Choose Work

As part of the English-language series on giftedness in the workplace, I’m joined by Dr. Noks Nauta (78) — non-practisingmedical doctor, psychologist, author, and pioneer of adult giftedness research.
Noks only discovered she is highly gifted (IQ 145+) at the age of 52 through a conflict in the workplace. What began as a personal discovery evolved into a lifelong mission: making the world a better place for gifted adults and seniors. She is also a co-founder of the Gifted Adults Foundation (IHBV) in the Netherlands — the world’s only foundation dedicated exclusively to gifted adults.
This episode explores 10 key things to know about high giftedness, and practical tips to obtain your highly gifted person’s driver's license.
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TIMESTAMPS
00:00 Introduction
01:25 Meet Dr. Noks Nauta
03:40 What does highly gifted (IQ 145+) actually mean?
11:00 Finding your tribe: Mensa, Triple Nine Society, International Society for Philosophical Enquiry & (highly) gifted cafés
26:35 High giftedness: characteristics, the Delphi Model ofGiftedness & performance
30:18 Parenting highly gifted children
41:45 Why giftedness is still a taboo
43:35 Mental health, caregivers, and self-compassion
50:30 The Highly Gifted Person's Driver's License
55:20 “Don’t say the G-word.” Talk about your characteristics and needs.
01:06:00 "It's not a sexy topic." Adult giftedness research & the future of the field
01:11:48 Giftedness and neurodiversity
01:15:55 Books, resources & where to learn more
01:20:00 Where to learn more about Dr. Noks Nauta and herwork
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References:
- Mensa: www.mensa.org
- Triple Nine Society (TNS): www.triplenine.org
- International Society for Philosophical Enquiry (ISPE): www.thethousand.com
- High Giftedness Expertise Group (HGEG): https://highgiftedness.org
- Wiki about high giftedness: https://highgiftedness.org/wiki/index.php/Hoofdpagina
- Gifted Adults Foundation (Dutch: Instituut Hoogbegaafdheid Volwassenen (IHBV)) website: https://ihbv.nl/
- Gifted Adults Foundation leaflets: https://ihbv.nl/leaflets-english/ (English) + https://ihbv.nl/leaflets/ (Dutch) + https://ihbv.nl/leaflets-deutsch/ (German)
- (Highly) gifted cafes (Dutch: (zeer) HB-café) of the Gifted Adults Foundation: https://hb-cafe.ihbv.nl/- Delphi Model of Giftedness: https://www.oya.nl/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/190702-article-Delphi-Model-of-Giftedness-ADJ-reprint.pdf (English) + https://www.oya.nl/producten/delphikaart/ (Dutch)
- Choose Work episode 11 about the Delphi Model ofGiftedness explained
- Blog. The Other Side of the Concept of Neurodiversity/Neurodivergence. Dr. Noks Nauta: https://noksnauta.wordpress.com/2025/01/05/de-andere-kant-van-het-begrip-neurodiversiteit-neurodivergentie/ (Dutch) + www.mensafoundation.org/the-other-side-of-the-concept-of-neurodiversity-neurodivergence/ (English)
- Documentary. Rise: The Extraordinary Journey ofthe Exceptionally and Profoundly Gifted. Susan Jackson.
- DSM: Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Illnesses
- Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS)
- SCALIQ: https://scaliq.com/en/scaliq-bovengemiddelde-iq-testen-english/
- Rianne van de Ven
- Dr. Allen Frances
- Amy Beach
- Anna Maria van Schurman
- Hildegard von Bingen
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Support the podcast:
- If you enjoy Choose Work, you can support it with a small voluntary contribution (even the price of a coffee) via Buy Me a Coffee: buymeacoffee.com/choosework
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Contact Dr. Noks Nauta & learn more about her work:
- Website: www.noksnauta.nl
- Blog: noksnauta.wordpress.com
- LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/noksnauta
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For show notes, please visit ⁠heididelanghe.com/podcast⁠
For feedback or suggestions for topics or guests, email me at contact@heididelanghe.com
Contact Heidi - Career & Leadership Coach • Expert in Giftedness • Mindfulness Teacher:
- Book a free discovery call at ⁠heididelanghe.com/contact⁠
- Linkedin: ⁠linkedin.com/in/heididelanghe⁠
- Instagram: ⁠instagram.com/heididelanghe.coaching/

What happens when you spend decades feeling like the odd one out — too intense, too much — only to discover through your child that you are gifted?
