The Meal That Changed My Life, With Suzie de Rohan Willner - CEO of TOAST

I thought long and hard about the best meal I have ever had, but actually, it comes down to a very simple moment, as it so often does. I have had some amazing meals around the world and I have been very lucky and have travelled throughout my life. You remember certain moments and certain meals, of course.

Yet, when I thought hard, it brought me to a moment in time at TOAST about two years ago. It was after we had gotten through the first few years of helping the brand get to its current place. Working with this team of highly passionate people had just been phenomenal and that was the point we were at.

We did a Friday meal every week, when we were all in the office and everyone would sit there on a long wooden table on trestles. It wasn't very pretty, everyone just pulled up a stool or even their desk chair, anything to get around the table. It was a weekly thing and this particular time stood out.

The Little Cooking Pot brought the food, they are this amazing duo called Aitana and Sarah and they serve vegan and vegetarian cooking, finding inspiration through travelling the world. You get that in the food - you can taste their passion. They bring the food along in big earthwear pots and they explain everything and hand write these little cards telling you what is in it.

It's different all the time. It could be Mexican, Georgian, Indian, a combination - but whenever I know they are coming I ask them to bring their Sri Lankan coconut cinnamon dhal. It is their signature and it is beautiful. There is this tangible joy as you serve yourself and that comes from what they put into it. This mix of foods, seasonal and locally sourced side salads and homemade cakes for dessert, all laid out in front of you.

The point is, I sat there two years ago and I looked around that table and thought, it is the simplicity of what we are eating, the love and passion of the two individuals that made it and the beautiful energy of the people sitting around me. That group of people, in that particular moment in time, was so special and it actually changed the way I think about a lot of things.

If someone would have told me this years earlier I would have benefited because suddenly it came to me: surround yourself with beautiful people and energy - whatever that means for you. It could be amazing popping energy, it might be a peaceful slow energy, I personally like a mix. The thing is, it makes a huge difference to the way we navigate the world.

You need to be quite considerate and purposeful about this, who you are around, and the more you do that the more you end up surrounded with this magic that propels you forward.

I am a true believer in the power of energy. We all know when we are around people we don't feel right with, we feel that intrinsically. It is an energetic repelling or attraction and we should listen to those instincts - it's not that anything is wrong with that person, it's just they don't enhance or develop you. Really, we all want to broaden our minds and attract people that can contribute to our wellbeing and likewise in a way that we can give wellbeing back to them.

I find myself in the very, very privileged position of going to work everyday with this group of incredible creatives at TOAST who I have massive respect for. The role of CEO is different today, you have to know how to support groups of driven people and help them perform at the top of their game.

It is a delight for me to work with this incredibly talented group of people.