Blogs

  • Embodied Leadership in Practice  

    Embodied Leadership in Practice  

    Through the Eyes of a Participant  Every now and then, a trainee puts words to an experience that, as a facilitator, you witness unfolding but could never quite capture yourself. This is exactly what happened when Saskia Decorte, a writer and editor at Psychologie Magazine, attended our October Embodied Leadership Retreat now officially known as Focus Labs).  Her article, “How Can…

  • Emotional Overshadowing: How to Keep Your Voice When the Room Gets Loud

    Emotional Overshadowing: How to Keep Your Voice When the Room Gets Loud

    You walk into a meeting fully prepared. Your notes are ready to go. You know what you want to say.  And then it happens. Someone’s tone sharpens. Another raises their voice. The energy shifts. Suddenly your heartbeat feels louder than your thoughts, and your well-thought-out words disappear.  That’s emotional overshadowing – when strong feelings in…

  • Why we so often fail to reach our goals (and what to do instead)

    Why we so often fail to reach our goals (and what to do instead)

    As the end of the year is approaching, I am often thinking back about this old classmate I spoke to, about five years ago. At that moment she told me, with twinkling eyes: “I’m going to do things completely different this year! I have decided to finally launch my own business, a webshop for children’s…

  • Empowered and Unstoppable: Shattering Gender-Based Limiting Beliefs with Somatic Practices

    Empowered and Unstoppable: Shattering Gender-Based Limiting Beliefs with Somatic Practices

    “Are you sure you can handle that project? It’s quite challenging”, one of your colleagues questions, casting doubt as you volunteered to take on additional responsibilities at work. “I’m not sure if you have the right expertise for that role, my dear” another colleague chimes in.   Does this scenario sound all too familiar? Sadly,…

  • Why you never succeeded in changing your behaviour… and why your BODY has the answer

    Why you never succeeded in changing your behaviour… and why your BODY has the answer

    Changing your behaviour is hard: we all know that. But why is it so difficult for us to change, even when we REALLY want to? And is there any way to succeed? The secret lies in somatics: your body has the answers for you.

  • 5 reasons people quit their job

    5 reasons people quit their job

    Every manager has had to deal with it: employees that quit. It’s part of the job. But what if your top employees leave one after the other? Or if employees that started 6 months ago already leave? That’s a different story.

  • What does working virtually mean in practice?

    What does working virtually mean in practice?

    When Doors Open visited Norway in February 2019 to mentor a newly formed team, with members spread over four countries, we had the chance to prepare the team for the challenges of working virtually. In 2020 many teams will not have been able to prepare themselves for this properly, but rather thrown into this situation…

  • When you don’t even know how to make a sandwich anymore

    When you don’t even know how to make a sandwich anymore

    “How are you? “ Yeah good. Busy, you know, but good. How are you?” While you answer your friends question on the Saturday morning during your coffee date before you quickly – especially quickly – need to go to a winter festival, take a selfie for Instagram – also quickly, before the foam on your…

  • My Best Mistake – Svenja Vollmer

    My Best Mistake – Svenja Vollmer

    Making mistakes is THE way to learn and develop yourself. That is why we at Doors Open are celebrate making mistakes! Every month we interview entrepreneurs, leaders, professional athletes… People who, just like you, have gotten to where they are by failing and standing up again. They have told us about their best mistake:  a…

  • My Best Mistake – Cees Juffermans

    My Best Mistake – Cees Juffermans

    On 12 February 2006 Cees Juffermans has the chance to write history in Dutch sports during the Olympic games in Turin. But his own mistake shatters his childhood dream. What happend on that Sunday? And even more importantly: What did Cees learn from his mistake?

  • You’re making me blush

    You’re making me blush

    Why it’s so difficult to receive compliments – and what you can do about it “What? This old thing? I’ve had it for years!” I hear myself saying this more often than than I’d like to when I get a compliment about my outfit. Not only about my outfit actually, even professionally I brush compliments…

  • Six Ted Talks about leadership that everyone needs to see

    Six Ted Talks about leadership that everyone needs to see

    One of my favourite hobbies on an evening off during the week or on a Sunday morning is watching Ted Talks. I find it one of the best sources of inspiration on topics that interest me. One of those topics is leadership. From all of the Ted Talks that I have seen, I have made…