The power of supervision: reviews

Both English and Dutch language (group) supervision

‘I recently had the pleasure of engaging in coaching supervision services provided by Valerie, and it has been a valuable experience. As a coach, I understand the significance of ongoing learning and development, and supervision as a requirement for a professional coaching practice. With this in mind Valerie support me to ensure I am continuing to develop my practice while meeting the requirements of professional coaching by acting with responsibility and accountability.

From the very first session, Valerie created a safe and supportive space allowed me to freely explore my coaching practice, reflect on my strengths, and identify areas for growth. Her deep understanding of coaching techniques and methodologies enabled her to provide insightful feedback and guidance. This has profoundly impacted my professional growth.

One aspect that truly stood out during the coaching supervision sessions was Valerie’s exceptional listening skills. Her ability to actively listen, ask thought-provoking questions, and provide constructive feedback has helped me gain new perspectives which have been instrumental in enhancing my coaching skills and being even more effective as a coach who helps her clients to achieve the transformation they seek. Through a deep reflective practice I have grown as a coach and individual.

Valerie has demonstrated a genuine commitment to my success as a coach. She tailors each session to address my specific needs and growth while providing an environment that fostered both self-reflection and growth. I always felt that my time and investment were well-respected. I look forward to continuing my professional journey under her supervision.’

I recommend Valerie’s coaching supervision services –
The Art of People to any coach seeking to elevate their practice.

Yetty Williams

MBA | EMCC Foundation Coach

'Working with Valérie has been a very pleasant experience. She is highly committed and prepares well, and the structure she offers, in the form of a logbook with questions, works well to keep track of both the coaching goals and what has been learned. On top of that she is flexible in offering the support that is needed at that moment. For example, through a role play I was able to practise a situation that was difficult for me, and there was room to zoom in on reflections. She has a very pleasant way of holding up a mirror and shares handholds from her own experience that worked well for me. Thank you Valérie for these wonderful supervision sessions!'

Dianne Troquay

Kompassen coachen | Personal development, stress and burn-out, and career coaching

'I attended Valerie’s group supervision in 2023. I found her to be an empathic, learned facilitator whom it was good to work with. Valerie and the group were able to highlight strengths and weaknesses in my coaching/mentoring practice. Valerie handled the group dynamics well, enabling us all to learn from each other and herself and have fun at the same time. I am happy to recommend her as a group or indeed individual supervisor.'
Andrew, In the West Midlands, England.

‘Many thanks Valerie for your guidance and input into our group supervision sessions. I have found them very useful in developing my skill as a coach and mentor. It’s great to share issues/thoughts with others!’

Heather Coppock

BSc, DMS, AdCertEd | EMCC Coach

‘Really lovely supervision from Valerie, I can spar with her excellently! She listens well, asks sharp questions and adds valuable points. She has helped me a few times already to better understand what was really happening in my coaching conversations and how I can take it further. Exactly what I was looking for. Highly recommended.’

Alexandra Gerny

NOBCO | EMCC Senior Coach

‘You had good questions and a listening ear for my needs in the supervision relationship. I noticed that throughout the process you followed me in the approach I wanted: room to reflect in a feeling way on what I brought in. That was valuable. I felt we had an effective contract: a working, safe relationship in which I was free to voice my expectations

Working one to one with a supervisor who is there for me and my development is truly different. I am more aware of a certain ethical dimension in my work as a coach: around whether or not to refer someone on to professional help.

Annemieke Rozemond
NOBCO | EMCC Senior Coach

‘Thank you for the supervision conversations we had and the insights I was able to gain from them. I can now better stay with my feeling and emotion, without rationalising it away. I am more aware of how I relate to others. Where I give away space and can also take it up by making different choices or setting boundaries. I have grown as a person and therefore also as a coach. The supervision keeps me sharp on how I act in practice. Thank you for walking part of the way with me.

Valérie has an extensive toolkit and a great deal of expertise. Drawing on theory she was able to support me with models and practical ideas, such as Covey’s Circle of influence, mind mapping and journaling.’

Loet Steenhuijsen de Piters
Coach eb en vLoet

Magdalena is a coach and mentor who is always working on her personal and professional development. Read here about her experience of the supervision process I went through with her (source: LinkedIn):

'I came into contact with Valérie through a combined work and private question that I could not resolve on my own. After a period of loss, I was looking for answers to the question of what would be good for me in the combination of current, other and voluntary work and free time (now and for after my retirement).

