Blogs
Your Struggle Is a Reflection of Your Decisions
Many business leaders need to make a lot of important decisions, and every decision carries consequences that shape outcomes. To optimize decisions and get better results, leaders often need two things: better data and broader perspectives. Research provides the data, while leadership coaches offer the insights and perspectives. All of these are important to maximize…
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How Practical Philosophy Can Improve Your Business Decisions
How Practical Philosophy Can Improve Your Business Decisions? Practical philosophy is the application of philosophical principles and practices to everyday life. For many people, practical philosophy is a way to find meaning, purpose, and happiness in their lives. It can also be an effective tool for making better business decisions. In the world of business,…
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How To Make Suit Monk Decisions?
How To Make Suit Monk Decisions? Business. Social Media. Finance. Health, and even relationships. Everything always goes through the mind. Some go through the heart first for a few weeks or months, but then it becomes a mind game. Imagine you start a business based around your purpose. You love what you do from the…
Read articleSuit and Monk Hacks for Maximising Leadership Potential
Suit and Monk Hacks for Maximising Leadership Potential Hacking. The ability to take shortcuts to maximise your potential. Daily cold showers are a hack to stimulate blood flow and improve health. Using meditation headsets before sleeping improves sleep quality and waking up refreshed. Getting a subscription to book summary services, so you don’t have to…
Read articleHow to Redefine Leadership Power For the World Today
How to Redefine Leadership Power For the World Today Power has two components. External power and internal power. If I ask you to give an example of external power, the answer is quite easy… some politicians, an aggressive leader, an army, a narcissist.. If I ask you to give an example of a person with…
Read articleHow To Awaken The Leaders Inner Monk
How To Awaken The Leaders Inner Monk Marketing. Sales. Emails. Messaging. Responding to calls. The Suit world is very demanding. The Suit world is never finished, there is always more you can do in a day or more to achieve. You can always write more emails, call more people, and respond to more messages. One…
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Awakening vs Enlightenment and its impact on Leadership
Awakening vs Enlightenment and its impact on Leadership When I run workshops for companies, I can not talk about the spiritual. Some would not understand. And so there is a big gap between ´´spirituality and belief systems´´ and ´´leadership and business´´. But both are undisputedly related. However, in business today, they are usually separated. A…
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Building a Foundation of Inner Peace
Building a Foundation of Inner Peace What do you prefer as a leader, to be happy or to be at peace? Most people pursue happiness but not peace. Because the perceived feeling of happiness is higher than peace. Amongst happiness, we include a promotion, spending time with loved ones, going on a nice holiday,…
Read articleYou are always in the presence of Greatness
You are always in the presence of Greatness Greatness is to witness something that encompasses all. Perfection in its purest form. A person performing a certain act, the beauty of nature or an artistic expression. Thibaut Courtois goalkeeping in the final of the Champions League 2022 was greatness. The moment we land on Mars will…
Read articleReal Heroes always have a villain
Real Heroes always have a villain I saw the movie ´´Elvis´´ yesterday. I didn´t know much about him. My image was a handsome, successful singer who made a huge contribution and changed the music industry. Women adored him, a genius musician, a great dancer, rich and seemed to have it all. But after watching the…
Read articleAll leaders are searching
All leaders are searching All leaders are searching, some consciously, some unconsciously. It’s a primaeval instinct, part of a leader’s DNA. Searching for real-world solutions. Searching for soul solutions 90% search for real-world solutions, such as how to innovate, how to connect with and dominate a new target market and how to increase revenue.…
Read articleBuilding a life with the right foundations
Building a life with the right foundations Wars, social unrest, a great depression, a pandemic… we all get through it. Life goes on. So what is life exactly? If all the external situations we have encountered throughout history end, shouldn’t we know or become aware of why life continues? Why do we not try to…
Read articleProtecting yourself in a difficult world
Protecting yourself in a difficult world Imagine being Elon Musk as a young kid, saying you want to put people on Mars! He probably got laughed at and ridiculed. The world is not always ready to listen to your discoveries because the world may not be prepared to listen. So many kids’ dreams are…
Read articleJust do the work
Just do the work. In daily life, we focus on our career, daily tasks and executing responsibilities. We try to improve ourselves and aim to achieve higher. But on a deeper fundamental level, why? Why do we do what we do? This question has two answers: The first answer is a biological one – Because…
Read articleThe Life Journey
The Life Journey I have a unique gift for teaching an extremely complex topic; the life journey. Teach the intangible and make it tangible. Teach nothingness and make it into something. How is that even relevant for the modern person? To bring nothingness into something is to help leaders increase the quality of their…
Read articleWhere are all the happy people?
