Dear Reader, When was the last time someone told you what you did really well? Not a generic “great job,” but something specific, thoughtful, and sincere? If it’s been a while, you’re not alone. One of the most surprising insights I got in my feedback trainings is how hard it is for people to give positive feedback. When we talk about giving constructive or even critical feedback, people usually have plenty of examples, frameworks, and sometimes even confidence. But when the focus shifts to...
8 days ago • 3 min read
Dear Reader, It’s been a month since I started "writing in public" by which I mean: sharing raw ideas, brain farts, open-ended questions, and curiosities with my LinkedIn community. And while it felt uncomfortable and vulnerable at first, I can now see how this has been the best decision ever. Writing a book can feel lonely, but this journey has been anything but. Bi-weekly accountability calls with Gustavo Razzetti (we even publish them on YouTube), unexpected book recommendations from...
15 days ago • 3 min read
Dear Reader, Do you know that feeling when something that once fit you perfectly starts feeling… tight? A role, a way of working, a team dynamic - it served you well, until one day, it no longer does. That awkward in-between space? Uncomfortable. And still necessary. I’ve just been through my own version of that: launching a new website. As much as I loved the old design for which I received many compliments, it no longer reflected my work and who I was. Over the past months, I had to sit...
22 days ago • 3 min read
Dear Reader, I’m writing this from Melbourne airport, about to return home to Amsterdam after two months away. This was my third time escaping the Dutch winter - not just for the sunshine, but to slow down, gain clarity, and create the geographic distance needed to reflect on my daily routines. Last year, I failed miserably at slowing down. It became one of the hardest years I’ve had. This time, something shifted. I’m returning home as an updated version of myself - one I didn’t even realise...
29 days ago • 4 min read
Dear Reader, Have you noticed how the moments that make you hesitate - where you feel that slight discomfort - are usually the ones that truly matter? It might happen before speaking up in a meeting, before sharing an idea that feels different, before initiating a conversation that might shift things or before posting on social media. It’s that moment of tension before we take a risk. Although I post a lot on LinkedIn and have almost removed all filters from this newsletter, some moments...
about 1 month ago • 3 min read
Dear Reader, Is it unprofessional to let AI write our emails? Lately, I’ve been reading email replies that feel… slightly off. Not wrong, just different. As if they were written by someone who paid just a little bit too much attention to what I wrote. They respond to every single theme I mentioned as if the sender had all the time in the world to carefully address each point. And they use my exact words as if they were mirroring me instead of replying to me. That’s when I know: AI wrote this....
about 1 month ago • 3 min read
Dear Reader, What If It Was Easy? Two years ago, this question became my mantra. I was searching for ease — easy money, easy love! A way to flow through life without constant resistance. I wanted to believe that success didn’t have to mean being busy. And yet, the journey since has been anything but easy. Then, this week, as I journaled, I realised something: ease had entered my life almost unnoticed, through the back door. Not because I perfected my systems, optimised my processes, or tried...
about 2 months ago • 3 min read
Dear Reader, Remember the last time you felt triggered? That moment when your reaction felt bigger than the situation itself? Maybe it was a colleague dismissing your idea in a meeting. A friend not responding the way you’d hoped. A client pushing back harder than expected. You felt a surge of irritation, maybe even anger. I quickly tell myself: They’re so dismissive. They don't understand. They don't take me seriously... I used to think radical honesty was about voicing these frustrations,...
about 2 months ago • 3 min read
Dear Reader, It turns out that even artificial intelligence isn’t bold enough to be unprofessional 🤷♀️ Let me explain. Of course, I am collaborating with ChatGPT on my book. After all, it's called Unprofessionalism, and it would be a missed opportunity not to work with the most informed assistant out there. Regularly, I ask it for advice. I would ask "What is missing and what could be misleading?" ChatGPT also supports me in creating more clarity and structure or in smoothening out some...
2 months ago • 3 min read