Teresa’s Story

In a nutshell…

Every time I’m able to convince someone of the opportunity they have to become financially independent, there’s an amazing feeling of satisfaction.

Over and over again, we get people saying, “I wanted to do something, but I had no idea where to start or to whom to talk”, and it’s so satisfying to help them on their way.

My life in yachting…

I entered yachting as an emergency chef. Working as a yacht chef is very interesting as you have to balance both the demands of crew and guests.

Being an emergency chef, often filling in at short notice, meant I could work a couple of weeks doing culinary troubleshooting and then return home to family commitments.

What I liked most was that, on a boat, the chef is autonomous. You’re more or less left alone to create the menus, buy the ingredients and cook the food. And I’ve always much preferred to take responsibility than be told how to do things.

My oddest experience in yachting…

On one placement, I worked for France’s richest man, who modelled himself on Napoleon. Napoleon famously ate his meals in 10 minutes on the battlefield, so this gentleman did too. His lunch started at 1pm. He had two courses and it had to be finished by 1:10pm.

He liked a little fish or 100 grams of pasta and grated bottarga. Every single day he had a lemon sorbet in a particular aluminium cup and it had to be like a skating rink on the top. Working for him was very… interesting.

One day, he had a dinner party and his guests were about to have their lunch (same minuscule dishes as usual) and he whisked the dishes away, saying, “Oh, that’s far too much”, and sent it all back! We had to take some off and send it back out again. Really strange.

Outside of yachting…

My favourite thing is riding my horse in West Cork, Ireland, where we live.

I also enjoy travelling, particularly visiting old and crumbly places, eco-gardening and writing fiction. However, this last is more of a future plan.

Favourite place…

West Cork, Ireland.

My advice…

Reach for your dreams.

I can’t stand…

Bigotry. Passing a judgment based on what somebody looks like is as stupid as not liking someone because they are wearing a red jumper. It’s as simple as that, really.

Money no object…

I’d write some books.

I’d love to write thrillers, because that’s what I enjoy reading. I’d go horse riding more often too. Maybe get another horse, build my stable. I wouldn’t do anything different or new, just build on what I already enjoy.