Where are all the happy people? A friend of mine got cheated upon by his business partners. After the business became successful, they ran away with all the money. It can take months or years to overcome life hurdles like this. Each day when you talk to a friend or colleague, or spouse, you will…
Read articleA guide to making happy decisions
A guide to making happy decisions Questions… Every day we have them. What shall I have for lunch? What time is the doctor’s appointment? Where is the address of the garage to fix the car? Other questions are deeper questions such as, shall I change my job? Shall I end my relationship? Every question has…
Read articleThe Importance of Internal Guidance
The Importance of Internal Guidance I am not religious, but I believe there is a God. Named different names in different teachings, religions, and philosophies. ‘’He/She’’ in my viewpoint, is the CEO of life. In the end, we are all students. Students of life. Unfortunately, not everyone has realized he/she is still a student. Students…
Read articleFlow Vs Force – how to allow the right people and things to come to you
Flow Vs Force – how to allow the right people and things to come to you I was once working with an executive from a manufacturing company. He had to make a presentation for his company. He was nervous about speaking in front of 500 people. This nervousness had nothing to do with the…
Read articleHow to Stop Overthinking and Forcing a Situation
How to Stop Overthinking and Forcing a Situation Sometimes the best answer to a question is no answer, just step back and give space instead. Have you ever tried to win an argument with someone, and the conversation gets heated? What would happen if you took a step back and just observed and breathed?…
Read article3 Steps To Find Inner Balance in Any Situation
3 Steps To Find Inner Balance in Any Situation There is internal balance and external balance. When someone offends you, you become off-balanced. When you lose an important client, you get off-balanced. When an expected deadline is not met, you are off-balance. So how can you live a life of balance? Don’t we all…
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The Real Solution for Depression
The Real Solution for Depression I saw the headline at CNN ‘’Michael Phelps: ‘I am extremely thankful that I did not take my life’’ The most successful Olympian Athlete ever! You reach success, the whole world knows you, you are married to Miss California, and you have 3 children, shouldn’t it be the ‘’perfect life’’?…
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Authenticity – The Lost Art of a Happy and Successful Life
Authenticity – The Lost Art of a Happy and Successful Life Growing up we look for external inspiration. Our father is Superman, our mother is the Goddess of warmth and care. We admire. In the early stages of life, we often depend on the approval and acceptance of others for a sense of who…
Read articleHow To Succeed After Failing At Work
How To Succeed After Failing At Work The question is never what you do or what you did, where you succeeded or failed in business or in life. Whether you were a good father or mother to your children or not. Whether you achieved your goals or not. The question is always how’s your…
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How To End Loneliness
How To End Loneliness Loneliness. Should we even talk about this? Who is even lonely? It sounds very depressing. We have fun daily, meeting friends, doing our job, and spending the weekends going to sports events, doing our regular life. However, in the UK, they have appointed Tracey Crouch as a minister of loneliness.…
Read articleHow Giving Space Leads to Happiness
How Giving Space Leads to Happiness Giving space is one of the most important skills to master. No, it’s not about giving space to others. It’s about giving space to yourself. Space between the mind and the heart. Space for no thinking, no action, just being. Many people are occupied with daily tasks, travels,…
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An Unpaved Road Towards Happiness
An Unpaved Road Towards Happiness Your Road is Unpaved Walking the journey of life is not easy. If someone tells you otherwise he or she has not lived. Life is easy when you walk a paved road. The direction is set. There is clarity about the direction to go. This is the unconscious journey. Just…
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The Journey Inwards and Outwards
