In this episode, I invite you to take some time at the end of this year and look back, be with what is, before jumping to fully plan the next year already. I share some of my insights from my professional 2025, how I learned to live with uncertainty and let go of the need to control things that I cannot control and what this made possible for me.
At the end, I also invite you to join me on 17 December to celebrate our professional 2025, look back at the highs and the lows, celebrate our achievements and let go of what does not serve us anymore. Register here for the free workshop: https://anna-lena-claeys-kulik-co-insight-coaching.kit.com/265469bfe8
This is a special episode for the advent time, at least in the Northern hemisphere the darkest, but for many also the busiest time of the year ... I invite you to take this opportunity to slow down and reconnect with yourself in the midst of your daily hustle and bustle.
To get 24 daily inspirations directly in your inbox, sign up for my free advent calendar for busy professionals.
As of minute 18 I introduce you to my landing exercise and then guide you for 5 minutes through it (as of minute 21 until minute 26). When I do it myself or with my coachees, it helps to "slow down to the speed of presence" as one of my trainers always called it. You can use it as a simple self-check-in when you start your day, during your lunch break, or in-between meetings.
If you wish to work with me 1-1 to strengthen your inner leadership in challenging work contexts, have a look at my 3-months individual coaching programme "Leading from within".
With love, Anna-Lena
In this episode, I speak about values in a professional context and why I believe that it is not only important for us individually to have them clear, but also for our organisations and society at a higher level.
Values are our inner compass and guiding light when we have to take hard decisions. In challenging times, when pressures are mounting, our values help us grounding ourselves, instead of getting merely driven by external circumstances.
As usual, I give you examples from my own experience.
For this episode, I got inspired by the beginning of autumn as I saw the trees letting go of their leaves when walking through the streets of Brussels in the morning.
I speak about the power of letting go in a work context - letting go of projects, habits, ways of doing things or even beliefs about ourselves and work that may have served us in the past, but don't do so anymore.
As usual, I give you an example from my own experience of working in European cooperation and supporting others as a coach.
If you have a challenge with letting go of things that don't serve you anymore in a new professional context or role, I am here to support you through my 3 months 1-1 coaching programme "Leading from within". Get in touch and book a free 20 minutes matching call if you are interested.
Setting boundaries can be challenging, especially in demanding work contexts and roles, when we love what we do, we care for the people and the cause we are working for and wish to have a positive impact. Yet, it is important to be in our power and do our job well in the long run... Boundaries don't just set limits, they also provide space for you and others to grow and for everyone to do what is theirs to do.
In this episode, I speak about what boundaries are, why it can still be tough for us to set them even if we know it is important and what to do about that.
Learning to set healthy boundaries is also part of my 3 months individual 1-1 coaching "Leading from within", where I accompany you to step into your true power professionally.
If you are interested or have a question, book a free 20-minutes matching call with me to explore how I may support you in your particular situation.
Or, drop me an email: anna@co-insight-coaching.com
In this episode, I speak about what we need to develop resilience in challenging work contexts:
🔹the capacity to self-regulate our emotions
🔹the belief in ourselves and our capacity to act (self-efficacy)
🔹a certain dose of optimism (which is not the same as toxic positivity or naivety)
🔹acceptance of certain circumstances that we cannot change
🔹a strong social network and people who support us
🔹a focus on the future and the next step forward (even if we cannot see the big solution yet)
🔹reconnection with our values and the purpose/higher cause we are working for
🔹response-ability (which means taking conscious action)
I speak about this in the context of work, but it is applicable to any challenging circumstance, because it just describes the process of successfully coping with difficult experiences. I speak about how to do this not by fighting, not by pushing us or gritting our teeth, but by being kind to ourselves, reconnecting with our inner strength, our humanity and our creative power.
If you are in a challenging phase at work, you feel stuck, overwhelmed, lost, frustrated or even a bit anxious, here is my pep talk for you.
Anna-Lena💛If you wish to work with me 1-1 to strengthen your resilience, confidence and inner leadership at work, have a look at my 3 months individual coaching "Leading from within".
In this episode, I share with you how I feel sometimes about going back to work after the summer holidays and what I do to get back into my rhythm. This is especially for you, if you are a bit nervous or it feels heavy to go back to work and you would actually like to change something to get your energy back in your job.
