After two years dedicated to journalism, personal growth, and rediscovering what truly mattered to me, I was ready to return to the professional world.

Joining Deloitte marked the beginning of what I now consider the third chapter of my career. It was also the first time I realized that experiences that initially seem unrelated often come together in unexpected ways.

In this episode, I share what it was like to return to a structured corporate environment after stepping away, how journalism skills unexpectedly became an asset in a marketing role, and why this experience reinforced my belief that careers are rarely linear.

I also reflect on my experience building executive communities, working with senior leaders from some of the largest organizations in France, and discovering a level of strategic thinking that profoundly influenced my own professional development.

Most importantly, this episode is a reminder that the periods in life that seem uncertain or disconnected often become the experiences that shape us the most.

Perhaps nothing in our careers happens by chance after all.

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In this episode of The Leader’s Lab, Kristine reflects on a chapter of her life that many people describe as a career break, although she now sees it very differently.

After leaving corporate life, navigating major personal changes, and stepping into an entirely new phase of life, Kristine intentionally gave herself two years to explore what came next. What appeared from the outside as a professional pause was, in reality, a period of transformation, self-discovery, and strategic reinvention.

She shares how she approached this transition with both courage and practicality, planning her return to the workforce before she had even stepped away.

The conversation also explores the importance of staying connected professionally while redefining your path. Kristine discusses how networking became a central part of her journey, from intentionally reaching out to people across industries and organizing coffee conversations to remaining active within professional communities through volunteering, workshops, and ongoing learning.

This episode is a reminder that stepping away does not necessarily mean falling behind. Sometimes, creating space to reflect, learn, and reconnect with yourself becomes one of the most important investments you can make in your future.

If you are questioning your next chapter, navigating a career transition, or wondering whether you can reinvent yourself without losing professional momentum, this conversation is for you.

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In this episode of The Leader’s Lab, Kristine reflects on one of the most transformative chapters of her life: the period after leaving corporate leadership, navigating divorce, moving into a new apartment, and suddenly finding herself facing a question many ambitious professionals eventually encounter.

What happens when the career you spent years building is no longer the only thing defining your life?

Kristine shares how she intentionally created space to explore what came next, why she gave herself two years to reflect, learn, and experiment, and how careful planning allowed her to take a leap that many people only dream about.

The conversation explores career transitions, financial courage, personal reinvention, and the often-overlooked reality of stepping away from a structured professional life. Kristine also opens up about her first experience with personal development work, joining a small group program that unexpectedly introduced her to something that would later become a major part of her journey: a deep curiosity about people, their stories, motivations, and personal growth.

This episode is a reflection on identity, self-discovery, new beginnings, and the powerful realization that some of the most important chapters of our lives begin when we stop asking what we do and start asking who we want to become.

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In this episode of The Leader’s Lab, Kristine reflects on a pivotal chapter of her career, when she made a decision that surprised almost everyone around her: turning down the security of a traditional full-time opportunity in favor of a contractor role that offered something she valued even more, freedom, autonomy, and the opportunity to learn.

Drawing on her experience working across France and the CIS region, she shares how cultural differences shaped her perception of work, why she never viewed contractor and full-time roles through the same lens as many people around her, and what she learned from navigating international business environments, complex team dynamics, and career-defining choices.

Kristine also opens up about one of the most challenging workplace experiences of her career: feeling isolated inside a team, struggling to understand unspoken tensions, and learning how to stay focused on the work even when the environment around her felt uncomfortable.

This conversation explores career decisions, workplace culture, international leadership, resilience, office politics, personal growth, and the importance of building a career based on your own values rather than other people’s expectations.

Because sometimes the opportunities that shape us the most are the ones that make the least sense to everyone else.

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In this episode of The Leader’s Lab, Kristine reflects on a period of her life that shaped her understanding of leadership, ambition, and personal growth the most.

Speaking about her experience in the hotel industry, moving between countries, adapting to new environments, and constantly rebuilding herself professionally, she shares how some of the most important lessons about leadership were never connected to titles.

Leadership has never been about hierarchy. It is about the way you work, the way you treat people, the way you react under pressure, and the way you continue moving forward even when situations become difficult.

This conversation explores the emotional reality behind professional growth, the pressure of constantly adapting, the challenge of proving yourself in unfamiliar environments, and the moments when you realise that confidence is not something people simply “have.” It is something you slowly build through experience, resilience, mistakes, and difficult conversations.