Anonymous

Jan Rietbroek | Operational Manager & member Management Team
VRF | Heroes in Technical Event Productions

'I ended up with Valérie after a tip from my employer. After years on the work floor, I was asked after the coronavirus period whether I was open to the role of Operational Manager within the company. Thanks to my experience in staff planning I did have a feel for people, and I knew the company well, but really leading people was new to me.

Valérie Docters van Leeuwen is a senior coach in the coach pool of TNO

'TNO connects people and knowledge to create innovations that boost the competitive strength of industry and the well-being of society in a sustainable way. This is our mission and it is what drives us, the over 3,400 professionals at TNO, in our work every day. We work in collaboration with partners and focus on nine domains'.

TNO is an independent research organisation. We believe in the joint creation of economic and social value. We focus on transitions or changes in nine social themes. Innovation with purpose is what TNO stands for. We develop knowledge not for its own sake, but for practical application.

TNO - Innovation for life

'Valérie coached me in a constructive and positive way. A structured approach, with room for tailoring wherever the situation called for it at that moment. She always paid attention to how I was feeling at the time. The EQ-i and Leary's Rose gave a well founded picture of where I stand and what I can work on to grow and develop further.

This process was very valuable, it was a good mirror to gain insight into where I stand, where I want to go, and that the road towards it is just as important as the end goal. It gave me handholds to avoid falling back into old patterns.'

Ilona

TNO - Innovation for life

'The coaching I received from Valérie was very valuable. I learned a lot from the various models such as the EQ-i (and much more), but what was most valuable to me was the personal approach Valérie had. She listened to what I needed and moved along with me in her coaching. For every direction she had different exercises that helped me a great deal. I am very grateful to be taken so seriously.'

E.S.

TNO - Innovation for life

'Excellent! She put a great deal of attention into understanding what the situation was and into helping me in the best possible way. She also paid attention to what the best way of working together was for both of us, and of course she kept a close eye on the learning goals of my coaching process’.

Olga Kattan

Occupational assessment and reintegration advice, Incentivo B.V.

Incentivo distinguishes itself with occupational assessment and advice on complex absence situations in both the profit and non profit sector. In our advice we always offer targeted solutions and recommendations within the framework of reintegration possibilities and controlling the cost of claims. In addition we give proactive advice on the entire reintegration process. Valérie Docters van Leeuwen (The Art of People c&c) works as a preferred coach both preventively and during reintegration.

Bronsonn HR

Avoid disruption, travel smarter

On the main stage the director tells everyone what they stand for and closes his introduction with the question: “We are going from A to B, are you coming along?”
Next to him a few management team members including C., shuffling a little nervously, looking at their shoes polished that morning. Hands behind their backs. Because, an open posture, so not with your arms crossed. That was clearly the last instruction before he stepped onto the stage. “What a circus”, employee R. whispers audibly.

With a Coach from A to Better

Change is not a given. Less so than the abundance of management literature suggests. Everyone has their own journey, with their own talents alongside it. With a good coach people not only improve their performance, but their learning, self direction and collaboration are improved too.
Bronsonn HR is a Rotterdam based consultancy that realises HR strategies, from recruitment to (re)organisation. When a candidate, contact or client has a need for coaching, that is of course possible. Bronsonn HR notices this need fairly regularly. In that case we propose a coach as an introduction.

Valérie Docters van Leeuwen of The Art of People c&c has a distinct professional vision on coaching. On top of that, drawing on her management experience, she is able to create movement. She has done many coaching processes for clients of Bronsonn HR. She does this with attention and passion. And to the satisfaction of client, manager, employee and Bronsonn HR. She takes you from A to Better.

Henk van Os | Director Bronsonn HR

Bronsonn HR and The Art of People c&c share the following vision

Everyone has talents. Knowledge, skill, character and climate determine the use and return of those talents. In a work environment it is a given that you are asked to add value.
A good coach also adds value, because managers, employees and teams are ultimately able to make optimal use of talents.
Having talents is not yet the same as being a talent.

Peter van Minnen, lawyer

A starting lawyer has, for the first three years, a ‘patron’ who guides the newcomer towards professional maturity. So in this profession you begin with a kind of coach. But once those three years are over, you are expected to be able to do it all yourself. There is a strange loneliness in that, even though as a lawyer you often meet a lot of people. For many lawyers, coaching after those first years is ‘not done’.

