Week 23 / Week 1 of 2026 – Changing course by 1 degree, what I threw into the fire, and how I went from prudish woman to bare-butt dipper
The New Year’s workshop
Less than a week ago (though it already feels like two 😅) we let go of the old year and welcomed the new with Gratefully Out – Enthusiastically In.
12 people, insightful exercises, breathing out the year with Mariska van Dam, visualizations and Tools with me, and sound bowls with Hester van Balen. Guitar music by Janneke Doornbos. And also a moment: the fire. Made possible by Frank van Bergen.
Everyone wrote down what they wanted to let go of from 2025 and then literally threw it into the fire. Gone. Boom. And after that: one intention for 2026.
No long list of resolutions, but one thing. One intention.
And that was simply very beautiful. People felt the relief, the space, the focus. Not 10 things you have to change (and then don’t), but one thing your energy goes toward.
It was so special to do this with Mariska and Hester. Grateful for this beautiful collaboration. 🙏
More workshops coming soon, but first, this coming Saturday, the Greatest Year Ever! Heroic workshop!
Changing course by 1 degree
During the workshop this concept kept coming back, a metaphor Mariska shared again, one I also use often:
Imagine you’re a ship sailing toward your destination and you change course by 1 degree. Seems like hardly any difference, right? But after 1,000 kilometers you end up in a completely different place.
That’s what small changes do. Not spectacular at first, not dramatic, but sustainable and with huge impact over the long term.
Tiny Habits, a fantastic book by the way, also work better because you need less willpower, you build momentum through consistency, your brain gets dopamine from small wins, and they become automatic by linking them to existing routines. Result: sustainable, big change without it feeling overwhelming, according to Dr. BJ Fogg, author of the book and method.
And that’s why many resolutions don’t work. We want too much, too fast, too big (I’ve fallen into that trap more times than I can count…). But 1 degree? That’s something you can sustain. Every day. Forever. It doesn’t happen automatically, you still have to put in effort, but it’s manageable. And that’s where sustainable transformation lives.
A grateful look back at 2025
During the workshop we also took time to look back with gratitude. And wow… 2025 was incredibly valuable. Tough at times, yes (though that depends on perspective, but that’s another story). And even that was beautiful. Because it was instructive.
What am I grateful for myself? Among other things:
Travel
- USA, England, Germany. For work, but also for growth. And beautiful holidays and city trips in the Netherlands, and with our son and my ex-partner to Paris.
- The inner journeys I got to make with plant medicines.
Work
- Training a group of Tools coaches 🙏
- Becoming a Workshop Instructor Level 2 for Heroic
- Writing this newsletter for 22 weeks straight (Boom!)
- The dozens of people I got to coach again this year with the Tools
- Being on stage (and getting the opportunity several more times!)
- The podcast Het Meppels Kwartiertje that led to more
Personal
- One and a half years without alcohol 💪
- Moving after my breakup and figuring things out on my own
- Running a Spartan Race solo in Zandvoort, not 10 but 14 km! I still can’t believe I did that
- From dipping in cold outdoor water for the first time in November to going fully under in December, bare butt and all
With my son
- Celebrating 10 years of being a mom to such a sweet, funny, strong-willed and sporty kid (if he reads this he’ll say: boy, mom! 😂)
- Holidays, tandem biking in Amsterdam, museums, amusement parks, Paris
- All the hugs and small moments that were actually huge 🥰
Love
- This year, first and foremost, I learned to love myself more and accept myself more. This is who I am, what I stand for, a beautifully flawed human being. Take it or leave it and I’m still more than okay. 💖
- Sometimes I still can’t believe I’ve found a man who’s just as into personal development as I am (if not more) and who actually applies what he learns. But above all, that I now get to be in a relationship where I can be fully myself, in honesty, openness and vulnerability, and where we also have a lot of fun and truly enjoy life together, with all its ups and downs. Because it all belongs.
Reading
- Among others: True and False Magic, Let Them, Not My Shame, Inner Excellence, The 5 Second Rule, The Tools (again!), Coming Alive (again!), How to Love Better, The Prism, Courage Is Calling, The Untethered Soul, Attached. Reading is just fan-tas-tic. The ability to “learn from the dead,” as Ryan Holiday beautifully puts it in his book Wisdom Takes Work, one of my favorites.
Creating
- A magazine for my friend’s 50th birthday
- Working on my new book
- Creating a new training with my own method
Food
- The times I got to eat fantastically with my loved ones, including at Michelin restaurants, that this is even possible!
Lessons
- The failures in business and life, which taught me so much. See the past newsletters…
And that’s what I take with me: all moments. The heavy and the light. They’re all valuable. And I’m not done yet. Not by a long shot.
I overcame something else last year too. Actually two things: my fear of cold water AND my prudishness. 😅
From fear of cold water to bare-butt dipper
At the end of October Frank van Bergen talked so enthusiastically about cold dipping and I thought: fine, just once then. I’d been cold-showering for almost two years, but had kind of let it slide again, and he said this was easier… It was awful 😂. After that first dip I couldn’t stop shivering for ages. I was proud though that I followed the example of the other dippers in the group and went into the water with minimal noise (though opinions differ on that).
