A few years ago, I was in a place where challenges kept piling up, and nothing seemed to go in my favour. It was a season that tested both my faith and my character. A time when I hadn’t yet learned how to truly love myself.
The perfectionist in me kept beating the drums of the past, echoing rem...
I stuttered a lot growing up. My speech ability was far below average, according to my teachers at the time. They recommended speech therapy, but my parents couldn’t afford it. So, I stayed silent. I couldn’t bear the ridicule—the rolling eyes, the impatient sighs, the way people walked away as ...
I Must Have Been Around 13 or 14 Years Old
Every day after school, I’d slip in through the backdoor of our shed, park my bicycle, and pull a long skirt over my shorts. It was summertime, but my parents had made it clear—I wasn’t allowed to wear shorts. They didn’t want me showing any leg at scho...
I was doing my thing, walking toward the big entry doors of NATO HQ, trying to find my way to my new office. We had just moved into the glass palace. It was stunning, but at first, my sense of direction inside it was a little blurry.
All of a sudden, I could feel her walking next to me—one o...
This year, I didn’t start the new year with goals. Shocking, right? No vision boards, no lofty ambitions, no “New Year, New Me.” Actually, I have zero goals set for the year.
Now, some of you might be thinking:
“Yep, something is definitely off with her. Someone check her neurons!”
And hones...
On New Year’s Eve, I went to celebrate with my sister in the Netherlands. She spoiled us with an amazing spaghetti dish so delicious that not a single strand of pasta was left. And then came my all-time favorite snack—bitterballen! These are Dutch meatballs served with mustard sauce, and let me ...
I was in the kitchen, slicing onions and preparing dinner, when my son’s loud yelling interrupted the peace.
If you’ve ever thought a missed deadline or an email typo is a crisis, try living with a teenager whose world collapses every time something happens to their mobile phone.
When I entered ...
Last week, I had brunch with a friend, and it absolutely made my day. Anyone who knows me knows that delicious food is one of the three foundational pillars of my happiness. Sharing that food with someone you connect with on a deeper level? That’s double the bliss!
As we left, my friend asked ab...
There was a time in my life when I would lie awake at night, overthinking and stressing about things that, in hindsight, didn’t matter as much as I thought they did. The result? Sleepless nights that drained my energy and left me struggling to get through each day.
It’s ironic how much we take...
Breaking the Time Trap
I recently stumbled upon a fascinating conversation about time management, and it struck a nerve. For years, I’d been racing against the clock, trying to squeeze maximum efficiency out of every hour. The key performance indicators (KPIs) I meticulously tracked at work be...
The Question That Started It All
“I am struggling with perfectionism, Nadja. How do I get over that? How do I let go of the need to please, to overachieve, and finally feel content with where I am now?”
This question landed in my inbox recently, and it struck a deep chord within me.
It wasn’...
The Invitation to Heal
My son has always been one of my greatest teachers. As he grew older and began asserting his independence, he had a knack for doing exactly the opposite of what I asked. His defiance triggered powerful emotions in me—frustration, anger, even helplessness.
At first, I tho...