In this English-language episode, I’m joined by Pauline Coret, Director of the Gifted Adults Foundation (IHBV) — the world’s only foundation dedicated exclusively to gifted adults. Alongside her work with the foundation, Pauline is a certified Career Professional and Core Talents Analyst.
Together, we explore Pauline’s personal journey as a gifted adult, the mission and impact of the Gifted Adults Foundation, and the Delphi Model of Giftedness. Pauline also shares how she recognises the model’s characteristics in her own life and work.
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TIMESTAMPS:
00:00 Introduction to Choose Work
01:28 Meet Pauline Coret: certified career professional and director of the Gifted Adults Foundation
03:10 Growing up gifted without knowing it
05:40 School, underperforming on purpose, and learning to fit in
08:40 University, failure, and finding work
09:10 Fifteen years in insurance: boredom and job-hopping
11:20 Feeling like the odd one out at work
15:20 Why every job became boring
17:20 Workplace conflict and burnout
18:02 Discoverying her son's giftedness and the book that dropped like a bomb
19:40 Pauline's IQ score of 142 and a complete shift in self-understanding
23:40 Finding peers through the Gifted Adults Foundation and Gifted Cafes
25:20 Leaving insurance and starting her own business
27:10 Entrepreneurship, autonomy, and finding work that finally fits
30:24 The Gifted Adults Foundation: mission, research, community, international ambitions
34:30 How to start a Gifted Cafe in your own country
35:55 The Delphi Model of Giftedness explained
40:09 Why most giftedness models don't work well for adults
41:34 Applying the Delphi Model to Pauline's own life
53:30 What Pauline still wants to achieve — and her dream for the Foundation
54:39 Where to find Pauline and the Gifted Adults Foundation
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References:
- Book: Hoogbegaafd: als je kind (g)een Einstein is. Tessa Kieboom.
- Gifted Adults Foundation (Dutch: Instituut Hoogbegaafdheid Volwassenen (IHBV)) website: https://ihbv.nl/
- Gifted Adults Foundation leaflets: https://ihbv.nl/leaflets-english/ (English) + https://ihbv.nl/leaflets/ (Dutch) + https://ihbv.nl/leaflets-deutsch/ (German)
- Gifted Adults Foundation gifted cafes (Dutch: HB-Cafés): https://hb-cafe.ihbv.nl/
- IHBV Facebook: www.facebook.com/InstituutHBVolwassenen/
- IHBV Instagram: www.instagram.com/stichtingihbv/
- IHBV LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/ihbv-instituut-hoogbegaafdheid-volwassenen
- Delphi Model of Giftedness: www.oya.nl/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/190702-article-Delphi-Model-of-Giftedness-ADJ-reprint.pdf (English) + https://www.oya.nl/producten/delphikaart/ (Dutch)
- Dr. Matt Zakreski
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Support the podcast:
- If you enjoy Choose Work, you can support it with a small voluntary contribution (even the price of a coffee) via Buy Me a Coffee: buymeacoffee.com/choosework
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Contact Pauline Coret:
- Website: www.watzijnmijnkerntalenten.nl/
- LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/pauline-coret-08002810/
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/pauline_kernkompas/
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For show notes, please visit ⁠heididelanghe.com/podcast⁠
For feedback or suggestions for topics or guests, email me at contact@heididelanghe.com
Contact Heidi - Career & Leadership Coach • Expert in Giftedness • Mindfulness Teacher:
- Book a free discovery call at ⁠heididelanghe.com/contact⁠
- Linkedin: ⁠linkedin.com/in/heididelanghe⁠
- Instagram: ⁠instagram.com/heididelanghe.coaching/

How do you navigate career transitions when things feel uncertain and uncomfortable?