But it’s such a fun group of people I’ve gotten to know, real friendships are even forming from it… 🥰
And I took three lessons from cold-water dipping:
- Try more than once
You usually can’t say something isn’t for you after just one try. - Do voluntary hard stuff
If I can do this, I can handle the whole world! It trains resilience. Do voluntary hard stuff and you’ll get better at involuntary hard stuff. - It’s good for you
For your immune system (though opinions differ), but above all for your mindset and energy. You can ride that high all day. Bliss!
So I started going almost every week. And lo and behold…
At some point I even went in bare-assed! If you know me, you know I’m not into nudity. I was raised pretty prudish, so this was a big deal. Until after a few weeks I realized that swimwear is just incredibly impractical. You just want to dry off quickly and put on warm clothes, not wrestle with wet fabric first.
So I did it. Boom! 🎶 “Uit is goed voor u. Dus alles uit” 🤣 (hilarious to hear that again after decades…) as Toon Hermans, whom my father raised me on, would sing.
And… being naked was the last thing on my mind. Not with others and not with myself. Because when you step into water that cold, you can only be in the moment and with your breath.
And then… right before New Year’s, I ALSO went fully under (yes, that’s me in the photo with this post), and screw nakedness, because that was really something with 3-degree water! Freeeeezing cold but it gave such a massive kick on so many levels. I did it! Bam!
I felt inspired to do this after watching the Netflix documentary The Ponds. Fun to watch anyway. Those people do wear swimwear, but they actually swim some distance and then go under. That’s a difference. Something to train for next… because now I want more.
In cold water everything falls away. You can’t be anywhere but in the moment. And you feel intensely alive!
And now? 2026
I’m continuing what works. I’m letting go of what doesn’t.
Changing course by 1 degree. Every day. Consistent. No drama. Just doing it.
More workshops, more Tools, more Heroic, more connection, more self-love. But also: more rest, more balance, more presence.
Because I’ve learned: it’s not about how much. It’s about how and why.
So what’s on the planning?
- Writing a new book (already started! 🔥)
- Following 2 new trainings (started this month!)
- Planning workshops with Mariska (we’re just really good together!)
- Developing a new training
- And surrendering to whatever the universe has in store for me toward my big goal (4k coaches / 1 million people) heading toward 2051
Always keep learning. Always keep growing. Adjust course when and where needed.
And I’m super excited for what’s coming! 🚀
Oh yes, and then this coming Saturday, January 10:
The Heroic workshop. Free. Meppel. 9:00–13:00.
Forge the Clarity and Confidence to Make 2026 Your Greatest Year Ever. ✨
If you’re ready to stop drifting aimlessly and start doing, this is it.
Heroic Workshop January 10
For everyone who’s ready to start 2026 differently. With clarity. With tools. With connection.
And just so you know… this is not motivational fluff. This is practical. This is actionable. This works. Come and hear why I, and more and more people, see the value of the most fantastic platform in personal development.
What you get:
CLARITY
Get clear on what really matters. Define your purpose. Set your priorities. Identify the actions that will make 2026 your best year.
ANTIFRAGILE CONFIDENCE
Learn how to grow stronger through challenges. Build real confidence, the kind that comes from doing what you say you’ll do. Turn your Hero Bars, proud moments, into fuel for the future.
THE BIG 3: Energy · Work · Love
Build a simple daily protocol to consistently be at your best. Not someday. Starting now.
SOUL FORCE
Bring it all together with the Soul Force Equation:
(Energy × Focus × What’s Important Now) ^ Consistency.
So powerful! I’ll teach you how this works.
Practical
📍 400 Blankenstein, Meppel (MyHotel/MyOffice)
🕘 9:00–13:00 – FREE
📚 Heroic Workbook included
Only a few spots left. And if you come, yes, you’ll have to brave the elements… but you’ll go home with clarity, confidence, and concrete tools. Not “someday”. But now. 🔥
In closing
2025 was a beautiful year of letting go. Of learning. Of growing. Of enjoying!
2026 will be a year of building. Of doing. Of being. AND surrender.
Not with a long list of resolutions. But with one intention. Changing course by 1 degree.
And that is enough. More than enough. Just like me.
Thank you for walking with me. In this newsletter. On this special journey. I wish you all the best for the coming year… and beyond. 🚀
May the life force be with you, Syl
👉 Plan a free clarity call
Even if you just want to chat and hear how I do things. Maybe I can help you. Plan your call here
Agenda 2026
January 10, 2026 – Heroic Workshop: Clarity + Antifragile Confidence 📍 400 Blankenstein, Meppel (MyHotel/MyOffice) FREE 9:00–13:00
Clarity | Antifragile Confidence | The Big 3 | Soul Force
Limited spots available. Reserve here
New workshops will be added to the agenda soon! So keep an eye on this newsletter.
