SPEAKING & WORKSHOPS
Your people are doing well.
That doesn’t mean they’re feeling well.
I speak and facilitate workshops about the hidden side of top-performance: what happens when being capable, reliable & good at what you do becomes something you don’t know how to stop doing.
My sessions are interactive. People don’t just listen to me talk about boundaries, intuitive decision-making or exhaustion. They notice their own patterns while we’re in the room.
For organizations, universities and communities.
“I’m a highly analytical person, wired with logic and data. The most important thing I took home wasn’t intuition per se, but listening to my body and feelings more and putting myself before my always-on survival mode. I consider the workshop a trigger point and I’m grateful for it.”
Yasaman, Social Media Manager & Female Ventures workshop participant
WHAT WE CAN TALK ABOUT
Doing Well, Not Feeling Well
WHAT TOP PERFORMANCE DOESN’T TELL YOU
Some of the people who are struggling most at work are also the people giving you the fewest reasons to worry about them.
They deliver and solve problems. So, because the performance is still there, the strain underneath can be remarkably easy to miss, especially to them.
This session helps people recognize the less obvious signs that high performance is becoming expensive, in themselves and in the people they work with. We look at the behaviors organizations often reward, like reliability, independence and always being able to handle more and what can be happening underneath them.
Participants leave with practical questions they can use to notice the experience behind the performance, before the only signal available is that someone can no longer get out of bed.
Good for: wellbeing weeks, People & Culture teams, high-pressure teams and organizations thinking seriously about sustainable performance.
Your Gut Feeling as Data, Not a Verdict
INTUITIVE DECISION-MAKING AT WORK & LIFE
At work, we’re very good at building a case for what makes sense. Less good at noticing when fear of disappointing someone, wanting approval or avoiding discomfort has entered the decision too.
This workshop gives people a practical way to separate what they know, what they want, what they’re assuming & what they’re afraid might happen.
They practice it on a real decision, rather than learning a theory about intuition and leave with a way to make decisions using more information than either pure logic or “just trust your gut.”
No, I won’t tell your people to quit their jobs because their stomach felt funny.
Good for: teams navigating change, career development and fast-moving organizations where people need to make decisions on the go and, sometimes, with little information.
The Reliable One
THE COST OF BEING “EASY TO WORK WITH”
What happens when being capable, useful, reliable or easy to work with becomes part of how you know you’re doing okay?
You say yes before checking whether you have capacity, you avoid asking for help. You manage other people’s reactions. You make yourself easy to work with, even when doing so is becoming increasingly difficult for you.
This session goes underneath the usual conversation about boundaries. Participants look at the role they have learned to play at work, what that role has given them and why doing something differently can feel surprisingly uncomfortable. Then they experiment with one small step outside it.
For managers, it also raises a useful question: What does your team believe they have to be in order to be valued here?
Good for: team development, psychological safety, people going through role or career transitions and teams where the same people repeatedly do too much.
WHAT HAPPENS IN THE ROOM
I don’t want people to leave thinking,
“That was interesting.”
I want them to catch themselves doing something they hadn’t noticed before.
Depending on the session, people might write, speak, move around the room, talk in pairs, notice a physical response, questioning an assumption or trying something differently while we’re together.
I use theory when it’s useful, but experience comes first.
“Ioana gave the audience a practical way to experience intuition on the spot. The room was lively and full of enthusiasm for both the activity and the topic. I enjoyed every aspect of the event, from the preparation to the wrap-up.”
Rossella Davi, Going Expat Founder & Following Your Gut in Business workshop participant
WHERE I’VE SPOKEN
Featured in AntiLoneliness: 10 Things the Global Burnout Summit Changed About How We See Burnout
“Recovery may instead become redefining success, as explained by Ioana Vieru.”
Vassia Sarantopoulou, Founder of AntiLoneliness & The Global Burnout Summit
“Ioana didn’t just give a great talk. Her message was honest, powerful and stayed with the room long after everyone went home. She is a genuine collaborator who makes your event better and your job as an organizer easier.”
Martijn Koekkoek, Everybody Networks Here & Circles Founder
BOOKING
Bring this conversation to your audience.
You don’t need to know exactly which talk or workshop you want. Tell me who will be in the room, what you’re noticing and what you’d like them to leave thinking, feeling or doing differently.
We’ll start with a 30-minute call and shape the session from there.
Formats 45-minute keynote, 90-minute workshop, half-day deep dive, panel
Location Based in Rotterdam. Available across the Netherlands and globally, in-person or online.
Fees Paid engagements with a custom quote based on the format and scope.