Kristine also reflects on teamwork, visibility, communication, international career growth, intuition, emotional intelligence, and the importance of learning to push yourself beyond fear when necessary.

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In this episode of The Leader’s Lab, Kristine reflects on a period in her life when everything looked successful on the outside, yet she was still trying to understand who she truly wanted to become.

After moving countries, rebuilding her life, adapting to new cultures, and constantly proving herself professionally, she entered a stage where ambition was no longer only about career progression.

It became a much deeper question about identity, purpose, and alignment.

This conversation explores the hidden side of professional growth that people rarely speak about openly, the pressure of constantly adapting, the emotional weight behind “successful” decisions, and the moments where life quietly asks you whether you are building something that genuinely belongs to you.

Kristine shares reflections on leadership, reinvention, international career growth, intuition, visibility, communication, and the complicated relationship many ambitious people have with success itself.

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In this episode of The Leader’s Lab, Kristine shares the chapter of her journey where ambition, education, and intuition began to collide.

While pursuing her Master’s degree at one of France’s leading schools, she made a strategic choice many professionals know well: invest in education to open better career opportunities. As part of that path, she needed to complete a mandatory internship, a step that led her to Danone.

What followed was far from predictable.

From joining a hackathon almost by chance, to discovering the power of world-class marketing through brands like Evian, Kristine found herself surrounded by opportunities many would have accepted immediately. Yet even when everything looked right on paper, she felt something deeper: hesitation.

This episode explores an important career lesson rarely discussed, sometimes the best opportunities are not the most obvious ones. Sometimes intuition speaks before logic can explain why.

Kristine reflects on ambition, decision-making, the pressure of external expectations, and the courage to listen to your inner signal when everyone else is telling you to choose differently.

Because careers are not built only through smart choices.

They are also shaped by the choices that feel true.

A story about education, opportunity, instinct, and learning to trust yourself.

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In this episode of The Leader’s Lab, Kristine reflects on the chapter that quietly shaped the beginning of her career: her university years.

Long before titles, promotions, or leadership roles, there were projects, deadlines, responsibility, and the first moments that revealed what truly excited her professionally.

It was during this period that she discovered a genuine passion for marketing, strategy, and creating ideas that move people and businesses forward.

She also revisits the large-scale projects connected to the post office, experiences that became an unexpected training ground for discipline, problem-solving, and real-world business understanding. At the time, they felt like student work. Looking back, they were some of the strongest foundations of everything that came next.

This episode is about the lessons we often underestimate while living them, and the chapters that later make perfect sense.

Because careers do not begin with job titles. They often begin in classrooms, side projects, and opportunities no one else notices.

A story about ambition, early discovery, and the forgotten foundations of success.

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In this episode of The Leader’s Lab, Kristine shares one of the earliest moments that changed the way she understood work, business, and reality.

It began with something simple: an envelope.

At the time, she was young, ambitious, and still seeing the professional world through theory and structure. What happened next became an unexpected lesson about incentives, hidden systems, and the difference between how things are presented… and how they truly work behind the scenes.

This episode explores curiosity, awakening, and why some of the most important lessons in your career come from moments no one teaches you to expect.

Because growth often begins when your assumptions are challenged.

A story about early ambition, business reality, and learning to see beyond the obvious. ✨

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In this episode of The Leader’s Lab, Kristine Naltchadjian shares one of the earliest professional experiences that shaped the way she approaches growth, leadership, and opportunity.

What began as a simple internship assignment, manually consolidating reports with pen and paper, became a defining lesson in initiative, innovation, and self-belief.

Rather than accepting an outdated process, Kristine challenged herself to find a better way, teaching herself new tools and creating a faster solution that transformed weeks of work into days.

This episode is about more than an internship.

It is about learning to think differently, taking ownership before having a title, and discovering that some of the most important career breakthroughs begin in the smallest roles.

Kristine also reflects on how quickly the professional world evolves. Skills that once opened new doors, from Excel to digital systems, continue to change today, reminding us that curiosity and adaptability remain timeless advantages.

Because before leadership becomes visible, it is often built quietly through discipline, courage, and the decision to improve what already exists.

A story about early ambition, innovation, and the mindset that creates long-term success✨

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