I sometimes talked about this with Valérie. Headstrong (as lawyers tend to be), I doubted whether coaching would be of any use to lawyers. Valérie challenged me to give it a try.

We had a number of half hour conversations, simply over the phone. And I found that very clarifying. Just by taking the time with someone who is able to go through what is on your mind, you do run into the baggage you pick up during your work and career. What irritates you in others and why? How can you deal with it? Are you affected by the work pressure or not, and what makes you able or unable to handle that pressure? In what way do you carry the responsibilities that rest on your shoulders?

Although before my conversations with Valérie I was not ‘troubled’ by anything, our conversations did allow me to leave the necessary baggage behind me. It clears things up nicely, so to speak, a kind of emotional ‘detox’. And even though I already felt in my place in this profession, I now stand in it with even more calm and space.

Peter van Minnen, employment law lawyer

Bose

Heineken B.V.

"From mid November 2015 I made use of coaching by Valérie Docters van Leeuwen, both individually and with my team. Through five team sessions and five individual sessions we were able to take quite a few steps together in a short time. Team exercises, keeping a logbook of learning points and insight into each other's qualities and vulnerabilities ensured that the team made big steps forward. Trust and collaboration in particular visibly improved.
The coaching was carefully built up: the first step through the key game, in which the items you carry on your key ring say something about who you really are. During the second session the individual personality trait scores of the team members, based on the emotional intelligence test EQ-i, were converted into a team score using the Group Report EQ-i. This already gave a nice insight into what moves the group. In the follow up sessions the qualities attributed to one another were addressed. All in all a compact coaching that brought a great deal for myself and the team. More understanding, collaboration and genuine interest emerged within the group. Insight into each other's qualities in particular brought us much good."

Alex Griffioen, Regional Director Hospitality Sales

Holcim Betonproducten B.V.

"Holcim is an organisation that is developing enormously. In a dynamic field of work we continuously strive for optimisation and professionalisation. Of our internal sales department in particular. This department, a melting pot of various company cultures and people, is keen to improve further. Organisation, resources and processes are important, but it starts with the people. Through a contact we came into touch with The Art of People c&c.

Initially only to organise a nice team day as a basis to improve and strengthen the team bond. However, it soon turned out that Valérie could and can mean more for us in terms of content. This resulted, and still results, in a coaching process for the people, working groups and managers, with as its central theme: learning to work together within and as a team, in which everyone recognises his or her role, takes responsibility and functions better.

Valérie makes contact easily, quickly gets to the core and knows how to get people ‘moving’ in a pleasant way. Where I first thought I would still need a year or so, we achieved it with Valérie in a few months."

Rob Goedegebuur, Head of Internal Sales, Holcim Betonproducten

Louis Meulstee Photography 'Back on Track'

"After 25 years of being able to roam this world as a photographer, there comes a time when you ask yourself 'what am I doing' and 'do I still feel like doing certain work or working with certain clients'? Should I carry on in the profession at all?
I had been running into this for quite some time. Some people I spoke to about it said to me 'hey, that is called a midlife crisis'!
Huh?
Okay, but I am still stuck with it!
If everything stays physically fine, I still have years to go (in the profession)? So what to do?
As often happens, I came into contact with Valérie through mutual contacts. Our first contact was over the phone. The conversation lasted an hour!
But it could just as easily have been two.
Sometimes you speak to people (for the first time) and it can feel like a warm bath. Valérie is such a bath...
I was able to follow 8 sessions with her, including my choice to do a Leary's Rose and an EQ-i test.
With that I also gained more insight into myself.
I experienced all the sessions as pleasant. They regularly ran over, which Valérie never charged anything for, even though she could obviously have done so.
Her way of working is systematic and geared to practice. As a photographer you are in a certain 'corner' that Valérie was perfectly able to work with.
Because of that I also felt understood and we could discuss things on an equal footing.
Now, looking back on those few months, I can say there is still work to do, but I can enjoy the journey towards it so much more. Before this, that was really a good deal less!"

Back to work!

Louis Meulstee

TNO Innovation for life

'Our power of innovation to actually come up with solutions and applications is unique in the Netherlands. We drive technological developments, but we also apply them in such a way that everyone benefits, because it is our mission to raise Dutch wellbeing and strengthen the competitive strength of our companies. At TNO you therefore get the freedom to innovate, to connect with experts inside and outside TNO, to learn from each other and to think further together'. Source: TNO

Valérie Docters van Leeuwen is part of the coach pool of TNO as a senior accredited coach and coach supervisor.

