a topic, I’ll look to BBC News or my trusted network.
What is your favourite brand and why?
A brand that’s caught my attention is Live Tinted, a community-first digital platform and beauty brand founded by a young American-Indian woman.
It exists to represent the diverse people of colour in the beauty industry. And although I’m not into make-up per se, the brand resonates with me as it celebrates diversity and caters for every skin shade and hue.
The CEO, Deepica Mutulaya, is making strides scaling the business on a global level and is a strong role model for future generations.
What’s the most recent new skill you have learnt?
There’s two very different skills I’m learning; fulfilling a childhood ambition to play the piano and perfecting my right hook in boxfit classes.
We all use them… what management jargon phrase do you use the most?
I find myself saying ‘Take a step back and ask yourself ..where does this fit in the bigger picture?’ It’s a back-to-basics approach when projects get complicated or someone in the team hits a brick wall in a task.
It’s usually followed by my favourite questions – who, what, why, where, when and how?