I recently had the privilege of sitting down with Ana Pastor, journalist, entrepreneur, and foremost a friend, to talk about roots, courage, fear, entrepreneurship, misinformation, and the art of truly listening.
The conversation, part of my Close & Personal podcasts, left me both grounded and inspired, a reminder that behind every successful person there’s a human story of values, contradictions, and relentless curiosity.
As always, really special thanks to Instituto Tramontana for helping us with the recording.
1. Roots as a Compass
Your family story never leaves you — it shapes your instincts, your questions, your fears.
In Ana’s case, her roots are the engine behind her obsession with learning. She grew up in a family where humility mattered more than titles, and knowledge was something you pursued, not something to boast about. Her curiosity isn’t academic; it’s vital. It’s what keeps her grounded when the spotlight tries to pull her away.
2. Decency as a Turning Point
The biggest career decisions she’s made didn’t come from ambition, they came from integrity.
Ana refuses to surrender to pressure. When others avoid uncomfortable questions, she leans into them. Asking what others won’t is her way of being faithful to herself. That kind of decency has a cost, but also a quiet power: it allows you to sleep at night.
3. Luck Exists — But You Need to Be Ready
We like to romanticize luck, but Ana sees it as a door that only opens for those who are already walking toward it.
A call, a message, a chance encounter, they can all change your life. But only if you’re prepared to take the risk, even when it hurts. The best opportunities rarely come at the right time; they come when you least expect them, dressed as fear.
4. Entrepreneurship as Impact Multiplication
Ana doesn’t see her startups, Newtral and now Trueflag, just as companies. They are platforms to return to society the good fortune she has received, combining journalism and technology to fight misinformation and protect truth. For her, entrepreneurship is not about control or capital, it’s about amplifying impact. It’s a way to take responsibility, to turn frustration into action.
5. Her Superpower: Finding Talent
If she had to describe herself, Ana wouldn’t say “interviewer.” She’d say “talent scout.”
Her real gift lies in recognizing people’s spark and giving them space to shine. Building good teams isn’t a management skill, it’s an act of care. When your team feels seen, your mission becomes sustainable.
6. The Art of Listening — Really Listening
Listening is not the same as hearing.
True listening is making the other person feel heard, whether in a newsroom, a boardroom, or at home. It’s what builds trust and makes leadership human. Ana reminded me that the best interviewers, like the best leaders, are not those who speak the most, but those who create silence that invites truth.
7. Hatred Hurts — Literally
Digital harassment and street intimidation aren’t abstract phenomena. They’re physical. Ana spoke openly about the toll hate takes on the body, the tension, the fear, the exhaustion. Strength doesn’t mean not feeling. It means acknowledging pain and still protecting what matters, your team, your family, your purpose.
8. Fearful and Brave at the Same Time
Courage isn’t the absence of fear; it’s movement despite it.
Ana told me how she slept with the light on in Ukraine, but went anyway. How she made hard decisions while trembling inside. That’s what courage looks like, not heroism, but persistence. The ability to act even when your stomach is in knots.
9. The Power of Everyday Coherence
The antidote to ego, she says, isn’t humility, it’s routine.
The normal rituals, from taking your child to school, basketball practice to dinner at home, are what keep you balanced. Grandeur is not in the viral interview, but in doing the right thing every day, even when no one’s watching.
In Ana’s world, epic lives in the ordinary.
10. Presence as Legacy
At the end of the day, what she wants to leave behind isn’t headlines or viral moments, it’s presence.
Being there for people when they need you most. Being the name that appears on someone’s phone when they’re in trouble. That’s her true legacy: not fame, but availability.
And maybe that’s the essence of leadership, to be the call that gets answered.
You can listen to the full conversation by searching for
“Close and Personal with Ana Pastor” on YouTube or through the links in the comments.
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