Business Athletes: Lucia Polverino

Hello and welcome to Business Athletes everyone 👋 

Each week, we’ll explore the athlete-like habits behind a different business leader. In less than 5-minutes, we aim to provide you with practical tactics that you can quickly apply in your day-to-day.⚡️

In the latest edition of Business Athletes, we spoke with Lucia Polverino, an Investor at Playfair Capital, a leading UK sector-agnostic VC fund with a contrarian approach to pre-seed investing. Their team is truly unique, consisting of a diverse group of angel investors, operators, founders, engineers, lawyers, bankers, accountants, professional poker players, salespeople, product managers, and biochemists, all united by a shared passion for startups.

Here's a snapshot of what Lucia shared with us:

• Consistency over perfection: Lucia believes in the power of giving her best effort, even on days when she’s not at her peak. For her, the true mark of a business athlete is not perfection, but the dedication to show up and push forward, no matter the circumstances.

• Running as a metaphor for Venture Capital: Marathon training has taught Lucia the importance of patience, endurance, and pacing, much like venture capital. She applies the same mindset to deal sourcing—acknowledging that not every effort will yield immediate results, but consistency will eventually pay off.

• Humility and collaboration for optimal decision-making: Lucia thrives in Playfair’s collaborative environment, where every voice counts. Her openness to feedback, regardless of her experience level, cultivates personal growth and reflects the importance of staying humble and learning from her peers in a fast-paced, high-stakes industry.

Hope you enjoy the read as much as I did chatting to Lucia!

Pre-Game Preparation

Being A Business Athlete: Giving Your All, Always

I believe in giving my 100% at something - whatever that looks like on any given day. 

Some days, I wake up feeling 50%, and on others, I feel like I’m running at 170%. But no matter what, I push myself to give the full capacity of what I can on that day. That’s what being a business athlete means to me. 

It’s not about perfection; it’s about effort and showing up every single day.

Routines To Win

I’m a huge advocate of having and following a routine because I find that it grounds me and allows me to perform at my best. I wake up early and immediately get into organization mode. 

Everything gets blocked in my Google Calendar—whether it’s a 10-minute task like reaching out to a founder or a deep work session preparing an investment memo. It’s the way I visually structure my day, and it helps me prioritize what needs to get done.

Minimalistic Tools, Maximum Focus

Beyond the calendar, I keep things simple. Despite my colleagues’ rave reviews of apps like Superhuman to boost their email efficiency, I prefer to stick to what works for me: Google Mail and my trusty notes page on my laptop. For me, it’s more about mastering the few tools that work for me rather than overloading myself with tech.

The key is that my Google Calendar and my notes app help me stay on top of everything—whether it’s personal tasks or work responsibilities. Every task, big or small, gets blocked out, so I know exactly what needs to be done and when. This methodical approach gives me clarity, reduces stress, and keeps me focused on the work that matters.

Gameplay

Preparation Is The Only Strategy

At Playfair, 60% of my role involves sourcing, which means I’m often in conversations with founders. To make the most of these call, I make sure to prepare as much as I can before meeting a founder — researching their background, their market and company, and trying to understand their vision, etc. It’s as much about trying to uncover if we might be the right investors for them, as if they could be the right fit for us.

Overcoming Imposter Syndrome and Staying Humble

As a junior investor, imposter syndrome is real. I’m often speaking to founders who are specialists in their fields, and sometimes, it feels like I’m playing catch-up. But I’ve always been the type of person who isn’t afraid to ask questions.

But Playfair’s culture is different. Playfair fosters a culture where everyone’s opinion is heard, regardless of seniority, and that has helped me grow both personally and professionally. In venture capital, teamwork is everything. Even though I’m a junior investor, my role is as valued as anyone else’s on the team.

Finding Flow in Structure & Collaboration

To get into a flow state, I need a clean, distraction-free environment. This starts with clearing my laptop of unnecessary tabs, and turning off any notifications, which helps declutter my mind.

I’ll also usually plug in my AirPods and find a quiet meeting room where I can work without interruption. Music helps me concentrate, and I’ve found that creating this physical and mental space lets me produce my best work.

But even with all the best tools and routines in place, I don’t shy away from asking for help when needed. Playfair is a collaborative and supportive environment, so when I face a challenge, I reach out to my manager or colleagues. Talking things through with others often brings clarity and helps me re-centre myself when things go off track.

Lessons From The Field 

Discipline From Running 

Running is a huge part of my life, and it’s taught me discipline in ways that spill over into my work. I’m currently training for a marathon, and it’s grueling—not just physically, but mentally. Training requires you to push through fatigue, discomfort, and boredom, all for a payoff that’s weeks or months down the line. 

Venture capital is no different. When I’m sourcing deals, I need that same long-term mindset. Some approaches may not yield results right away, but you have to keep pushing, keep trying new things, and trust that the effort will pay off in the end. I see my job as an ongoing journey — one where consistency, even more than talent, determines success.

Rest

Rest and Recharge to Stay Energized

Rest isn’t just about taking long vacations — it’s about the little rituals that re-energize me throughout the day.

At Playfair, we’re lucky to have a beautiful terrace in our office. Whenever I’m feeling drained or overstimulated from back-to-back meetings, I take a quick break to step outside. Just a few minutes of fresh air and some sunlight on my face make all the difference. It’s a simple, yet powerful way to reset.

If I’m working from home, I’ll go for a 5k run during lunch. Running is one of the ways I recharge — it allows me to clear my mind, focus on my breathing, and return to work with renewed energy. 

For bigger re-sets, after a long week of events or meetings, I’ve learned to embrace downtime. On weekends, I’ll spend time with my boyfriend, but beyond that, I try to keep my social commitments to a minimum. I’m the type of person who loves to be around people, but I’ve realised that I need quiet time to recharge, whether it’s reading or simply watching Netflix.

The Business Athlete Mindset

Achieving Excellence Through Discipline

For me, discipline is freedom. I thrive on routine because it keeps me grounded and ensures that I’m making progress every day.

Whether it’s in my marathon training or my work at Playfair, having a structure in place gives me the freedom to excel and achieve my goals.

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