The Unconventional Career Coach

Hosted by Maartje Bakker

Business Careers

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Aug 2025

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About the show

Let's pivot your career so you can love Monday like it's Friday ☀️ As an ex-Tech Leader turned Career Coach & Business Builder, I help my clients pivot their careers and land happy, healthy, and wealthy jobs. May this podcast inspire you to follow your heart - do the brave thing - and create the life and career you secretly dream of. 🟠 Learn about working with me: https://www.yourspacetothink.com/workwithme 🟠 Follow me on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/maartjebakker-spacetothink/ 🟠 Join my email list: https://forms.wix.com/f/7026362761672131484

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60 recent

August 13, 202527 min

E68. Jasz's Career Pivot - Rekindling your entrepreneurial fire by making the right business pivot.

Schedule a call to explore working with me⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ here⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.Reach out on⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ or email me at maartje@yourspacetothink.com & share how this episode landed with you!Connect with Jasz on⁠ ⁠Linkedin⁠⁠.-----------------------------------------When Jazz came to me, she wasn’t looking to completely reinvent her career, but she was ready for a change. As a business owner, she felt like the spark had dimmed a little, and she wanted clarity on her next chapter.Over six months together, we dug into what truly lights her up, refined the vision for her business, and mapped out the steps to bring it to life. Today, Jazz feels inspired, creative, and excited about where she’s headed, and she’s actively building this new chapter right now.In this episode, Jazz shares her journey of shifting her business focus, finding fresh joy in her work, and tapping back into the creativity that fuels her.If you’ve ever felt “stuck” in your own business or career and craved that sense of excitement again, you’ll love this conversation.Enjoy!

April 17, 2025Episode 717 min

E67. How to say 'no' at work - and make your boss love you more. (Boundary setting 2.0)

Schedule a call to explore working with me⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠here⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.Reach out on⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ or email me at maartje@yourspacetothink.com & share how this episode landed with you!-----------------------------------------If you're feeling overloaded at work, and the thought of one more request makes your chest tighten…The first thing that needs to happen is this:Give yourself permission to say no—in a way that gains you respect, not resentment.Saying no doesn’t have to mean shutting the door or burning bridges.It can sound like collaboration.It can sound like leadership.It can sound like: “Here’s what I’m working on—what would you like me to deprioritize so I can give this new task the attention it deserves?”We’re often taught to equate saying yes with being valuable.Especially as women, we’re conditioned to be helpful, humble, and accommodating—even when it stretches us way too thin.But in this episode, I want to have an honest coffee date with you about what real value looks like.Because constantly saying yes doesn’t make you a team player.It makes you a ticking time bomb.We’ll talk about the scripts, the mindset, and the strategy behind a powerful “no”—one that actually builds trust with your boss and reinforces your professionalism.And at the end, I’ll guide you through a simple exercise to craft your own respectful “no” that keeps your boundaries intact and your reputation strong.I hope you enjoy—and I hope you give yourself permission to be both kind and firm.

April 8, 2025Episode 624 min

E66. Sabrina's Career Pivot - Building your resume like a Billboard (when you have a wealth of experience and don't know where to start)

Schedule a call to explore working with me⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ here⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.Reach out on⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ or email me at maartje@yourspacetothink.com & share how this episode landed with you!Connect with Sabrina on⁠ Linkedin⁠.-----------------------------------------When Sabrina reached out to see if I could help her update her resume, I got excited. I had chatted with Sabrina as neighbours and knew that she had an incredibly interesting career path - what a joy to help her build it into a door-opening resume! Like many of you, she has a wealth of experience working in several different roles and industries. The big question is: how do you bring that work experience down to one or two pieces of paper? In this episode, Sabrina shares her experience updating her resume, which made her see her career (and herself!) in a new light. If you are further along in your career and struggle to put your experience in a strong resume format, I know you'll take away so much value from our conversation.Enjoy!

March 12, 2025Episode 515 min

E65. Listen to this if you're fighting against wanting a career change. (+ create your own permission slip)

Schedule a call to explore working with me⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠here⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.Reach out on⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ or email me at maartje@yourspacetothink.com & share how this episode landed with you!-----------------------------------------If you want to make a career change, the very first thing that needs to happen is this: Give yourself permission to want more. Allow yourself to want a happier, healthier, and wealthier job. It might seem obvious but this is the first obstacle for many women who want to change careers. We are taught to accept what we have, be quiet, and be grateful for our circumstances. In this episode, I want to go for a coffee date with you to chat about permitting ourselves to want delightful things in our lives. To want a career that excites us, or a higher paycheck. It's short and sweet, with a practical exercise at the end to make your own permission slip, something that I like to do with my clients as well. I hope you enjoy, and give yourself permission for whatever it is you are longing for.

