Tag Archives: Leadership

Manage Your Energy


By Romée Jager Do you feel overwhelmed and overloaded before the day has started? You are not alone! It is 7:30 AM, and I started working half an hour ago. Even though it is only the beginning of my working day, I already feel way behind. I am staring at my screen and scrolling through my emails, marking them as unread again and giving them a color code.  I feel overwhelmed. I don’t know where to start. My solution? Making myself a second cup of coffee. While the smell of freshly roasted coffee beans reaches my nostrils, I think about how to structure my tasks for the day.  I wonder why we ‘’only’’ have 24 hours in a day, and […]

On Perception – The Grass Seems Greener in France

On Perception – The Grass Seems Greener in France I sat on the train from Switzerland to France and my stomach gave me a signal. The four border officers who checked passports and went through passenger’s luggage seemed odd. I was on a different continent. In a different setting. I was in a novel. I wondered if I could explain myself in French. But no one wanted to know about my travel habits. I look white. I look the part even though I travel like a bag packer sometimes. What was going on? I did not want to turn around. Probably this was an uncomfortable situation for the person who was questioned. I assumed it was a refugee or someone […]

Five Steps for a Safe and Inclusive Environment for Expats

inclusive environment for expats

We talked about why building professional relationships is harder for expats. Now let’s discuss another side of the coin – how to create an inclusive environment for expats. If you were Dr. Rainer Schulz you’d probably ask yourself what you could do to build a safe and collaborative environment with people from different cultures. 1 – Deal with your Gollum If you are an expat leader and want to create an environment where people trust each other, you will need to show vulnerability and role-model trustworthy behavior. If you wish to be trusted you might have to show your weaknesses, your Achilles’ heel, and let your team know how they can best support you. You might have to explain what […]

The Post-Holiday Blues – Five Steps to Snap out of it

A New Year with a New Way of Starting it.

Have you returned from your Christmas holiday full of new spirit and New Year’s resolutions and do you already feel a shift in energy as days are getting a bit longer and there is more sunlight. My plants outside thought it was spring already and I did not dare to tell them yet that winter is coming back. I remember the slight optimism of last January when I was hoping for a “back to normal” and only six weeks later the world was in turmoil again.  This year I made a change and started the New Year in South India at 30 degrees Celsius and with an amazing vacation that feels like a trip to paradise. And while it’s cold […]

Interview with Petra Sorge Dos Santos, Global Leadership Coach and Transformation Synergist

Interviewee's headshot

An Expert Interview by Sara Micacchioni Petra lives in Hamburg and if you meet her in person, you’ll probably notice one of her eighteen shades of blue. Born and raised in Germany, one of her qualities is working in-time, which means to take care of customer’s leadership needs as much as possible in the Here and Now – also and especially when it’s complex and challenging.  She is a Global Leadership Coach and with decades of experience across international Business, NGOs and engagement for Women and Black issues, she has become a specialised Transformation Synergist. Petra’s mission now is to support GLOBAL WOMEN IN LEADERSHIP.  But how she got there is a very unconventional story.  In Africa they say, you […]