The Journey Inwards and Outwards Everything that goes inwards has to go outwards. And everything that goes outwards has to go inwards. When you eat food or drink water, it goes inwards, you digest, it serves you and it goes outwards. When money comes into your business, it goes inwards, you use that money to…
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Balance and Imbalance
Balance and Imbalance In order to be balanced, you first have to be unbalanced to then understand what balance is. Happiness. You first have to be unhappy to know what happiness is. Success. We first have to fail to then understand what real success means. How come balance is so hard to find? Relationship issues,…
Read articlePhilosophy Does Not Have a Place in Business, but Businesses are Build Around a Philosophy
Philosophy Does Not Have a Place in Business, but Businesses are Build Around a Philosophy Plato, Aristotle, Lao Tzu…. Great philosophers. A nice to have and nice read in our free time, now let’s get back to work. Philosophy is a dream, it does not have a place in business. If we only knew that…
Read articleLeadership Potential
Leadership Potential Leadership potential includes the ability for strategic thinking, dealing with ambiguity, interpersonal skills, openness to feedback, leading others, influencing, risk-taking…. The list goes on… These are in summary a way of how the mind is managed and used in different situations, experiences, and circumstances to get optimal results. However, imagine you hire a…
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To Teach Without Teaching That is The Art of The Great Master
To Teach Without Teaching That is The Art of The Great Master Sometimes words are not necessary to learn the lesson. When you are in a leadership position, when you are a father, when you are in a position of authority sometimes silence can be the greatest teaching. Giving advice and opinion is easy, being…
Read articleOpinions and Feedback
Opinions and feedback I remember I was asking a friend often for his opinions. And at a certain point he said, ‘’are you not sure about your decisions’’? And I said ‘’yes I am but I just need perspective’’. That’s why they keep reading. That’s why they have a board of advisors. That’s why they…
Read article7 Powerful Strategies For a Successful Career Transition
Career Transition – 7 Powerful Strategies For a Successful Career Move Career Transition The idea of Career Transition is daunting to many. The reason is not because of all the obstacles or the struggles you might face when going through this journey, but because of the constant battle between what you should do and what…
Read articleCopying the Guru
If you want to be successful copy what successful people do and you will achieve the same or similar results. What mindset do successful people have, copy or adopt a similar mindset and you will get similar results. Do you want to be successful at social media marketing? Copy how the Gurus do it and…
Read articleThe Easy Road Or The Hard Road
My parents got divorced when I was 15. My dad took the easy road and left. No conversations just left. During the break, in one of my workshops, a participant told me, ´´my wife and I are like good friends but I feel she’s not my partner. I love her dearly but I don’t want…
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Philosophical Counseling – Everything You Need to Know
Philosophical Counseling: The Basics Philosophical counseling is a form of therapy that uses philosophical thinking and principles to help individuals better understand and address their personal and psychological challenges. Unlike traditional psychological counseling, which focuses on the treatment of mental health disorders, philosophical counseling is more concerned with helping individuals explore and clarify their values,…
Read articleRational or Emotional Understanding
Recently I was on a Zoom call with an executive from a manufacturing company. ‘’For years I have been following Carl Jung’’, ‘’I went to meditation retreats’’, ‘’I did a lot of work on myself’, ‘’I even did Ayahuasca (a plant-based medicine from Peru) for self-healing’’. ‘’But here I am still struggling and not feeling…
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Integrity is Hard
Integrity hard? Shouldn’t integrity be easy? Yes, integrity is easy for the ego. It is easy to say what the right thing to do is. You have to be honest, you declare everything that needs to be taxed, you speak the truth, you don’t cross through the red light even when there are no cars……