If you listen to this still in August and wish to get further inspiration to explore this question, join me at my free online workshop "Back to work, but not to business as usual - How to get your energy back at work" on 27 August 2025. Register here beforehand to receive the Zoom link to join and the recording afterwards: https://anna-lena-claeys-kulik-co-insight-coaching.ck.page/eee3e95480
What if, the time to step up is now?! The shift is in the courage! In this episode, I share what courage means to me and how a conversation with my dear friend and former mentor, Helene Banner (www.helenebanner.com) recently helped me (again) to step a out of my comfort zone.
This is for you, if you feel stuck right now in your work and look for a change in perspective, or need a little nudge to make the move you are thinking about for a while, but didn't dare to act on so far.
If you wish to boost your confidence and inner leadership in your job, you can still take advantage of my summer special "Confidence Booster - Start leading from within" and work with me in 3 sessions 1-1 this August.
I would love to support you,
Anna-Lena
www.co-insight-coaching.com
In this episode I share with you my observations and reflections about a question that in my experience holds the key for stepping into our true power professionally, provided we are ready to ask and answer it honestly.
It is a question that we often either ignore, or put down the priority line too much, because it may feel a bit uncomfortable and vulnerable as we sometime associate it with weakness or with limitations, with us not "functioning" as we should... I am here to challenge that and invite you to change perspective: What if, this question is your first step to be more yourself in your job and step into your true power?! What if, you (as anyone in no matter which position) deserve your answer to this question?! What if, eventually, being more honest about this (starting from the top), actually helps us to create connection, foster collaboration and create healthier and more powerful work environments with more impact in the long-run?! Let's start with ourselves ;-).
If you are curious about the question I am talking about, listen to this episode. If you have a challenge with that question yourself and wish to get my support in addressing this, have a look at my 3 sessions summer special "Confidence Booster: start leading from within" still available in August 2025. I have developed it particularly for those, who are starting a new professional endeavour, but you can also use it to get a confidence booster in your current job.
Beyond this, my 10 weeks individual coaching programme "Leading from within" is there for you to develop your confidence and inner leadership to be yourself in your job instead of being merely driven by external circumstances and expectations.
I would love to support you!
Anna-Lena
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In this episode you get a look behind the scenes of my own business and my personal learnings from my first semester of being fully self-employed. This might be of interest to you if you are starting something new as well, or maybe you are also just thinking about it, whether it is stepping up to a new position with more responsibility, starting a new important project or also your own business. This is not to give you any advice, but to maybe provide you with some inspiration and support.
At the end, I also explain how you can work with me 1-1 over this summer 2025 to get a "Confidence Booster and start leading from within".
You can also use this opportunity even if you are in your job for a while, but wish to reconnect with your vision and work with what holds you back or is getting in your way to find concrete next steps.
Book a free 20-minutes matching call with me or reach out by email: anna@co-insight-coaching.com
I would be very happy to support you!
Anna-Lena
www.co-insight-coaching.com
In this episode I speak about the ability to lean into discomfort and why this is important to be able to take important decisions in a work context and beyond. I share my own experience with this and also explain what it means to stay open in these situations, rather than shutting down and go into struggle mode.
At the end, I also share how I may support you in this process, especially, if you are currently starting a new position with new responsibilities, a new project or also your own business. My summer special "Confidence Booster to Start Leading from Within" 3 individual 1-1 coaching sessions with me to sense into your vision, work with what is holding you back and build on your strengths is still available in June/July and August. I would love to support you!
Episode 6 is particularly for those of you, who are starting something new right now, a new job, a new position, a new project or activity or even your own business. I share, why I feel that head targets are important, but not enough when you wish to bring something to life. I speak about my experience in my former job in the EU context and the importance of feeling your vision, using your intuition and the need to let go of control and move towards trust - something I also find challenging ;-).
If you wish to develop your vision, strengthen your confidence and learn how to use your intuition in your professional context, have a look at my 1-1 individual coaching programme "Leading from within" , book a free 20-minutes matching call or drop me an email if you have question: anna@co-insight-coaching.com
Do you sometimes doubt whether your perspective matters in your professional context?Are you afraid of stepping on other people’s toes? Do you still hold yourself back, although you have been quite successful so far, but you somehow still lack confidence? Whether you feel resistance from the outside, or it is “just” thelittle voice in your head that keeps you down, this episode comes with a message of encouragement to you.
I share a bit of my own experience with the fear of stepping on other people's toes and also how I was able to overcome it many years ago.
If you struggle with seeing the impact of what you do, because progress in a complex organisational setting maybe slow and you wonder whether what you do actually matters, this is for you! It is also for you, if you know how it feels to “not be the expert, but”…e.g. have a coordinating role, or a horizontal responsibility in an environment where topical expertise is the currency like it was for me working at the crossroads of public policy and academia. What if, you are exactly at the right place, and what you have to contribute is an important part of the bigger puzzle?!