In this episode in English, I’m joined by Dr. Rachael Skews — behavioural scientist, psychologist, coach, and internationally recognised expert in Acceptance & Commitment Coaching.
We take a deep dive into career transitions and psychological flexibility & ACT (Acceptance & Commitment Therapy),exploring why uncertainty, fear, impostor thoughts, and self-doubt often show up when our work really matters — and how ACT can help us move forward.
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TIMESTAMPS:
00:00 Introduction to Choose Work
01:05 Career transitions, psychological flexibility, and why this episode matters
01:30 Meet Dr. Rachael Skews and her work in Acceptance & Commitment Coaching
03:10 What Acceptance & Commitment Coaching really is (and what it isn’t)
06:45 Impostor thoughts, self-doubt, and why high performers experience them
08:30 Why the goal isn’t to get rid of difficult thoughts and feelings
10:30 Rachael’s non-linear career journey: consultancy, academia, health tech, and entrepreneurship
15:10 Moving from academia to Headspace and working in behavioural science
18:10 Entrepreneurship, uncertainty, and psychological flexibility as a resource
20:00 Rest, recovery, and treating yourself like an elite performer
22:20 Self-criticism, overworking, and building self-compassion at work
23:40 Redundancy, career inflection points, and conscious career choice
25:10 Starting a business: loneliness, creativity, and stepping into the swamp
27:30 Values, meaning, and designing work that actually fits you
30:10 The “swamp” metaphor: discomfort as the price of meaningful work
33:00 Fear, uncertainty, and speaking outside your comfort zone
35:10 ACT in action: focusing on what’s on the other side of the swamp
38:00 Risk tolerance, uncertainty, and how personality shapes career choices
42:20 Case example: supporting a senior leader considering entrepreneurship
45:00 Scarcity mindset, money fears, and responsibility during career transitions
48:00 Why fear makes sense — and why it shouldn’t make the decision
50:30 Is it ever too late to build psychological flexibility?
53:10 Psychological flexibility as “conscious evolution”
54:20 Rachael’s upcoming book on Acceptance & Commitment Coaching
56:00 A practical reflection exercise for listeners navigating career transitions
58:10 Where to find Rachael and her work
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Resources mentioned:
- Association for Contextual Behavioral Science (ACBS)
- ACBS World Conference 2026
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Support the podcast:- If you enjoy Choose Work, you can support it with a small voluntarycontribution (even the price of a coffee) via Buy Me a Coffee: buymeacoffee.com/choosework
*
Contact Dr. Rachael Skews and learn more about her work:
- Website: https://www.rachaelskews.com/
- The Coaching UnpACT podcast
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For show notes, please visit ⁠heididelanghe.com/podcast⁠
For feedback or suggestions for topics or guests, email me atcontact@heididelanghe.com
Contact Heidi - Career & Leadership Coach • Expert inGiftedness • Mindfulness Teacher:
- Book a free discovery call at ⁠heididelanghe.com/contact⁠
- Linkedin: ⁠linkedin.com/in/heididelanghe⁠
- Instagram: ⁠⁠instagram.com/heididelanghe.coaching/⁠

In this episode in English, I’m joined by Sharmin Reehman — CEO and Founder of Elev8te — a company dedicated to building partnerships that drive a more diverse, innovative, and inclusive tech industry. Sharmin is also the City Leader for Founders Live Singapore, where she regularly hosts free pitching competitions for founders.
Half Indian and half Iranian, Sharmin has called Singapore home for the past 16 years. Drawing on nearly two decades of experience across banking, consulting, and government — and her bold transition into entrepreneurship — she shares candid lessons on failure, neurodiversity (including ADHD and dyslexia), and building companies that genuinely align withlife goals. We also dive into why diversity, innovation, and inclusion in tech matters.
