My Story

Born in the Netherlands, I grew up in a small, rural village in the South of France. I learnt a new language, adapted and integrated. That spurred curiosity, an appetite for exploring and a deep interest in others.

My twenties were filled with multiple transitions as my studies, work and holiday travel took me to different countries around the world. I studied at EDHEC business school in Lille, France and finished with an MBA from University of Notre Dame, Indiana, USA. In between, I lived in London and immediately had a special connection with this city that felt so cosmopolitan, and aligned with who I was. I made it my home and created new roots.

My professional life was in financial services working primarily for JPMorgan, in London, for well over 15 years. One firm, yet filled with different roles, different learnings, different experiences, different challenges. I gained tenacity, learnt to challenge and question, enjoyed teamwork and developed high standards and work ethics. I loved the deep, detailed financial research and the intellectual challenge and curiosity associated with my analyst role. I embraced the constant learning and expansion of knowledge. I fostered a sense of connectedness and networked, authentically. Unsurprisingly, and all along, I loved supporting, mentoring, connecting and training new recruits or interns.

In 2014 I took a conscious career break to be a full-time mother to look after my two children and devote myself to my family. It wasn’t easy. Why leave a career in full swing ? No more financial security. No more explicit “status”, title or recognition. No more sense of belonging to a well known, highly regarded corporate. No doubt, I sensed some loss of identity. The truth is, however, that after giving so much to my studies, my work, my career, I was deeply longing for something new, more balance and this “je ne sais quoi”. I wanted to choose where to direct my energy, my time, my attention and simply put, my love. I wanted to honour what was really important for me at that time and had to come first. My family. And luckily I could.

And so, more than I could have imagined, a new world opened up. The blinkers were off. I was in full transition and a new chapter of my life had just begun. I took the time, I re-assessed and I explored. I went “with the flow” of full time motherhood, embraced the change and met people from all walks of life. And got involved in different organisations in a very fulfilling way, in particular the Education sector. I am an active advocate of financial literacy being taught at primary and secondary school. All in all, what I came to realise was that I deeply cared for others, I loved connecting and supporting others thrive and grow.

I have a good appreciation for the corporate world, its demands, its challenges and dynamics. Since that chapter in my life, I have learnt to slow down and take stock of what I have but, as importantly, continuously explore what energises me and what gives me purpose. And now I love to facilitate that process for others through coaching.

I trained with CTI, Co-Active Training Institute. In July 2021 I completed CTI full Certification and I am now CPCC and ACC (Associate Certified Coach), an ICF certified coach. CTI offers one of the most rigorous, thorough training program in the industry and has a beautiful holistic coaching approach. Find out more about CTI on https://coactive.com/