How did I discover the secrets of resilience, drive and mental hygiene? Through my management career, my experience with quality, prevention and vitality and my insight into the power of our mind. This is my story.
On my way to my passion
During my 11 years in management, I learned where my passion lies. I consciously changed my career two times, continuing to grow toward a strategic level. I was good at it; but I didn’t feel the passion and it didn’t make me happy.
So where did my passion lie? Being an accelerator, getting people in motion and helping them grow. Making them quickly aware of the essence of their work and lives, to make vigorous choices and stay focused on their values.
Time to sit in the drivers seat: I became an independent executive trainer/coach.
A valuable partner
Soon I started working with CiEP, where for 15 years I saw how measurable, visible and tangible results can go hand in hand. A priceless insight!
I successfully launched that organisation on the Belgian market. I worked on that day and night. No problem, because it gave me great satisfaction. In addition, I ate healthy foods, exercised regularly and worked continuously on my personal development. The market grew. I really had it together...
Time for regeneration
… and ignored the signals from my body. Until I found myself sitting at home, burned out. In my complete surprise, I realised some changes had to be made.
I started studying and regenerating myself in India, discovering a complementary philosophy of life there. Much more preventive, less curative:
- We meditate because our head is full, they do it because it is healthy.
- We go to the doctor because we are sick; they practice prevention.
- We are individualistic; they feel part of a greater whole.
Concepts from which we, as individuals and organisations, can learn a great deal!
Back home again, I continued on that path and immersed myself in:
- Meditation and mindfulness, based on my interest in what drives people and how we work. I read scores of books about the mind and its emotional impact.
- Nutrition, exercise and vitality: I discovered that nutrition and exercise only partially contribute to vitality, while businesses often focus on these as the only solution.
- Stress and burnout prevention, because I saw (and see) what burnouts caused in companies and wanted to understand how they arise and what we can do about this.
- The philosophy of joy and happiness coaching, to discover that you cannot be satisfied until you know what your goals are, what drives you and energises you.
- Mind function and the many irrational fears and myths such as multitasking, 24/7 accessibility, fear of missing out, etc.
Your mind is the key
The last piece of the puzzle came from my own environment. Neurologists showed me how everything – even emotion – is measurable and visible in your brain and what impact your mind has on you. Our neuroplasticity is great, but we do so little with it. Positively (with emotions and happiness) and negatively (if you let in limiting beliefs or stress).
I realized that the key to preventing stress, burnout and low energy is in your brain. In your mental resilience, mental flexibility and drive! That you always have a choice and we take so little advantage of that fact. How do we train our mind? How do we direct thought-patterns so they don’t direct us? We frequently have no idea.
So I made mental resilience through mental hygiene my mission. You learn to train your mind, break through automatic thinking, reinforce your resilience and grow toward greater productivity and well-being. Happy people = happy results!
exploratory interview.
