Sarah Friar on Leadership: Listen More, Take Up More Space

Sarah Friar on Leadership – Starting in a Gold Mine in Ghana 

Sarah Friar's career path is anything but conventional – and that's precisely what makes it worth paying attention to. 

I studied metallurgy at Oxford alongside business and economics, which is not an obvious route to Silicon Valley.  

My internship at a gold mine in Ghana was formative in ways I didn't fully understand at the time. Being the only woman in that environment, at that age, teaches you something about occupying space you weren't necessarily expected to be in. I carried that forward, probably more than I realised. 

The Deliberate Career Path That Brought Sarah Friar to the Top 

Female CEO visibility in tech remains low – and Sarah has spent her career doing something about it, both in the boardroom and through Ladies Who Launch.

The decision to join Nextdoor was a deliberate one. There weren't many female CEOs, and I wanted to increase visibility. It sounds simple, but I think it matters enormously who is seen in those roles. I wanted to be one of them. Later in my career, I co-founded Ladies Who Launch, a non-profit supporting women and non-binary entrepreneurs. 

Sarah Friar's Philosophy on Leadership: Two Ears, One Mouth

For Sarah, knowing how to take up space as a woman in leadership starts here – with presence, not volume. 

The best leadership advice I've ever been given came from a dear friend, John Hope Bryant: God gave you two ears and one mouth so you can listen twice as much as you talk. I return to that constantly. The best leaders I've observed are almost always the ones who are genuinely listening, not preparing their next point. It's shaped how I try to show up, in the boardroom, at home, everywhere. 

A Senior Woman in Leadership's Daily Routine – From 5.30am to the Evening Walk 

For women in senior leadership, the daily routine is rarely just logistics – it's a carefully constructed series of transitions. 

My days start early, around 5.30am, straight to the gym. Then emails, morning headlines, before I wake the kids at seven and head into the office, usually on a call along the way. Meetings run from 8.30am to around 5.30pm. In the evening, I take a walk around the neighbourhood with a podcast to decompress, then dinner with the family. The walk is non-negotiable. It's where I transition from one version of myself to another. 

Personal style is something I feel clear about. Heels, always. I believe you can't get anything done without a pair of heels on, and it's a power move to be one of the tallest in the room. I carry an enormous bag for my laptop and everything else. I class it as part of my daily weightlifting.

For the office, classic Levi's, a San Francisco staple, and Max Mara because they make everything long in the leg. Summer essentials are linen everything, Irish if available, a hat that folds and still looks good, and a lot of sunglasses I will inevitably lose somewhere between here and Donegal. Bobbi Brown tinted SPF, a multi-purpose hair and body oil, and Veja trainers always. Female-founded, sustainability-led. That combination matters to me. 

I unwind by hiking the mountain behind my house with neighbours and family, reading, and family game nights. The best gift I've ever received is a copy of One Hundred Years of Solitude from my college roommate, which tells you something about her too.

And my favourite place on earth is Knockalla beach near Port Salon in Donegal, which I love with an almost irrational devotion. Of course it's Donegal, so I pack an Eres swimsuit and rain gear in equal measure. 

The Female Founder She Admires and the Advice She'd Pass On 

As a female founder and leader herself, Sarah Friar's advice to women building something of their own is characteristically direct. 

The female founder I most admire right now is Emma McIlroy, co-founder and CEO of Wildfang, a clothing brand built around rethinking gender norms in fashion. Her TED talk is genuinely brilliant. She found a dinosaur skull when she was seven and it's now in the Ulster Museum. That detail tells you everything about her. 

If there's one thing I'd want to pass on, it's this: listen more than you talk, take up the space you've earned, and don't wait for someone to hand you the room. Walk in and find the tallest spot in it. 

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