For the last 13 years, Karolina Sterenberg has been working in the Learning & Development space for one of the biggest sports companies in the world, but she is also passionate about public speaking and personal branding. Karolina will share her knowledge and experience with the members and the guests of PPW on 30th April during an online workshop.
While waiting for the workshop, we caught up with her for a short interview.
PPW: Karolina, could you tell us what and when brought you to the Netherlands and how you find it here?
Karolina: I was just wrapping up with a big project for my employer in Poland – setting up a training structure for our franchise stores. A proposition came my way to move within the same company to the Netherlands and help set up a training structure for all the stores across Europe. I always thought I would come back to Poland after a year, then I realized how many things I could still learn if I stayed and I stayed one more year… and then one more, and then… the love of my life found me! It’s been almost 8 years since I got off the plane on Schiphol.
I love Dutch people and Dutch culture. I feel like I found my new home here. Just the speed tickets are very expensive… : )
PPW: While working for several years in Poland and now in the Netherlands, you must have seen and heard many people delivering presentations on various occasions. What would you point out as major differences in presentation delivery styles between the speakers from these two countries? Do you prefer one style over another?
Karolina: I find differences regarding the delivery styles ground not so much in the country of origin but more in the type of business the presenter grew in or the company they worked for. The biggest difference for me is the tone a presentation is carried in – from very formal into the light and fun ones (yet still very informative). I love MindGym, their trainers and philosophy – short and fast-pace workouts, focusing on a small amount of theory, always full of practical exercises, always very energetic and engaging. That is the style I adopt myself most often when I present, and I try to use the elements of fun and storytelling even when I need to present a quarterly business report.
PPW: Do you like delivering presentations yourself? How do you cope with stage fright?
Karolina: I love delivering sessions myself and it is still a big part of my job. Stage fright gets smaller and smaller as you grow as a presenter, but I would lie saying I never feel it. The good news is that once you know where it comes from, you can work on it and it happens that I can help you fight it so get in touch!
It is usually born either out of our self-worthiness (Am I good enough? Who am I to talk to these people?), or from fear of managing the audience and their expectations (How will the audience react? Will they like it? What if they have questions?) and finally from the content itself (What if I forget what to say? What if don’t know what to say?)
My pro-tip: have a strong opening and memorize the first 2-3 minutes by heart. Once you’ve established your authority and confidence from the start, the nerves and stress usually get smaller.
PPW: You work full time for a big corporation, but you are also an entrepreneur working as Public Speaking & Personal Brand Coach. How do you manage full time job and freelancing?
Karolina: I will add to that equation sport and family since they both play a huge role in my life. If you had asked me that question 2 years ago, I would have told you that I didn’t see a problem – I used to believe I COULD HAVE IT ALL: working full time, training 5x a week, being a good wife, daughter, and friend. My weeks were fully booked but I managed for a very long time to juggle all the balls without dropping any. I finally dropped one very important ball that I didn’t think of – my health. After 3 months being on sick leave, I redefined my belief: I CAN HAVE IT ALL, BUT NOT ALL AT THE SAME TIME. Every week I look at my calendar before committing to any deliverables at work or before contracting a new client. There are weeks that I train less to make sure I have time for a date night with my wife, there are weeks that I focus on a big project at work and don’t take any clients from my freelance work. If there is a week I can’t train as much as I wish, I make sure that the week after I train harder and so on.
But ask me that question again in October, when we add a baby to this equation 
PPW: What motivated you to start your own business as a Coach? Was it difficult to start? How easy was it to find the very first client?
Karolina: I love my full-time job and I love the brand I work for. I learn a lot every day and it allows me to stay close to the HR and learning & development topics. I also have a talent that is related to my L&D job, but it is not its core. Since public speaking and personal brand literally make my heart sing, I decided to give myself a treat and fulfill my passion outside of my regular job.
My first client came the moment I said I was thinking of opening my own company. At that time, I wasn’t really ready with all the materials and concepts – they only lived in my head! But we’ve known each other from my previous job where I had a very good reputation (BRAND) as a facilitator. When I said I wanted to help people feel comfortable with their presentations whatever their stage is, she asked when we could start and it happened, I had my first client.
PPW: What would you say to those, who have still not reserved their spot to attend our online workshop on Personal Brand that will be delivered online on 30th April?
Karolina: Personal Brand is a perception of us, and we all carry a brand whether we want it or not. It is not what you WANT people to say about you, but what they actually say, especially when you are not around.
The difference between this webinar and other available materials/training is that we focus on understanding ourselves and what makes us – us, rather than focusing on a strategy of building your brand on social media. You can’t build something that you didn’t properly reflect on. Knowing what defines a brand, we get to choose if and how we want to act on it.
Visit Karolina’s page here.
The interview was conducted by Izabela Makos on behalf of PPW .
