From the bush to the boardroom true grit shines through

Reflecting on her early years working in conservation and her current role alongside other working mothers who are building businesses, Patricia Umeche, ESG & Impact Officer at Sanari Capital, sees the same guts, passion and determination at play

Early in my career, I was fortunate enough to spend time in nature reserves and remote wilderness areas. These rugged landscapes were home to a rare breed of people: tough, deeply passionate and profoundly knowledgeable about the natural world. That mix of resilience and purpose left a lasting impression on me.

Nature conservation, at the time, was a male-dominated field, and my early mentors reflected that. They were older men with a similar presence: calm under pressure, quietly intense, and steadfast in their mission. They didn’t just appreciate nature, they had an unshakeable drive to protect it.

Back then, I didn’t have the words to articulate what I saw in them. Years later, I would come to understand it as a rare combination of passion and commitment to a cause, traits I would encounter again in an entirely different world.

More than seven years ago, I joined Sanari Capital, a women-led South African private equity firm, and found myself surrounded by what was then an all-female team, many of them working mothers. It was a stark shift from the rugged, outdoorsy world I’d known. And yet, the familiar qualities emerged almost immediately: the quiet strength, the unwavering dedication, the ability to keep moving forward in the face of constant demands.

It struck me how easily these qualities transcended context. I had seen them deep in the bush, and now I was seeing them in the boardroom. These qualities showed up in their different roles: as entrepreneurs battling market headwinds, and as parents balancing career ambitions with family needs.

At first glance, entrepreneurs and working mothers might appear to operate in completely different worlds. One is immersed in business plans and investor meetings; the other is juggling client deadlines and school runs. But, underneath, both are navigating environments that demand adaptability, resourcefulness and relentless forward motion.

Entrepreneurs have uncertainty as their constant companion. Building companies from the ground up, often without a safety net, they endure setbacks that would stop most people in their tracks. They pivot, recalibrate and push on, not because the path is easy, but because realising their vision is worth the struggle.

Working mothers face a different but equally relentless set of challenges. They balance careers with the 24/7 demands of parenthood, solving problems in real time, often with no margin for error. The stakes are high because so many depend on them. They learn to operate under pressure without losing sight of what matters most.

Both roles call for adaptability in the face of chaos. Entrepreneurs thrive on rapid change, evolving strategies and scarce resources. Likewise, working mothers switch between competing priorities seamlessly. They manage crises at home and at work, sometimes simultaneously.

The common thread that unites entrepreneurs, working mothers and the conservationists I met early in my career is not just hard work, but the ability to stay the course no matter the odds. It’s the long view, the belief that their effort today will build something lasting tomorrow.

Their strength is rarely showy. It shines in the early mornings, the late nights and the countless uncelebrated moments where the choice to persist makes all the difference.

In conservation, business, or family life, success is rarely about perfection. It’s about showing up on the hard days, carrying on when the outcome is uncertain, and doing it with the passion and perseverance I now see as true grit. These are different paths and different settings, but they require a similar unwavering determination. And it’s that grit that shapes not only their own success but that of the people and communities around them.