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 TIMESTAMPS:
00:00 Introduction to Choose Work
01:00 Meet Sharmin Reehman and why diversity, innovation, and inclusion in tech matter
02:00 Sharmin’s career journey across banking, consulting, government, and entrepreneurship
03:00 Core career lessons: mentors, neurodiversity as strength, and falling forward
06:00 Shifting from proving yourself to making an impact and delivering value
09:00 Navigating bias, identity, and being an outcast in male-dominated environments
13:00 From corporate roles to founding Elev8te and embracing entrepreneurship
14:18 The steep learning curve—and fulfillment—of building something from scratch
16:46 Purpose, impact, and why entrepreneurship feels different from corporate work
22:00 Flexibility, productivity, and designing work around energy—not hours
23:30 The loneliness of entrepreneurship and how to cope with it
25:00 Building support systems and finding validation beyond titles and salary
36:00 Neurodiversity, ADHD, dyslexia, and big-picture thinking
41:55 How diversity fuels innovation—and why inclusion sustains it
43:16 Diversity, innovation and inclusion to build high-performance teams
49:43 Five-year vision: learning, travel, wellness, and global impact
52:54 Where to find Sharmin and how to connect
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Support the podcast:- If you enjoy Choose Work, you can support it with a small voluntarycontribution (even the price of a coffee) via Buy Me a Coffee: buymeacoffee.com/choosework
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For show notes, please visit heididelanghe.com/podcast
For feedback or suggestions for topics or guests, email me at contact@heididelanghe.com
Contact Heidi - Career & Leadership Coach • Expert inGiftedness • Mindfulness Teacher:
- Book a free discovery call at heididelanghe.com/contact
- Linkedin: linkedin.com/in/heididelanghe
- Instagram: instagram.com/heididelanghe.coaching/

I had the privilege of speaking with Professor Filip De Fruyt, who brings over 35 years of expertise in academic research and international business consultancy.
🎓 Filip is a Senior Full Professor of Differential Psychology and Personality Assessment at Ghent University and serves as International Relationships Officer at Low Lands Assessment Systems.
This episode in English is a deep dive into Person-Environment Fit (P-EFit) - and why it’s central to understanding careers, performance, and employee retention.
💡 Key insights from our conversation:
🔹 For over three decades, Filip has studied the intersection of how people work and perform (Big Five personality model) and what they do (Holland’s RIASEC vocational interest model).
🔹 Fit can be supplementary or complementary — a crucial consideration when hiring.
🔹 Fit is dynamic, not static: your role at 28 may no longer be the right fit at 32.
🔹 Organisations often over-focus on performance, but should also align employees’ learning and development with their vocational interests - critical in today's fast-changing job market.
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 Resources Referenced:
- Low Lands Assessment Systems: https://lowlandsassessmentsystems.com/en
- Lola-test: https://lowlandsassessmentsystems.com/en/explore-your-passion- The Big Five or Five-Factor Model: dimensions of neuroticism, extraversion, openness, agreeableness, and conscientiousness
- John Holland's theory of vocational interests, the "RIASECmodel": interest domains of Realistic, Investigative, Artistic, Social, Enterprising, and Conventional
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Support the podcast:- If you enjoy Choose Work, you can support it with a small voluntarycontribution (even the price of a coffee) via Buy Me a Coffee: buymeacoffee.com/choosework
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Contact Filip De Fruyt: 
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/filip-de-fruyt/
- Google Scholar: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=aqL24tgAAAAJ&hl=en
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Contact Heidi - Career & Leadership Coach • Expert inGiftedness • Mindfulness Teacher:
- Book a free discovery call here: www.heididelanghe.com/contact
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/heididelanghe/
- LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/heididelanghe

#CareerDevelopment #PersonEnvironmentFit #Psychology #FutureOfWork #BigFive #RIASEC #EmployeeEngagement