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Successful Leadership and Context
A client lost his job but found his purpose in the process A person bitten by a shark in Australia became a shark rescuer. A friend of mine hired the wrong person but said ‘’he’’ taught me a valuable lesson. It’s not what it seems to be. Reality, our life experiences, the meaning we give…
Read articleYour Inner Voice and Timing
Your Inner Voice And Timing We have many different voices. A rational voice, an emotional voice, a physical voice, an intuitive inner voice. When your inner voice comes out too early people don’t take you seriously, the voice is immature, you are not being heard, even though you shout. When your inner voice comes out…
Read articleWisdom In Business
Wisdom in Business Do we need wisdom in business? Isn’t wisdom some fluffy, nice thing to have as a leader? Ok being a wise leader is nice, now let’s get back to reality. Aren’t we supposed to perform, achieve results, meet deadlines and provide shareholder returns? Well, in essence, there is NO business without wisdom,…
Read articleFrom Idealism to Realism
From Idealism to Realism Don’t we all want, happiness, love joy, success, flow, and abundance…? The world of Idealism. However in some areas of our life we experience realism, we want a better relationship, we want to improve our career, we want to upgrade our house… searching for more idealism. When your internal and external…
Read articleThe Importance of Mind Heart Connection in Leadership and Innovation
The Importance of Mind-Heart Connection in Leadership and Innovation There is a big difference between innovation and adaptation. Innovation is so important for companies because it gives a competitive advantage, it brings something new to the market, it helps the company grow. But in reality, what we are doing is adaptation. We take an existing…
Read articleThe Two Voices in Life and Leadership
There are two voices in life and leadership, a rational voice and an intuitive voice. We are born with an intuitive voice. Then we are programmed to develop (overdevelop?) the rational voice in school. The rational voice then takes over our lives and becomes our driver. The internal voice is lost. In midlife, many leaders…
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Your Point Of View (Context) Is More Powerful Than You Think. 260 Words Why
A client lost his job but found his purpose in the process. A person bitten by a shark in Australia became a shark rescuer. A friend of mine hired the wrong person but said ‘’he’’ taught me a valuable lesson. It’s not what it seems to be; reality, our life experiences, the meaning we give…
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Is Career Planning A Gamble With the Unexpected Disruptions?
I’m from Belgium and have lived in China for 12 years and published 2 books. My career plan in my 20’s was to get a good education, secure a good job, grow within a company in Belgium, and scale the corporate ladder to a successful position. I got the degree, got the job, and then…
Read articleAre You Being Heard? Insights On How To Effectively Use Your Voice
We have many different voices. A rational voice, an emotional voice, a physical voice, an intuitive inner voice. When your inner voice comes out too early people don’t take you seriously; the voice is immature, you are not being heard, even though you shout. When your inner voice comes out too late, it comes out…
Read articleShould Leaders Make Rational Or Wise Decisions In Business?
Do we need wisdom in business? Isn’t wisdom some fluffy, nice thing to have as a leader? Ok, being a wise leader is nice, but now let’s get back to reality, let’s get back to work. Aren’t we supposed to perform, achieve results, meet deadlines and provide shareholder returns? Well, in essence, there is NO…
Read articleIs This The Key To Bridging The Gap Between Realism And Idealism?
We all want happiness, love, joy, success, flow, and abundance…right? The world of Idealism. In some areas of our life, we experience realism; we want a better relationship, to improve our career, to upgrade our house… searching for more idealism. However, when your internal and external worlds align in your life and career, there is…
Read articleAre You Really Being Innovative Or Simply Adapting Already Existing Ideas?
