Natalia Simson Interview

What is your mum's most frequently used 'mumism'? (When I’m leaving the house) “Take a cardigan!”

Do you have a favourite saying your mum uses? My mum always says “If it’s meant to be, it’s up to me”, which I think is very powerful. You have to create the possibilities you wish to see in your own life.

And a least favourite? “You’ve just got to do the work”. It’s true, but sometime’s you don’t want to hear it!

Do you ever find yourself saying things that make you think, "I'm turning into my mum!”? If I’m giving advice to friends, and I realise I’m saying something my mum has told me! That, and when little business ideas pop into my head. There’s also more conscious choices I make to be more like my mum, like being really positive and surrounding myself with good energy.

What's the best piece of advice your mum has ever given you? That's a difficult question, because my mum has always said to me “I’m not here to tell you what to do, I’m just here to ask you questions”. She’s adamant I learn all the ‘life lessons’ myself.

Naomi is in the public eye a lot and it's often hard to imagine well-known identities as just people who hang around the house with their family. What's your mum like behind closed doors? Is she a regular daggy mum? She’s such a dag. She’s a fiend for mispronouncing really easy words - “expresso”, “cup of chino” and “saganaski cheese” are my favourites. Mum also loves to get in her trackies and watch TV after a long day, just like any other mum I know. Over the weekend we love to spend hours cooking in the kitchen together for the upcoming week.

What's your most cherished memory of your mum?  When I was in Kindergarten at our local public school, first thing on Friday mornings was Scripture class. However, mum and I took that time to be ladies of leisure and go out for breakfast instead. It wasn’t every week, but it felt so naughty to skip school and spend such valuable one-on-one time with my mum.

If you could say thank you to your mum for something in particular, what is it and what would you say? I would thank her for raising me with such a strong set of values. She was undeniably a very busy woman while I was growing up, but she always made the time to instil in me the importance of doing what you say you are going to do (integrity), respecting yourself and the people around you, and making a meaningful contribution to the world.