LEADING FROM WITHIN

Uncertainty is increasing. Rapid changes at various levels in the big picture have an impact on our daily lives, our systems, organisations, teams and and individuals also in the workplace. This episode looks into why it is becoming more important to deal with uncertainty and difficult situations at work, what we can do about it and how we can nourish trust, confidence and agency within ourselves...

In this episode I share why I believe it is important to give ourselves some space in between two things, two jobs, two projects, two activities, two meetings, or simply the time to take a conscious breath before moving forward. I share my own recent experience with consciously taking a step back from a routine that I had developed in my work, when I noticed that it doesn't fit my current busi...

In this episode, I tell you, why I believe breaking free of stress and struggle is not a personal luxury, but a powerful act of leadership in a world that is ever more loud, hectic and uncertain. I also share more about BREAK FREE my 1 month online group coaching programme for women, who are ambitious, but tired of running behind the clock and whish to get their inner fire back in their job and ha...

In this first episode of 2026, I share, why I believe that self-leadership is becoming a key competence and how it can help us staying grounded in turbulent times. If you listen to this episode before the end of January, you can still sign up to my free online workshop on 30 January "Lead yourself first in 2026 - How to break free of stress & struggle and stay grounded in turbulent times" . At...

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 Dece...

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 1...

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...

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 giv...

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...

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...

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...

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 m...

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 weakne...

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. T...

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 ar...

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 intuiti...

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 messa...

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...

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 i...

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...

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, af...