The woman who made it to the final three in the recent The Apprentice NZ television series, Catherine Livingstone, will launch her book next week but it is not what you might expect.
Livingstone gained the reputation for being a tough competitor on the show – shrewd, sharp and perceptive. Businesswomen all over New Zealand held her in the highest esteem as she maintained her standards and stayed strong to the end.
Now she’s revealing her sensitive side in a book of poetry she has written over the past four years.
The poems discuss some difficult challenges she has faced including a marriage breakup and her experiences in the corporate environment.
Describing the 60-page book as an “outlet”, Livingstone says she has put all her emotions onto the page. Women who have read it have told her they can relate to her feelings.
“A lot of people have been surprised,” Catherine says. “But it shows you can be strong in business and have your softer side when it comes to your personal life.”
The book launch, which has attracted a capacity crowd of 85 businesswomen, will be held at the Women’s Bookshop on Ponsonby Road, Auckland on July 13.
“I am not a mainstream type person, even with the way I dress outside the corporate arena, so that’s why I like the Women’s Bookshop because it is really unique and in line with who I am,” Livingstone says.
Livingstone will be giving $2 from every book sold to the Cancer Society after her mother was treated for cancer last year. The book costs $22.95.
At the book launch, Livingstone will read some of her poems and reveal the meaning behind her writing. Guests will receive a gift bag and enjoy fine wine and food.
While the majority of her poems do not relate to events on the New Zealand Apprentice, Livingstone says there is one that sums up her feelings about the experience. She is running a competition on the book’s website, catherinelivingstone.co.nz, with a prize for the person who identifies the poem. “The last chapter is about things that change you, so that might be a clue,” she says.
A dedicated supporter of people who own small to medium-sized businesses, Livingstone will also be at the Bizzone business expo at the TSB Arena, Queens Wharf, Wellington from July 21 to 23. She won’t be selling the book there but she’s happy for people to come and have a conversation.
(From a press release)
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