Your Executive Coach | Terez Rijkenberg

Ever taken a seat at the big table and felt a quiet voice whisper, you shouldn’t be here? We dig into why that voice gets louder as stakes rise and why it has nothing to do with your competence. Using clear neuroscience and a practical RAFT framework, we show how repeated thoughts shape feelings, drive actions, and lock in results—often creating a self-fulfilling identity that keeps talented leaders playing small.

We start by naming imposter thinking for what it is: a practised script, not proof. Neuroplasticity doesn’t rewire to truth; it rewires to repetition. That’s why praise can feel hollow and promotions can spike anxiety. From there, we map the negative loop—thoughts like I’m not ready leading to anxiety, over-explaining, risk avoidance, and thin results that seem to validate the doubt. Then we flip it. With believable upgrades such as I’m learning at this level and Everyone here is figuring things out, you generate grounded curiosity and calm. That shift unlocks sharper questions, cleaner decisions, real delegation, and stronger strategic impact without performative overwork.

You’ll learn a three-step micro-practice to run any imposter thought through RAFT: identify the exact sentence, project its one-year cost, and choose a useful thought you can actually believe. Rehearse it before key moments so the new script earns more reps than the old one. Because under pressure, you don’t rise to potential—you rise to your training. If you’ve been mentally practising self-doubt, your brain will default there. Train a better default.

Subscribe for practical tools grounded in neuroscience and behavioural psychology. Share this with a leader who’s levelling up, and leave a review with the one thought you’ll rehearse this week—what script are you choosing next?

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Most things in life and work are just decisions.

You'll know as a leader, as you grow, as your team grows, as your organization grows, your time becomes more valuable, and there is more of a pull on your time to various new opportunities.

But even in that growth, we only have 24 hours a day like everyone else.

You still only have a set number of working hours in a day, and what that means is that with these new opportunities and growth comes more opportunities to make decisions about the trade-offs.

When there are projects or products or tasks or habits, or perhaps even people that you might be considering letting go of, you can use these steps to help you make that tough decision.

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You know that feeling right? 

That nagging feeling that's like anxiety and kind of like the same feeling you have when you're on your way to a holiday and you feel like you've forgotten something.

The challenge with this feeling is that it takes away from the enjoyment of the experience you're having.

It takes you away from being fully present, attentive and engaged with what's in front of you.

It decreases your focus and increases your stress.

But there's a simple solution.

Listen to find out why this nagging feeling happens and what you can do about it.

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The only thing that really keeps us motivated is the belief in our future possibilities and what can still create and achieve.

And, we can maximise this and use this to our advantage.

So how can you practice this belief in yourself so that you can achieve what you want and also lead others to a common goal?

And how can you practice this belief when the results aren't there?

Listen to this episode to find out.

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Scientists have a very exploratory and experimental way of thinking.

And in fact, leaders who lead in fast-changing environments can learn a thing or two from scientists.

In this episode, I explore 4 steps you can take to start thinking like a scientist for more innovation, more empowerment (of self and others) and more capability to use failure and mistakes for opportunities.

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Habits are created through consistency.

But there's a single simple reason why we fail to be consistent.

We often use the excuse that:

• We don't know what to do, or
• We don't have the right information to stick to the habit, or
• We don't have the right skills

But that's never the problem. 

Listen to this episode if you want to know how to increase your consistency with new habits to make them permanent.

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Last week I felt really run down and sick. 

And so I decided to take a week off from recording and publishing these podcast episodes.

It was a tough decision for me and also inspired this particular episode.

Because the truth is we don't feel great all of the time.

But I want to share with you that this is good news.

Listen to find out why.

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The purpose of life is to grow. The more we grow the less stuck we feel and the more fulfillment and meaning we have.

So how can you identify a growth or personal development area quickly?

Where in your life do you think you have an opportunity for growth?

Listen to find out.

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Did you know that most people spend 28% of the day on email?

That's 2.5 hours in an 8-hour day!

Imagine if you could just halve that time spent on email and use it for something else?

Listen for my 5 tips to help you do just that.

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Do you know the answer? How many productive hours do you actually have in a day?

The answer to this question is so important because it will positively change how productive you feel and how productive you are.

Listen to find out more.

Send a "fan mail" text message and let me know what you think of the podcast

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Visit the website for details on my Executive Coaching programme, Leadership Development offers and more.

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