About following your heart, saying no for a year (gulp), and 21 kilometers on pure grit
Peek in my Week #29 is here!
5-4-3-2-1 → ACTION! 🎬
5 – BOOK
Het Verbetertraject by Marjon Wiendels.
What a remarkable book. Honest, vulnerable, and written with humor, a rare combination that makes the story even more powerful.
Marjon openly shares what she has been through: abuse of power in the workplace, neurodivergence, caregiving, menopause. The way she weaves in the COVID period adds an extra layer that feels deeply relatable. Her writing style is fluid, vulnerable, and surprisingly funny. I even learned a few new words.
Highly recommended for anyone who has ever had to fight for their place.
4 – NETWORK FULL OF MAGIC
Last week I was back at Netwerk vol Magie. Thank you again, Liesbeth Kingma, for bringing together such wonderful conscious entrepreneurs and creating gatherings that go deeper than just drinks and snacks. I love it.
Cindy Ugur from Zentrum Meppel shared her entrepreneurial journey. Her message in a nutshell:
Stop overthinking. Follow your heart. Listen to your feeling.
And I absolutely believe in that. Because:
There is nothing, literally NOTHING, my shadow, you could also call it intuition, feeling, higher self, has pointed me toward that I followed and later regretted.
We also had a sound bowl session with Renate Supèr. I got to sit behind the gong for a moment. Sound bowls act as state shifters. Not because they “do something,” but because they move you from mental activity into physical experience.
With every gong, I felt my heart open a little more.
3 – FILMS
I truly squeeze everything out of my cinema subscription, I am half Dutch after all. 😂
Wuthering Heights: Not necessarily a recommendation. I am probably one of the few who had never read the book or seen a previous adaptation. Now I have. Bucket list check 😉.
Marty Supreme: Impressive. About a table tennis champion who goes all in to reach the top. The obsession, the dedication, the price you pay.
Absolutely not a role model. Manipulation, lies, using people. Incredible how many problems one person can create. But in terms of perseverance, he lacks nothing. I thought it was a fantastic film, including the music. Highly recommended!
2 – COLD WATER
I still can’t quite believe I now dip in cold water at freaking -4 Celsius. Even more, I’ve gone back to daily cold showers.
My body says yes. My mind says no. Bring it on. And then I step in calmly. In surrender. That’s the trick. It used to be screaming and flipping out from the cold.
I feel my life force growing, and that’s why I do all of this. Yes, there are health benefits. But for me it’s mainly about moving through my own resistance, again and again, so that I can do the same when it comes to the really hard stuff.
Without Frank van Bergen and Sietske van der Meulen, this would never have felt relatively easy.
As someone said in the beautiful Netflix documentary The Ponds:
“It’s only cold water. There are far worse things in life.”
1 – STATE SHIFT STEP: SPARTAN BEAST
Under the theme of “What have I gotten myself into now?!” and with a little social pressure from my CrossFit trainers, I signed up for the Spartan Beast. 21 kilometers. With obstacles.
I still can’t quite believe it. I hate running. But something in me just wants to go.
Two years ago I did the 5 km. Last year the 10 km, which turned out to be 14 because of a measuring error, haha. And now? Just another step up.
This is what I train for. Being fit as a mom, partner, and coach. Nutrition, movement, sleep, relaxation. A solid foundation. It all matters to be the person I am and want to be, and to do what I want to do.
On Valentine’s Day I made another decision, in the Ladies Circle of Rock Your Goddess Life. Alexandra Johnson asked us to write a love letter to ourselves, beautiful exercise. And I want to take even better care of myself.
One year without shopping. One year without sweets.
I will consciously buy what I truly need. Eat food that nourishes instead of just fills.
With a few exceptions: something essential, second-hand, or a dessert at a Michelin-star dinner.
Not to be strict with myself. But out of love for myself. I know how much freedom and clarity bright lines give me. If I could quit alcohol, I can do this too.
Will the Spartan Beast turn into a very long walk? Probably. 😂
But I’m showing up.
THE RED THREAD
Following your intuition. Your feeling. Your shadow guiding you.
Not overthinking. Feeling. Then doing. And repeating.
James Clear wrote it beautifully this week:
“Lessons are unlikely to stick unless they are repeated. Behaviors are unlikely to stick unless they are repeated. Love is unlikely to stick unless it is repeated. The practice solidifies.”
Exactly that.
FOR YOU
Where are you not listening to your feeling, even though you know you should?
Which commitment to yourself have you postponed for too long?
Your shadow points the way. Your heart already knows.
Now you just have to act.
May the life force be with you,
💖✨ Syl
👉 THE STATE SHIFT WORKSHOP – Friday February 20 2026 @ Wonders of Work Utrecht
From knowing to doing. Despite the voice that says you can’t. You’ll learn the difference between Part X and your Shadow. Not from a book. With your whole body. We go deep, with a group of beautiful humans, and you can still join.
❤️ Free. Last 2 spots!
→ Sign up
👉 Book tip this week: Het Verbetertraject – Marjon Wiendels