If this resonates with you and you would like to have my support in developing your confidence and inner leadership, have a look at "Leading from within" my 1-1 individual coaching programme.
Book a free matching call or get in touch by email: anna@co-insight-coaching.com
www.co-insight-coaching.com
I am here to support you,
Anna-Lena
In this episode I speak about what it means for me to lead from within and why I feel that we all need to develop our inner leadership no matter in which position we are.
With this episode comes a re-branding of the podcast with a new name: what was before "BREAK FREE" with a focus on women and female leadership, is now "LEADING FROM WITHIN" for all who wish to step into their true power professionally.
To now more about my work, visit my website: www.co-insight-coaching.com
Book a free 20-minutes matching call via my online calendar to get to know me and explore how I may support you. Or, drop me an email: anna@co-insight-coaching.com
In this episode I speak about the power of self-compassion in challenging situations at work. I explain what self-compassion is, referring to the research of Kristin Neff and Christopher Germer, and why being kind to ourselves is not a weakness and does not stand in the way of performance, but is actually crucial to be healthy, happy and work well in the long-run.
Learning to be kind to yourself is also an important element in my free 4-weeks online course for women "BREAK FREE- Welcome the woman you feel called to be: let go of stress and struggle and be yourself again in your job" that will start on 26 March 2025.
Listen to the episode here to learn more about the course and the topics we will cover during the four weeks. The course is for free, because it is a beta course where I test my concept with you, you get my full support and expertise and give me feedback and a testimonial on your course experience - win-win :-). Sign up here until 24 March 2025! I would love to support you, Anna-Lena
Maybe you know this as well, you have a challenge at work, an issue with a colleague, a problem in a project or a meeting where things got quite tense and you cannot stop thinking about it… You are replaying the situation in your head again and again. Your thoughts are going in circles… Welcome in the analysis paralysis!
I know many women, who tend to do this and I had this tendency in the past as well, but I learned how to work with it and get out of it. Especially women, who are highly sensitive and have good antennas for interpersonal things, can easily get into overthinking, since they perceive a lot and thus may also interpret a lot.
Overthinking is often linked to anxiety and feelings and thoughts of inadequacy. In this mode, we take things personal that happen around us and think that the reactions and behaviour of others are our responsibility. This combined with high expectations towards ourselves such as perfectionism, the fear of not being good enough, can really block us in taking decisions or even preventing us from taking on positions with higher responsibility…
In my second podcast episode, I offer an approach how to deal with this and get out of our mind, not by brushing negative thoughts away or trying to reframe them,but by accessing other dimensions of our intelligence …
Curious to know more and experience how this can work? Then listen in and be prepared, I included a spontaneous exercise for you, so you might want to have pen and paper ready while listening or just take some minutes to close your eyes, while you sit in the metro on the way to work or on a bench in the park during your lunch break.
If you wish to get further inspiration and support how to let go of stress and struggle and be more yourself also in your job, I invite you to sign up for my free online course "BREAK FREE - Welcome the woman you feel called to be: 4 weeks to let go of stress and struggle and be more yourself again in your job".Registration deadline is 24/03 for a course start on 26/03. I would love to see you there! If you have questions, contact me at anna@co-insight-coaching.com
Take care, Anna-Lena
BREAK FREE - EPISODE 1: From success and struggle to liberating myself
I am Anna-Lena, a self-leadership coach for women. In this first episode, I share my own story, how my way went first always up, I then struggled on my professional path and almost "failed", but with support turned this challenge into my opportunity to grow and flourish. This also then gave me the courage and the confidence, after almost 15 years of working in European cooperation in higher education and research policy, to take the plunge in 2025 to create my own business and dedicate myself to supporting other women on their path. I share this here not to draw attention to myself, but to inspire others who might be in a challenging phase in their job and remind them about their own strength and inner resources.
As certified systemic self-leadership coach I support especially women to step into their true power professionally. I help them to find purpose and balance in what they do and the courage to bring their gifts to the world. I also work with diverse teams to foster collaboration, continue to support university leaders in developing their visions and strategies and serve as moderator and facilitator.
In this podcast, I share my own insights, observations and tools from my work to provide inspiration, forge connections and empower others.
To know more about my coaching offer, have a look at my website: www.co-insight-coaching.com
If you wish to get to know me and discuss if and how I may support you, you can book a free 20-minutes matching call via my online calendar.
For more inspiration and updates on my work, sign up to my free newsletter.
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