** see the reviews under professional services **

Municipality of Lelystad

“As a ‘rational person’ I am able to rationalise my own emotions away and quickly put other people's emotions in a place where they do not bother us. After all, it is about the result, we are at work and we have no time for soft stuff.”
The text above I could have spoken with full conviction a few years ago. By now I am a few life lessons further on, and I seized with both hands the chance to explore my personality with Valérie through an EQ-i test, and then, together with a group of interested colleagues, followed a number of practically oriented in depth sessions on emotions, behaviour and their applicability in daily working life.
Valérie has the art of making tangible what you actually already know subconsciously, supported by theory and recognisable from practice. Confronting when needed, but always aimed at increasing insight and options for action. I got a lot out of it and look back on the sessions with pleasure.

Rob van Reijswoud, director Land Development Company & department head, Municipality of Lelystad

Municipality of Krimpen aan den IJssel

For an individual participation programme of a young client on social assistance benefits, we were looking for extra depth or substantiation and tools in the reintegration process.
We chose the approach of The Art of People: an intake, two assessments including an emotional intelligence test (EQ-i by Dr. R. Bar-On) and a careers test, accompanying coaching sessions, and follow up steps handed over to the client manager for further reintegration into the labour market.
Important, relevant information came to light; the results were clear, easily applicable and concrete. All activities were organised quickly at short notice within an already running process.
Valérie Docters van Leeuwen has a warm personality that is able to think along within ongoing processes. On top of that she switches easily between different levels of abstraction.

Mark Aanraad, policy officer

Administrative employee in public service, now an entrepreneur

I knew it from an early age. I dreamed of a small shop with distinctive, authentic clothing, jewellery, perfumes, accessories and maybe even the odd chocolate.
During my secondary school years I worked weekends and holidays in a shop and doubled the turnover there within a week. So this was where my strength lay. Because shop salaries were already low back then, the choice after secondary school was quickly made. I could choose from several jobs and for 35 years chose that of executive secretary and/or management assistant at various organisations.
For years I achieved good results in these roles. But only in the area of pioneering, setting things up. In the administrative tasks I withered away. Especially in the last years, the consequence of the choice I once made became a great burden. Before office hours, during office hours and after office hours I dreamed of pursuing my passion for vintage. I became completely unhappy with what I was doing, but I was not aware of it. I felt all my energy draining away and more often had a glass of wine, gained about 20 kg and now and then felt rather depressed.
Thanks to my spontaneous and naturally cheerful character, I always have the courage to pull myself together and turn something negative into something beautiful. But in this phase of my life I could no longer do that on my own. My employer was satisfied with my work, and I saw enough challenges I could take on there. My self confidence, however, was low, and that was the reason for a process with Valérie Docters van Leeuwen of The Art of People.
In the personal coaching process she helped me discover how I am put together. Valérie was very good at mirroring me, was not always kind (which I needed), and through her conversations, applications of for example Leary's Rose and the emotional intelligence test, and the necessary feedback, let me find the answer myself.
After the coaching period I did not feel that anything had changed in my wishes. It did not seem to sink in. But slowly the unconscious made way for the conscious.
I resigned. Looked for a part time job in a sector I really wanted to work in, the cultural sector. And after the half year contract in this job ended, one thing followed another. I now organise routes along the nicest vintage shops.
I am a freelance copywriter, organise beauty boudoirs and so on, am starting to lose weight again, and have an enormous amount of energy.
And most importantly: I am in balance, content and completely happy with my life in the NOW!

Municipality of Rotterdam

Worked as Head of Communications, communications manager and senior advisor at: Nighttown + Town Holding, Dunya Festival, the dS+V project ‘50 years of Reconstruction, 50 years of Future’, housing corporation De Nieuwe Unie, Luxor Theatre and Ahoy’ Rotterdam.

Municipality of Nijmegen

The role of the Documentary Information department at the municipality of Nijmegen was about to change. From the physical processing of post, the department moved to digital processing, which required a different role from the team's employees. 25 employees with different backgrounds, life stages and work experience worked on a shared and personal development. In a number of team coaching sessions, the employees as well as the head of the department were guided through this process.

'When I got stuck in my work, but above all in my personal life, Valérie pulled me through a very difficult period. With our conversations she laid a foundation on which the therapy I turned out to need could build. She was the first to introduce me to the phenomenon of ‘emotion phobia’, despite the fact that I had already received quite a lot of coaching in my life. Valerie is very flexible and really looked at what suited me at that moment. The process was adjusted several times because my needs also changed during that period, but she always thought along and actively sought connection with other forms of support.

