Beginnings are hard. Let’s begin anyway.
Welcome to The Freedom Path.
At the start of 2024, at age 42, I left my corporate role as Coach & Global Lead to start my own business as a Transitions Coach, Somatic Guide & Retreat Facilitator and move my family to Portugal to live a Sovereign Life on our own terms.
If you’re reading this, chances are you’re standing at the edge of a big transition. Maybe you’ve left a stable career that no longer fits. Maybe you’re about to. Or maybe you’re somewhere in the messy middle - feeling in your bones that you can’t go back, but not yet clear on the path forward.
I know that space intimately.
A decade ago, I got divorced. I was a father of two, working as a Creative Director for leading fashion brands - on paper, a dream job, but inside I felt split in two. One part of me was performing (successful, composed, in control) while the other was quietly unraveling, questioning everything I’d built.
In 2021, I pivoted to become a UX Lead for a global fashion brand, as I was craving to make decisions that didn’t rely on guesswork, gut feelings, or politics. I was betting that this new role in my professional life (interviewing people, mapping their behaviours, testing rough ideas fast) could give me the kind of problem-solving lens I hadn’t found in my private life.
It helped up to a point.
But the corporate tools and systems I learnt couldn’t answer the deeper questions I was carrying inside.
How do I create a life I actually want to live?
What do I do with all the weight I’m carrying?
Where do I go when clarity doesn’t come from logic?
That reckoning led me somewhere I hadn’t expected: in 2022, I trained and certified as a professional coach to finally meet who I already was.
That’s when I realised the work I most cared about wasn’t about politics or branding - it was about people. About helping them see who they really are. About guiding them through the deep, messy work of change.
At the start of 2024, at age 42, I left my corporate role as Coach & Creative Tech Lead at the global fashion brand to start my own business as a Transitions Coach, Somatic Guide & Retreat Facilitator. I didn't just talk about freedom— We sold up and moved our young family from the Netherlands to Portugal to create it.
We walked our own talk.
Now, I help others do the same. I help people shift their connection with their bodies, gain control of the voices in their heads, and make the transition they've always wanted but never felt safe enough to take. This is done through 1:1 online coaching as well as small offline immersive retreats in Central Portugal.
I’m not here to sell you hype or hustle.
I’m here to tell the truth: Real freedom is an inside job.
Why this, why now?
Because too many of the people I coach - smart, creative, responsible people in their 30s, 40s, 50s tell me the same thing:
“I feel like I’ve built a life that isn’t mine.”
“I know I’m meant for more, but I’m stuck.”
“I want to leave corporate, but I’m scared of losing stability.”
“I just want to feel like myself again.”
This Substack is for us.
For those who refuse to settle. For those willing to get radically honest. For those ready to do the uncomfortable work of building a sovereign, soul-aligned life especially if it means walking away from everything that no longer fits…at 42, or any age.
Because the world needs more of us living our truth - not less.
I want this to be more than a newsletter.
I want it to be a conversation.
A place where you’ll find:
→ Real stories from my own transitions - divorce, career pivots, moving countries to build a new life.
→ Client journeys (anonymized but honest) showing what it really takes to break old patterns.
→ Tools and frameworks I use in coaching - Human Design, Gene Keys, Internal Family Systems, Somatic Practices, Top Tier Business/Career Strategy Alignment.
→ Voice-note-style essays speaking to the raw, unfiltered truth of transition.
→ Prompts, questions, and somatic cues to help you slow down and hear your own truth.
This is not for the hustle-hack crowd. It’s for the deep divers.
Why listen to me?
You shouldn’t—without listening to yourself first.
But if you want someone who’s walked the road—who knows what it’s like to juggle family, creative work, making ends meet, and deep alignment—who won’t bullshit you about how hard and how beautiful it can be... then I’m here.
My work is about collapsing time: helping people see what they can’t see alone, so they can live their truth faster and more peacefully.
I don’t just do mindset work. I work with your body, your parts, your story, your business strategy—because you’re not just one thing, and you can’t think your way to freedom alone.
What kind of community are we building here? A deeply human one.
A space for midlife pivots and rebirths. For highly intuitive corporate leavers, parents and entrepreneurs reclaiming their work & life as they step into their own Individual Sovereignty.
For people who want to choose freedom—even when it’s messy. I want this to be a place where you feel seen. And also a place that invites you to move. To actually do the work of clarifying your truth and living it.
Free Subscribers Get:
My main essay every 1–2 weeks, with practical reflections on identity, purpose, and transitions
Access to my Voice Reclamation Series (hosted here on Substack): raw, honest voice-note reflections on leaving old roles behind
Occasional prompts, tools, and guided questions to support your journey
I want these free resources to be accessible to anyone navigating a big shift or seeking more clarity.
Paid Subscribers Get:
My Somatic Meditation Library (one new audio practice added bi-weekly to help you drop into your body and move from fear or confusion to clarity and calm)
Deeper essays exploring client case studies and advanced topics I don’t share publicly
Exclusive audio guides for body-based practices
Priority access to coaching offers, plus discounts for select sessions or retreats
I’m keeping the paid tier low-ticket (starting at $8/month) because I want it to be accessible and a gentle first step toward investing in real change.
You can also find my free work on LinkedIn:
The Freedom Path newsletter — in-depth essays on navigating transitions and reclaiming your truth
I’m committed to making sure there’s plenty here for you to explore, whether you’re just getting curious or ready to go deeper.
Why am I doing this on Substack?
Because it’s simple. Human. Direct.
Because I’m tired of algorithms dictating who sees what.
Because I want to own my list and build a real relationship with the people who want this work.
And because I want to do this sustainably.
I’ve given away so much for free over the years - articles, podcasts, DMs, 1:1 time.
I love doing it.
But it’s time to create an intentional ecosystem that honours my work - and the people ready to receive it.
An Invitation
If you’re here to find your voice again (to build a sovereign, soul-aligned life on your own terms) then I’d love for you to subscribe.
You can stay free forever if you want. Or you can join the paid tier to go deeper.
Either way, I see you.
Let’s do this work together.