There is a big difference between innovation and adaptation. Innovation is so important for companies because it gives a competitive advantage, brings something new to the market, and helps the company grow. But in reality, what we are doing is adaptation. We take an existing product and we adapt it. There are two worlds that…
Read articleThe Difference Between Your Rational Voice And Your Inner Voice (Intuition)
There are two voices in life and leadership; a rational voice and an intuitive voice. We are born with an intuitive voice and then programmed to develop (overdevelop?) the rational voice in school. The rational voice then takes over our lives and becomes our driver and we lose our internal voice. In midlife, many leaders…
Read articleAchieving The Right Balance Between Attracting What You Want And Being A Go-Getter
The Life Journey? Interesting. Do we make things happen in life and pursue goals and achievements or do we need to apply TRUST, be patient, and believe that the right things will happen at the right time? Well… a bit of both… The most challenging part is the part between knowing how to balance taking…
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283 Words That Will Shift Your Perspective About Uncertainty In 2022
283 Words That Will Shift Your Perspective About Uncertainty In 2022 It happened a few times now: I had lost my job in the financial downturn in 2008, I was an ex-pat in China and didn’t know where to go in life, and what I should be doing with my career… A past relationship had…
Read articleIncrease Your Leadership Effectiveness Through Skill and Awareness – Leadership Trainer Barcelona
Increase Your Leadership Effectiveness Through Skill and Awareness – Leadership Trainer Barcelona I was leading an online workshop training in English with one of my trainers in Barcelona yesterday for a US-based company with offices in Barcelona, Madrid, Valencia. I don’t really consider myself a trainer, but more a facilitator because I believe that training…
Read article7 Steps For A Successful Career Transition
7 Steps For A Successful Career Transition When I was thinking about career transition, I was wondering if I should write the article from the mind or from the heart. When I write from the mind, it would include SEO optimized blog, tools strategies and tips for you to make a successful career transition. If…
Read articlePractical Philosopher
Practical Philosopher As a practical philosopher, I use two worlds to help people find their path and purpose in life. The outer world, is represented by your Suit, and the inner world is represented by your Monk. I’ve worked with Fortune 500 companies and successful leaders from various industries. Of course, they hire me as…
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How To Be Happy
How To Be Happy The Complete Guide – 23 Strategies to Increase Your Happiness on a Fundamental Level {UPDATED}. Everyone wants to be happy! However, for many people, happiness seems to come and go like waves. One day you feel happy and inspired whilst other days you feel less motivated and more lazy. So in…
Read articleYou can always choose which perception to operate from (wise leader)
You can always choose which perception to operate from Perception and reality are two different things. Most of us operate in reality, we do daily tasks, try to achieve goals based on agreed milestones, go to meetings, take action to make projects happen etc… in these instances we are attached to the mind to achieve…
Read articlePractical Philosophy in Leadership and Business
Practical Philosophy and Integration in Business Why is practical philosophy important? A business can be and is very complex. You need to think of product development, marketing, sales, HR, hiring people, develop a strategy, focus on the tasks at hand, and make important decisions…. These are rational components that a business needs to operate. However,…
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The Difference Between Temporary Loss and Fundamental Loss
The Difference Between Temporary Loss and Fundamental Loss Fundamental loss is time, quality time with your kids, quality time with your family, quality time with yourself. The weight of this loss has more impact even though the time is less. These are what I call internal losses. These are times that cannot be recuperated. For…
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Sin, But Sin Lawfully.
