286. Driven to Succeed: Turn Doubt Into Your Competitive Advantage
Think Fast Talk Smart: Communication Techniques
Think Fast Talk Smart
4.7 • 805 Ratings
🗓️ 7 May 2026
⏱️ 28 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Confidence, clarity, and speaking when it matters.
Confident communication isn’t about being the loudest in the room. For Susie Wolff, it’s about displaying assurance before you even open your mouth.
Wolff is a former professional race car driver, managing director of F1 Academy, and author of Driven. Throughout her career in one of the world's most male-dominated industries, she’s learned that confidence starts within. “If you want others to believe in you, you need to at least have confidence in your own abilities,” she says. By letting her capabilities speak for themselves, Wolff felt she didn’t have to. “I was never the loudest voice in the room. But I made sure when I did speak that I really had something to say.”
In this special episode of Think Fast, Talk Smart, co-hosted by Matt Abrahams and Tiggy Valen, Wolff shares how inner drive creates outer clarity. From delivering hard truths with empathy to achieving buy-in for a bold vision, Wolff offers lessons on communicating with confidence, even in the face of stiff competition.
Episode Reference Links:
- Susie Wolff
- Susie’s Book: Driven
- Tiggy Valen
- Paddock Project
- Ep.235 Refine, Reframe, Repeat: Make Your Communication a Slam Dunk
Connect:
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- Episode Transcripts >>> Think Fast Talk Smart Website
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- Think Fast Talk Smart >>> LinkedIn, Instagram, YouTube
- Matt Abrahams >>> LinkedIn
Chapters:
- (00:00) - Introduction
- (02:34) - Early Motorsport Passion
- (03:29) - Finding Your Voice
- (05:01) - Building Confidence
- (05:56) - Becoming a Leader
- (08:16) - Cross-Cultural Communication
- (09:25) - Building F1 Academy
- (13:48) - Giving Tough Feedback
- (17:00) - Embracing Discomfort
- (19:29) - The Final Three Questions
- (26:25) - Conclusion
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Hi, Matt here. At Think Fast Talk Smart, we're all about helping you hone and develop your |
| 0:04.3 | communication skills for work and life. We are thrilled that so many of you across the globe |
| 0:08.9 | tune in. We'd like your help spreading the word so we can reach even more people. Throughout May, |
| 0:14.2 | we ask that you follow and subscribe to our show on your player of choice. Send a link to your friends, |
| 0:19.7 | family and co-workers, and be sure to rate and review us. |
| 0:23.3 | Also, make sure to check out our fun Think Fast Talk Smart gift giveaways on our social channels. |
| 0:28.5 | Together, we can help people all over the world to think fast and talk smart. |
| 0:32.9 | Now a word from one of our sponsors. |
| 0:35.3 | Their support covers the cost of production, allowing us to bring |
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