As I mentioned in this post during the early days of the pandemic my mother could not find yeast. Her village in Southern Germany had a yeast shortage. We don’t have a shortage of anything here in Zurich, neither toilet paper, nor yeast, even though demand for both was higher than in “normal” times. My mother likes to bake in normal times but I felt she needed to bake even more in these times.

Once again, this year I started the New Year in Kerala, South India, at 30 degrees Celsius, with an amazing vacation that felt like a trip to paradise. And while it’s cold and snowing now in Switzerland, the warmth and happiness I took with me still light up my heart.  I hope you understand that I also have moments of self-doubt and fear, and that I’m not always the calm, relaxed coach you might know. I can also get stressed and deal with issues similar to those you might experience. However, after disconnecting, spending time with friends and family, and taking time to really rest and soak in the sunshine, I feel thrilled to work again. My desire and ambition […]

As we welcome a new year, many feel motivated to set ambitious goals—hitting the gym more regularly, embracing healthier habits, or tackling work with renewed focus. Yet, for so many, these resolutions fizzle out before January has even ended. It’s no secret that sustaining these commitments can be challenging. The demands of daily life often pull us back into old routines, and sometimes, we even notice our workaholic tendencies creeping in more vigorously than ever. But here’s the truth: achieving meaningful, lasting change doesn’t require a dramatic sprint into the new year. Instead, it’s about creating weekly practices, fostering self-discipline, and building a support system that keeps you on track. That’s why I want to share five proven strategies to […]

An expatriate (“expat”) is an individual living and working in a country other than their country of citizenship, often temporarily and for work reasons. They are usually sent abroad by a multinational employer (profit or non-profit). Managers often criticize expats who take up expensive international assignments for “underperforming” in their host locations. But nobody knows why that is. We don’t have data to prove this. A study by Learnlight shows that four in ten international assignments are judged to be a failure. And yet the number of overseas assignments continues to rise. Global companies are under considerable pressure to determine what makes a successful overseas assignment and to understand why they so often fail. However, what has been so often […]

Some of us feel a bit low in December. There are several reasons for that. One might be that you look back on the year and feel you have not made great strides: You worked hard, but you did not necessarily achieve the financial success you had envisioned. Or your health took a toll from everything you are trying to juggle at once. You dread Mondays. Instead of starting your laptop to go through another day of meetings (that could have been an email), you look at the globe you got from your grandmother as a kid. You have been sitting at this desk for too long and wish to smell the spices in a market in Amritsar, walk through […]