March 5, 2025Episode 420 min

E64. How to create space in your calendar to work on your career change.

Schedule a call to explore working with me ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠here⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.Reach out on⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ or email me at maartje@yourspacetothink.com & share how this episode landed with you!-----------------------------------------You're overworked, answering emails from the breakfast table, making calls while being your kids' taxi driver, and checking Slack in the bathroom of a first date. It's clear: something needs to change.But how do you make a career change when every minute of the day is filled with STUFF?! Your brain is running at a hundred miles per hour, so no wonder that you're struggling to come up with new, exciting job ideas. The truth is hard but simple: you can't make a career change if you don't make time for it. You need time to think, imagine, and dream - followed by time to take action, network, update your resume, and apply to jobs. In this episode, I share practical ways to make space in your week to work on your career change. Skeptical? Hit play.

February 26, 2025Episode 335 min

E63. How to start posting on LinkedIn to land your next opportunity - with Mel Ripp

Schedule a call to explore working with me⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠here⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.Reach out on⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ or email me at maartje@yourspacetothink.com & share how this episode landed with you!Connect with Mell Rip on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠.-----------------------------------------Mel is the founder and CEO of Peapod Marketing & PR Consulting and helps women entrepreneurs and executives showcase their thoughts, perspectives, and expertise through LinkedIn and other forms of written content.If you are in a season of career confusion, whether that is about where to go next or how to land a more fulfilling role - you are guaranteed to benefit from posting on LinkedIn.People are more likely to connect with you, accept your coffee call requests, and approach you with opportunities.But how do you start? (Especially when the thought of posting on LinkedIn already sends you down an anxiety spiral...)I am SO thrilled to have Mel on the podcast because she is bringing you practical tips that will help you go from anxiety to actively posting on LinkedIn.Enjoy this episode!

February 13, 2025Episode 234 min

E62. Ece's Career Pivot - From career confusion to loving your work again (when staying in your current role is the solution!)

Schedule a call to explore working with me⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ here⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.Reach out on⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ or email me at maartje@yourspacetothink.com & share how this episode landed with you!Connect with Ece onLinkedin.-----------------------------------------Ece came to me feeling stuck in her career. She couldn't quite put her finger on the problem, but she knew that something needed to change. Maybe she needed a different job, a new industry, or even to start a business of her own.Through our work together, she realized that what needed to shift was more internal than external. The pivots she made had to do with how she valued herself, her work, and how she communicated this clearly to the people around her.If you are going through a season of career confusion and you're not sure where to go next, you'll enjoy listening to Ece's story. It shows us that a huge career pivot is not always the answer.Soak up Ece's learnings!

January 31, 2025Episode 117 min

E61. How to make difficult career decisions (+ choose between job offers)

Schedule a call to explore working with me ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠here⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Reach out on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ or email me at maartje@yourspacetothink.com & share how this episode landed with you! ----------------------------------------- Are you facing a tough career decision? To quit or to stay? To accept offer A or B? To work at company X or Y? This episode will help you get the strategy to make the decision that fits not only your skillset and experience, but also your vision for life. Let me know how this episode lands with you!

December 18, 2024Episode 2024 min

E60. My Career Pivot - From High Tech Innovation Management to Supporting Women Make Career Changes.

Schedule a call to explore working with me ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠here⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Reach out on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ or email me at maartje@yourspacetothink.com & share how this episode landed with you! ----------------------------------------- Finally! After publishing so many of my clients' career pivot stories, I am sharing my career change journey! After getting my engineering degree, I worked as an innovation manager & consultant in Amsterdam. Big clients, the coolest projects, and a good paycheck. To the outside world, I had it all - but internally I was approaching burnout quickly. I had to go through a big season of career confusion to find the career that allowed me to be happy without sacrificing my health and finances. Isn't that what we are all looking for? In this episode, I share how I navigated the uncertainty of not knowing where to go next in my career, to find a joyful way to make a living. Enjoy!

December 17, 2024Episode 1917 min