Growing up, I was painfully shy. I used to sit on a rock at lunchtime waiting for the bell to ring, or walk around with the teachers before I learned how to socialise.

Some of my best childhood memories were exploring the paddocks of our hobby farm in Victoria, Australia alone, or going “bush bashing” with my sister up into the hills with no trail to guide us.

My parents hitchhiked from the Netherlands to Australia in the 70s, so I guess I inherited some of my adventurous genes from them.

Over the past fifteen years, I’ve worked on major international events, including the Summer and Winter Olympics, as well as the Commonwealth and Asian Games.

Alongside that, I’ve climbed Mount Kilimanjaro, walked long-distance trails across the United States, Spain, and New Zealand, paddled in the world’s longest annual kayak race in northern Canada, and taken on a handful of other adventures, like driving a tuk-tuk across India.

How did such a shy girl end up doing these things?

To be fair, I had a lot to prove. But it wasn’t because I wasn’t scared doing them. It’s because I learned that fear is like an overzealous smoke alarm going off every time I burn a piece of toast.

Fear is a healthy survival response, but if you’re like me and enjoy toast, you need to learn how to cook it without burning the house down.

The most defining experience of my life was hiking the Pacific Crest Trail in 2013. Living outside for six months and sleeping under the stars showed me what I was capable of, both physically and mentally. My world opened up in a way I hadn’t experienced before, helping me confront the fears and limiting beliefs I had carried for years.

Though I still have a nomadic spirit and crave adventure, this next chapter of my life is about helping women build confidence in the outdoors so they can experience that shift for themselves.