If we show emotion, we're called drama queens. If we are angry, some label us as nuts. Winning in a man`s world is hard, but not impossible. Michèle Mouton is a former rally driver and a true legend in the world of racing, winning four championships. She even participated in Group B, the most dangerous and technical of all rallies, in what was known as the Golden Era of Rallying. Mouton became the first president of the FIA's Women & Motor Sport Commission and the FIA's manager in the World Rally Championship.

For me, this is the perfect motivation and model that the only boundaries are the ones we set ourselves. She inspired me since I was a little kid; everybody laughed that I would never be able to pass the driver’s license test on the first try. But I did. I thought about her when I broke my leg after a 5 km marathon and continued until passing the finish line. The power is within.

Sheryl Sandberg is my inspiration. After hearing her 2010 TED Talk, I was inspired to lean in and be brave. Personally, she has inspired me to feel a lot less guilty about being a mom and an executive and balancing both. While the balance is hard, knowing others are doing it too, in order to accomplish meaningful work, helps me rationalize I am not alone in this.

My biggest takeaway from her was to sit at the table, not on the sidelines, and make your partner a real partner. Meaning that I have earned my seat; my ideas, input, and direction matter and will be heard. And the person who I spend my life with when not at work, has been a real partner. I could not do what I do without his help and support for me and our daughters.

Sandberg also inspired me to have a sense of humor about a lot of things that don’t always make sense or seem fair, personally and in the workforce.

The book “The Power of One” and the character in it, Peekay, inspire me because of the depth of humanity he develops as he grows from ages 5 to 17. He learns to persevere despite incredible obstacles but, more importantly to me, he becomes a person of character, a person with humanity, and someone who evolves and takes every lesson and hardship and uses it to be a better person.

Seeing Peekay’s character develop motivates me, connects me with my own childhood experiences and reminds me that it’s the experiences and what you take from them that matter most in the journey of this life.

My favorite quote:
"Let me conclude by saying in my experience the glittering prizes in life come more to those who persevere despite setback and disappointment than they do to the exceptionally gifted who, with the confidence of the talents bestowed upon them, often pursue the tasks leading to success with less determination.” ―Bryce Courtenay, The Power of One

I’m inspired by this passage from Michelle Obama’s “Becoming.”

“I have been a lawyer, I have been a working-class black student at a fancy college. I have been the only woman, the only African-American, in all sorts of rooms. Until recently I was the First Lady of the United States of America—a job that is not officially a job, but that nonetheless has given me a platform like nothing I could have imagined. It challenged me and humbled me, lifted me up and shrank me down.”

For me, this statement is powerful because so much of it is my story, too. I came to Canada, learned English and computer science. I’ve been the only woman in an engineering class of 40 men. Now, I’m in a place where I am heard and seen and respected in my field, and I’m not afraid to be loud for what I believe in. For what I know, it has helped shape my career success.

Because I know it’s now my responsibility to speak for those whose voice is not as loud. Who want the same things as I do.

Michelle embodies this boldness and bravery and authenticity—that’s who she is. That’s what I am striving to be. To be impactful for myself and for others.

Many women can inspire you in different ways. Still, when it comes to my passion for motorsport and Africa, Jutta Kleinschmidt (the first and currently the only woman who won the Dakar Rally, the most challenging endurance competition in motorsport) is the one who influences my path.

I was very young when Kleinschmidt won the Dakar Rally and proved that rally raid—and racing in general—can also be a field where women can find joy and show their skills and abilities. Thanks to her attitude about racing, I dared to be codriver for the assistance vehicle in different rally-raid competitions across Africa such as the Morocco Rally, the Tunisia Rally, and the Pharaohs Rally. I was able to help my team and see amazing landscapes that are not common when you go to those places as a tourist. I was not just the press officer—I was also the codriver. And, since 2006, I have even been the sports manager for one of the Dakar Rally competitors, Emanuel Gyenes.

Jutta Kleinschmidt gave me the courage to race, and I finished second in Romania’s Championship. I met her in person a few times and each time, especially now that she’s not racing anymore, she gives me this vibe that it’s just a matter of numbers. If more women dare to follow their passions, we will see a higher number in fields that are currently considered harsh or unreachable. Besides that, for me, it’s also a proof that we need to put passion into everything we do.

I had so many reasons to be a woman doomed to fail. I was born in one of the poorest parts of Brazil; I was abused in my childhood; I did not have the opportunity to study in the best education centers; and I did not have the luck to get good opportunities. But I've never given up.

All my efforts were due to my mother and my grandmother. They taught me that giving up is not an option; use your pain to transform in learning, to grow! Most importantly, they showed me that our values and character determine the results of our story. I am grateful to have their example in my life and I owe my success to these two brilliant women.