Bela Evers

“You have your destiny in your own hands. Create opportunities you’re passionate about and go where your energy is.”

What is your personal story?

My early role models were quite traditional. My great-grandparents were from India, my parents from Africa, and I was born and raised in the United Kingdom. Traditionally, careers were not considered as important for women as for men in my family. I, on the other hand, have always been a very free spirit with a strong sense of independence. After my B.A. in Economics, I went to the University of Stirling to get my MBA in Marketing. There, I really learned to be independent and make choices for myself.

I started my career in marketing at CWS Food Manufacturing and had plenty of opportunities to learn and grow. Then I moved on to various internal roles at Ford Motor Company. I left there to travel around the world, after which I moved to the Netherlands with my husband. For the next 10 years, I worked at a software company in marketing, communication, and branding roles. I became a real career person, changing jobs every two years. Each time I got a new project and challenge as a team leader. It became a bit of a game, with the goal always being to get to the next level.

About 12 years later, I had three children and felt I was stuck in the same routine. I wanted to break out of that mold, take a risk, embark on a new adventure. So, I decided to work for myself as a consultant. It was a beautiful decision that led me to a whole new world of companies, working for brands like Unilever, Shell, Danone, Adidas. Throughout my professional life, a recurring theme has been bringing value to companies or start-ups wanting to transform. This has continually shaped me as a person, as I always want to undertake my own transformation.

After turning 52, I decided to start my own life-changing adventure. I joined three other women in the ‘Duchess of the Sea’ team to row 3,000 miles across the Atlantic Ocean in the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge. On December 12, 2020, we set off to row non-stop from the Canary Islands to Antigua to support two charities, the Plastic Soup Foundation and ALS Neuromuscular Research. Eight weeks later, we arrived at the finish, each shaped by our journey to the heart of the ocean and ourselves.

Share the important challenges or breakthroughs in your career that have led to where you are now

Learning to promote myself and be more structured as an entrepreneur
As an entrepreneur, you learn different skills than working for a company. You learn to network and promote yourself. I really enjoyed that aspect. When I go to networking events, I’m curious about other people and let my network grow organically. Building relationships is important so people can contact you and vice versa. You should not be afraid to promote yourself or to ask for things or even just to reciprocate. It’s a kind of unspoken rule of networking. Becoming an entrepreneur was a crucial moment for me that sounds romantic and adventurous, but also brings its own challenges. I’ve been really lucky to enjoy it. I’ve learned a lot, like becoming more disciplined and handling paperwork. I actually learned by doing, but it was a great experience.

Value and respect are important to me
I am a very people-oriented person and thrive on the energy of team collaboration. There was an interim project where I encountered someone who was not an ally or people person. This ‘alpha male’ manager came into the organization where I worked and showed no respect. He seemed to know better. If I don’t feel respect in a relationship, then my loyalty is gone. My assignment was coming to an end, so I decided it was a good time to leave. You can fight it or let it go, and I decided to let it go. If you don’t have the right energy, your effectiveness and passion for work will suffer.

Create a buffer for yourself
I don’t stress when I don’t have assignments… It’s always short-lived. At times when I didn’t have work, I always kept a buffer to live on and enjoy family life. That gave me peace of mind not to worry. With my rowing adventure, I created a buffer beforehand to create that long period I was away. This gives you the best balance between work, pleasure, and family life that I wouldn’t trade for anything.

Learning from behavior that holds you back
In our interviews, we like to talk about “12 behaviors that hold you back” – which have been researched and published in the book ‘How Women Rise’ by Sally Helgesen and Marshall Goldsmith. We asked Bela if she could identify with any of these 12 behaviors that prevent women from advancing in their careers.

Disease to please
I think I always tried to please people when I worked as an employee for a company. It’s a very feminine instinct. We tend to please a lot. I wanted to step out of that role when I became an entrepreneur. Now I am the ‘owner’ of my own fate and really have the power to make a difference. Now I please my clients because I am my own brand and see the direct reward of adding value to the customer.

Let your radar be distracted
Instead of being distracted by my radar – my ability to notice many things around me at the same time – I learned to use my radar to my advantage. I see it as self-reflection. You really need to have self-reflection and be open to feedback, so you know what your strengths are, where your passion lies, where you can grow. You learn these things during your career. It’s not just about what you do in your career, it’s also about thinking about what you want to do as a person. We need those retrospective moments in life.

If you find yourself in a difficult situation, what is your go-to skill?
My go-to skill is ‘the problem solver’. I am creative and collaborative. I get everyone on the line and together we solve it. I love it when you can facilitate problem solving or ideas as a team. I like to do that. A challenge is like a game. It helps you to think ‘out of the box’ and together with people, you have the power to solve things together.

What advice would you give other professional women who want to shine in their careers?
I think self-leadership is a very important attitude to have. Think very carefully about what you have achieved and what you want to get out of life. Make decisions for yourself. You are the only one who has your destiny in your hands at the end of the day. Whether you want to be an entrepreneur, leader, or something else, it’s up to you, but be aware of those decisions.

I have seen both entrepreneurs and people working for companies who are very frustrated. And I’ve seen people who are comfortable in a role and don’t go further. If you want to go further and do something different, figure it out. Take action if you feel you need to. Be especially aware of what you want and do it.

In your career, you can sit there and become a staple in the company, and that’s okay if you’re okay with it. Or you can choose to do something different, like become a freelancer or broaden your horizons or go on an adventure. Or you can, like me, choose to take some time off and row across the ocean.

I don’t want to get caught up in the rat race. I do that through my self-leadership. I make decisions and take the risk to do things. It helps if you’re not afraid of what’s on the other side and learn to make that journey, just like I learned to be an entrepreneur. You learn to let go, build resilience, and enjoy. If you don’t, you’ll always be the same person you always were. It doesn’t have to be transformational. It did help me get more out of life and more out of my career. That’s my red thread.

My whole life has been about making decisions for myself. Each phase has had different moments. I was very career-oriented before and during the early years as a mother. I went from the rat race to independence. Now I want to make a difference in what I do. I feel that if I can make a difference, I should. It’s in my own hands. For me, that means taking on assignments that are really purposeful, such as sustainability, well-being, or other purposeful themes. Our impact is in our own hands.