Now, almost a year later, I feel good in my own skin again and can carry out my work as a director in secondary education with great pleasure once more'

J.K.
Director, secondary education

*****

'Valérie is a lovely coach with a lot of knowledge. From the analyses she is good at bringing out where the crux lies and where the most gains can be made in the development of the person she coaches. In doing so she leaves the direction and way of developing with the person themselves, taking a facilitating stance.

Thank you for everything Valérie!'

Nikki Vogelezang

Care Manager & Nurse Specialist VSggz, Parnassia Group GGZ / Brijder Addiction Care

Parnassia Group

'Help us make a difference in the lives of our clients every day'

Valérie Docters van Leeuwen takes part in the coach and supervisor pool for managers and other employees of the Parnassia Group.

'Parnassia Group offers specialist help for all mental health problems. The organisation consists of various care brands that are divided into small scale teams. We work together intensively, by sharing knowledge with one another, but also because specialists from different care brands form joint teams, think of life course clinics and neighbourhood teams. Because we collaborate in this way and keep innovating, we mean more for our clients.

We are professionals who constantly work to advance the quality and accessibility of mental health care in the Netherlands. Because we believe that the treatment of mental health problems can always be better. With scientific research, professional development through our own academy, and the development and innovation of new treatment methods, we push boundaries and discover new possibilities'. Source: Parnassia Group

*****

The Art of People, NOBCO in collaboration with universities of applied sciences including ArtEZ

Whether he could write a review…

At the close of the third and final conversation he wanted to ask me something. It made me curious. ‘He had benefited so much from our conversations’, he said, ‘whether he could write a review, so that it might lower the threshold for other students’. It touched me so much. Read on here for Jurjen Daemen's message.

Review:

'As part of a new student initiative by the NOBCO in collaboration with the ArtEZ conservatory, I had the opportunity to enter into three conversations with Valérie Docters van Leeuwen. The reason being to work out how I could wind down my career as a ‘long term student’, work towards a career, and bring structure to the road there.

Even though going to talk to an external coach to indicate that things are not going as wished or expected is quite a step, at least that is how it felt at first, I can only conclude that this has been a pleasant and necessary experience for me. By making things, and thus above all your own person, open to discussion, you can actually arrive at (more) concrete insights about yourself and the way you have been making your way through life so far. Valérie facilitates this in a very pleasant and accessible way, which actually makes you want to talk openly about the difficulties you have. Thanks to the ease with which the conversations flow, there even arises a sense of relief and perhaps even joy at being able to speak about your own personal matters in such a relaxed way.

For that I am incredibly grateful to Valérie, and I hope that more people dare to take this step of making personal things open to discussion. I would also like to give credit to the initiative between the NOBCO and ArtEZ, because they make a case for students who, vulnerable as they are at the start of their career, often cannot cope with all the expectations and pressure and therefore do not dare to express themselves. There is no shame in daring to speak out about the things you struggle with. A coach is a welcome conversation partner in this!'

Thanks again for the lovely conversations!

Kind regards,

Jurjen Daemen

How it came about:

The conversations came about on the basis of a unique student initiative between universities of applied sciences and the professional association for Professional Coaches (NOBCO). The reason was the vacuum many students ended up in over the past two years. Little to no personal contact with fellow students and online education. When I saw the call, I immediately signed up to take part. The basis is three conversations for a very small fee. Several students approached me, including Jurjen Daemen. NOBCO student initiative in collaboration with universities of applied sciences.

*****

InHolland University of Applied Sciences, Rotterdam and The Hague

As a (guest) lecturer at InHolland University of Applied Sciences in the subjects corporate communications, issues management and Marketing Innovation.

AIESEC

Coaching has helped us strengthen the bond between the teams, improve communication among ourselves and improve results.

Hanneke Weesie, chair.

AIESEC is an international student organisation, represented by more than 18,000 students at around 800 universities worldwide. The aim of AIESEC is to encourage international cooperation and cultural understanding. AIESEC engaged The Art of People c&c and (a)HeadWork for both team coaching and individual coaching.
AIESEC is a dynamic and energetic organisation. The organisation in Nijmegen consists of three teams, each responsible for their own part. Yet we also want to be able to operate as one team, in order to create synergy and achieve better results. Results that bring us closer to our objective. The coaching has helped us strengthen the bond between the teams, improve communication among ourselves and improve results.

