When former M&A lawyer and polar explorer Jenny Wordsworth walked into a venture capital pitch, the investor barely looked up. He lazily asked her to begin.
Then she flipped to slide one: a photo of her skiing solo across Antarctica.
The investor sat straight up. The pitch about financial models and unit economics instantly took back seat to a much larger story—one about grit, multi-year preparation, and pulling through a harrowing, life-threatening expedition.
In the latest episode of the Chief Endurance Officer Podcast, host Greg McDonough sits down with Jenny, the founder and CEO of Ovum, to unpack how dragging a necrotic, split-open leg across 700 miles of ice prepared her to shake up the UK fertility industry.
Lessons from the South Pole to the Boardroom
Drop the “A-Bomb”: For years, Jenny resisted using her extreme athletic achievements in business, believing the numbers should speak for themselves. A pitch coach set her straight. Now, leading with her polar expeditions—what her team internally calls “dropping the A-bomb”—opens doors that cold calls never could.
Control the Controllables: Whether navigating Antarctic blizzards or facing an unpredictable fertility journey, you can’t control the outcome. You can only control how you show up, how you prepare, and how you refuse to compromise your standards.
Uncompromising Integrity Drives Credibility: When launching Ovum, manufacturers begged her to cut ingredient dosages to boost profit margins. Jenny held the line, designing an evidence-based fertility supplement so trustworthy that over 38 IVF clinics now independently recommend it without receiving a penny in commission.
Whether you are scaling a startup, training for an endurance race, or trying to break through institutional noise, Jenny’s story is a masterclass in leveraging your unique lived experience to build something undeniable.
Listen to the full episode on the Chief Endurance Officer Podcast or catch up at chiefenduranceofficer.com.