Sin, but sin lawfully. How can the ignorant man learn? How can the ignorant man grow? The ignorant man always has two options. To learn or to stay ignorant. If the ignorant man wants to learn, he will learn through sin. Sin is not bad. Sin is learning, sin is an opportunity for growth.…
Read articleI Think Therefore I Am
I Think Therefore I Am Rene Descartes the famous philosopher was not 100% correct when he said ‘’’ I Think Therefore I Am ’’. When you think you are the mind, the mind is a thought or a thought-form. A thought is an illusion and therefore when you think you are the illusion. An illusion…
Read articleNew Career At 40
New Career At 40 Is It Time For You To Find A New Career At 40? Many people often in midlife come to a point in their careers when it is time for a change, getting ready for a new career at 40. Sometimes, the realization or necessity to change comes from a lack of…
Read articleHow to develop self awareness in the workplace
How to develop self awareness in the workplace For over 10 years I’ve been working with Fortune 500 companies to develop self-awareness in the workplace. I’ve used my Suited Monk model for this process. The idea is very simple, most employees focus on their Suit or external self (success, job title, career development,…) and forget…
Read articleHow To Balance A Spiritual And Material Life
How To Balance A Spiritual And Material Life How to balance a spiritual and material life is a question I get often in my workshops. A few days ago I was chatting with a friend who is struggling with finding her path in life. She’s a very spiritual person but is unable to take action…
Read article6 Tips for Developing Your Personal Philosophy
6 Tips for Developing Your Personal Philosophy Developing your personal philosophy is one of the most important practices which will help you to find your path in life. Religions, books, personal development tools provide strategies and insights to create greater understanding of your life and yourself. Once you have a greater depth of who you…
Read articleSelf-aware – Many People Still Live With Their Eyes Closed
self-aware Ignorance! What a gift from the mind… I was just talking to a friend who works for Tencent, she said to me ” even in 2017 many people still live with their eyes closed”… I couldn’t have said it any better. There are two kinds of people in the world, self-aware people and ignorant…
Read articleCareer Change – 4 Practical Philosophy Tips To Find Your Path In Life
Career Change – 4 Practical Philosophy Tips To Find Your Path In Life After you realize it’s time to quit your job, the answer is what’s next? From a philosophical point of view there is a gap between knowing you need to quit and the next job on the life journey. That GAP is what…
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Happy Journey Quotes
Happy Journey Quotes I was reflecting on the deeper meaning and purpose of Happy Journey Quotes. Happy Journey Quotes gives people meaning and purpose, it shows empathy towards the other person and care for his or her well-being. However the deeper underlying message for Happy Journey Quotes is HOPE. We want to let people know…
Read articleIs Life Pointless: Coping with a Pointless Life
Is Life Pointless – Coping with a Pointless Life Is life pointless? It is a big question to ask. Typically people who are on a very low ask the question if life is pointless. To some extend everyone that I’ve met over the past 10 years running workshops, doing one on one coaching and people…
Read articlePractical Philosophy | Priceless Wisdom for the 21st Century
Practical Philosophy Practical philosophy is the application of philosophical concepts and principles to everyday life. It involves using philosophical thinking to help us better understand ourselves and the world around us and to make more informed and reasoned decisions in our personal and professional lives. The pursuit of a meaningful life is a fundamental human…
Read articleWhat Is The Point Of Life?
What is the point of life? People who have been going through a rough time and who feel depressed often ask the question what is the point of life? Their life often seem to be so insignificant to them. Why bother being nice to people, why bother trying to improve yourself, what is the point…
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Executive Coach Shanghai
Hire me as your personal executive coach in Shanghai (or Skype). I love one-on-one coaching, but I have limited time available for it. Therefore, I am very selective. I also charge higher fees. If you think you could benefit from one-on-one interaction with me, email Suzy my assistant. My one on one coaching program is only…
Read articleTop 12 Strategies – How To Find Your Path In Life
How To Find Your Path In Life? Discover 12 Strategies to Help You Find Your Path In Life To answer the question “how to find your path in life”, I would first like to clarify that finding your path in life is different AND MORE IMPORTANT than finding your purpose in life… When people talk…
Read articleAuthentic Leadership Corporate Workshop
SUITED MONK AUTHENTIC LEADERSHIP 1-2 DAY WORKSHOP Suited Monk Authentic Leadership is a unique licensed program which consist of a one to two-day authentic leadership workshop for leaders, with pre-course assessment, case design, and phone interviews followed by an individual or group coaching program. Suited Monk Authentic Leadership is a personal leadership development program with…
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