BAVO Europoort

‘I entered into a coaching process myself, because I noticed I was at risk of getting stuck in my work. Because there was no budget for coaching or training at the care institution where I work, I decided to invest in my career myself. Through the conversations with Valérie Docters van Leeuwen I became aware fairly quickly of what my working attitude was and how I dealt with my colleagues. This allowed me to choose a different approach. Now I notice that my job and my colleagues suit me better than I could ever have imagined. The work has also become much more enjoyable because of it’.

Paul Faber

'Following a remark from a manager about my emotional intelligence, I got in touch with Valérie. The conversations with her and the results of the EQ test not only reassured me, but above all gave me insight into the various aspects of my emotional functioning. During the coaching Valérie gave me useful tips in relation to my concrete work situation. I am putting both the insight from the EQ test and the tips into practice. Valérie is friendly and has an excellent understanding of people. She works correctly and responds quickly to emails.'

M.V.

***

'Before the coaching process with Valérie I noticed that I was getting stuck on certain emotional matters. I had perfected myself so much in practice and in doing, that I pushed emotions aside as a result. I wanted to work on this and that is how I ended up with Valérie. She helped me to recognise my emotions again and use them in my daily life. She managed to do this through clear assignments and space for me to really get to work with them. I am very satisfied with the whole process and the result I ultimately achieved.'

Gabrielle

***

'I look back with great pleasure on the coaching process I was able to go through with Valérie.
In a pleasant, confidential atmosphere we searched together for the cause of the lack of self confidence I was struggling with.
Because of it I was unable to think positively about the future, but after a limited number of sessions I already noticed that facing the consequences of, among other things, my upbringing and certain events in my life led to me developing a more positive self image.

A beneficial effect of this was that I realised my leadership, with a few adjustments, is actually quite good, and by examining real life examples I gained more self confidence. It was nice to also discuss private matters, where Valérie shared experiences and tips too about the relationship with growing up children.

And so I warmly recommend this coach.'

Arjan

***

'A very special process with quick results. The coach responds well to whatever comes up at that moment and is flexible and very willing to think along. The EQ-i clearly indicates where you stand, and the conversations make clear what may be developed further. This way I could quickly take concrete steps to become who I want to be.'

Frederique

***

'For a long time I no longer felt in my place at work. I could not figure it out on my own. I no longer knew what I enjoyed doing and what I was good at. I resigned and, in all calm, set out to find the answer to the question of which job suits me. I could not do this alone. In the long list of career coaches, Valérie stood out to me. After a pleasant phone call the career process could begin. Valérie helped me get to know myself better. Not only my skills and characteristics were mapped out, but also my pitfalls and development points. I have been given a clear direction and feel like getting to work again!'

Jolien

***

'I came to Valérie with a career question. I had handed in my notice, and I took a sabbatical to put everything in order. Of course I wanted to turn the wheel completely. With me it is often all or nothing. During the coaching I discovered that many other things are at least as important to me: not too much travel time, not working full time. On top of that I have a physical disability which means I cannot work whole days. I came to stand with both feet on the ground. Confronting, but precisely because of that I could see better what I want and what I can do. My creativity is back, and so is my sense of humour. If I had known earlier what coaching can offer, I would really have gone for it sooner. Some say coaching is expensive. If I now add up how much more enjoyment I have in life from knowing everything I am capable of, I would gladly have swapped that city trip to London for a coaching process’.

Monique

***

‘I often read that coaching is common at the top. Not in the international, listed holding where I am a director. Too soft: ‘we don't need that’, ‘go and play some golf…’. But I was sleeping worse and worse. And anonymously I do dare to say it: I was drinking more and more. My wife was threatening to leave me. That was a clear signal for me. Then I decided to enter into a coaching process at The Art of People, privately though. I knew Valérie Docters van Leeuwen from my network and knew that she is sensitive, warm and strong all at once. Not someone you easily fool. I feel healthy again and no longer lived by life’.

Jasper

Valérie Docters van Leeuwen worked for more than 18 years in the cultural sector, including NightTown, RoTown, Dunya Festival and the Dunya Foundation, '50 years of reconstruction, 50 years of future' by dS+V (led by Wim van Es and Herman Kossmann), Luxor Theatre and Ahoy Rotterdam.

As a coach she works for several cultural institutions such as the concert and conference venue de Doelen.