What if career success didn’t mean climbing higher - but choosing how you spend your time?

In this episode of Play It by Your Rules, I sit down with Ani Filipova - former Citi COO turned portfolio career strategist - to unpack what it really means to step off the traditional career ladder and design a working life that fits your priorities.

Ani shares how she intentionally moved away from a single, full-time corporate role - not to work less, but to work differently: with more autonomy, flexibility, and control over where her time and energy go. For her, a portfolio career isn’t about chaos or juggling - it’s about choice.

We explore what portfolio careers look like in practice, who they’re for, and why they’re becoming a powerful alternative for experienced professionals who want freedom without starting from scratch.

• Why portfolio careers unlock freedom - especially around how, when, and with whom you work

• What Ani carried from corporate into her portfolio - and what she consciously left behind

• How she defines a portfolio career (and why it’s not just for entrepreneurs)

• Fractional work: what it is - and why it’s still emerging in places like Switzerland

• The mindset shift from “one role” to “multiple value streams”

• Why experimenting before quitting is smarter than making a clean break

• Audit how you spend your time - freedom starts with awareness

• Run small experiments (projects, advisory roles, fractional work) before committing

• Design your portfolio around energy and values, not just income streams

This episode is for anyone who feels successful on paper - but constrained in real life - and wants more freedom over their time without burning everything down.

🔗 Follow Ani on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anifilipova/

🌱 Change Is Possible Community: https://changeispossible.co.uk/

🚀 Portfolio Career Accelerator: https://simplebooklet.com/portfolio_career_accelerator#page=1

🎧 Listen to Ani’s podcast: Change Is Possible Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/@ChangeIsPossiblePodcast

Your life. Your rules. For more freedom, flow, and fun.

Teamwork doesn’t magically happen just because people share a Zoom link.

In this episode, I talk with Daria Rudnik - Team Architect, Executive Coach, and author of CLICKING: A Team Building Strategy for Overloaded Leaders Who Want Stronger Team Trust, Better Results, and More Time - about why so many teams underperform, especially under pressure… and how to design teams that work.

Because just like people, teams need to play by their own rules - and it’s a leader’s job to help them define what that looks like.

Daria breaks down the 5 essential pillars that make teams click (spoiler: most leaders skip 3 of them), how to balance autonomy and alignment, and how to avoid the biggest trap of servant leadership.

We also dig into AI’s impact on collaboration - and what happens when teams offload too much to tech.

We covered:

• Why teams don’t “just happen” - and need intentional architecture

• The 5 pillars of team design: purpose, connection, integration, decision-making, and knowledge flow

• What to do when you inherit a messy team

• Why clarity is your secret weapon - at all levels

• The hidden risks of servant leadership (and how to empower without isolating)

• How to stay human in the age of AI - and keep your brain on

Practical Takeaways:

• Start with conversation: co-create team norms and decisions together

• Bring clarity to your rules, roles, and routines

• Use AI as a partner - not a crutch. Your brain needs to stay engaged.

This episode is for every leader who wants to build strong, self-led teams — and give them the clarity and confidence to fly.

🔗 Explore more: 📘 Daria’s book CLICKING: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FN4S6P37 🌐 dariarudnik.com 💼 Connect on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/dariarudnik

Your life. Your rules. For more freedom, flow, and fun.

It’s that time again - fresh goals, new intentions, big dreams. But let’s be honest: most resolutions don’t make it past February.

So… why don’t our habits stick? And more importantly - what actually works?

In this episode, I sit down with Ivan Palomino - behavioral science strategist and unapologetic habit hacker — to unpack the science behind human behavior and habit change. Spoiler: it’s not about motivation. It’s about design.

Ivan blends neuroscience, psychology, and real-life experimentation (including his own burnout and career reinvention) to help you create lasting change — with way less effort than you think.

We covered:

• Why we operate on autopilot 90% of the time — and how to use that to your advantage

• The 4 brain rules that shape your decisions (emotion, effort, illusion, and reward)

• How to build habits by stacking them on existing routines

• The difference between rituals, motivation, and capacity

• Why your willpower was never the problem

• Tiny habits that lead to massive ripple effects

✨ Practical Takeaways:

• Pick ONE habit — do it daily for 30 days before adding more

• Use immediate rewards and low-effort design to reduce friction

• Track progress in ways that create satisfaction (not stress)

This episode is for anyone tired of failing at New Year’s goals — and ready to build change that lasts.

Your life. Your rules. For more freedom, flow, and fun.

Links: 🔗 Connect with Ivan on LinkedIn 🌐 Learn more at ivanpalomino.net ▶️ Watch more on YouTube – Growth Hacking Culture 📬 Subscribe to Ivan’s Newsletter on LinkedIn

What if selling yourself didn’t feel fake, forced, or awkward - but natural, connecting on a human level, like meeting a new friend or dating?

In this episode, I sit down with Curt Tueffert, award-winning sales expert, keynote speaker, professor, and “Selling Skills Sherpa” to explore how anyone (yes, including purpose-driven professionals, introverts, and impact seekers) can confidently bring sales strategies into their job search without compromising authenticity.

With 40+ years of real-world experience, Curt shares how job seekers can borrow from the best sales teams starting not with a pitch, but with curiosity, listening, and value. We also dig into the art and science of selling and how to apply both to your career conversations.

We covered:

• Why the best salespeople - and job candidates - start with listening

• ABC redefined: Always Be Curious

• The IMPACT formula for sales success and how to apply it to interviews

• Why you must believe in your value before others will

• The underrated power of “driving trial” and how pro bono work can open doors

• How to speak to problems, not just profiles and make people want to know more

✨ Practical Takeaways:

• Start by listening - curiosity builds connection and trust

• Know your value inside-out, it’s the foundation of all confident communication

• Offer a “test drive” whether it’s a short project, workshop, or bold idea

This episode is for anyone ready to finally have fun selling — your skills, your story, your value.

How to get started? Curt suggests drafting 8 curiosity questions to use when meeting new people - 2 each under the acronym FORM: 🟢 Family 🟦 Occupation 🟣 Recreation 🟠 Motivation

Your life. Your rules. For more freedom, flow, and fun.

Links: 🔗 Learn more about Curt and his work 📘 5 Stones for Slaying Giants and other resources at PeakSalesStrategy.com

What if showing your value didn’t require shouting, hustling, or pretending to be louder than you are?

In this episode of Play It by Your Rules, I sit down with Melitta Campbell - award-winning business coach, TEDx speaker, bestselling author, and the creator of “Value Whispering.”

Melitta teaches a simple and refreshing truth: You don’t need to be louder. You need to be clearer.

And while her approach resonates deeply with introverts, it’s not just for them. If you’ve ever felt awkward talking about yourself, overwhelmed by visibility advice, or turned off by noisy marketing… this conversation will feel like a breath of fresh air.

We dive into:

• What Value Whispering is - and why it works better than self-promotion
• The real visibility challenges introverts face (hint: it’s not shyness)
• Why many “visibility hacks” backfire for thoughtful leaders and entrepreneurs
• How to communicate your value without overexplaining or overselling
• Melitta’s 3 pillars of quiet confidence
• How to build a business - or career - that fits your voice, not someone else’s blueprint

✨ Practical takeaways you can try today:

1️⃣ Name your “why now.” What is the deeper reason behind your work that naturally draws people in? 2️⃣ Craft your one-sentence value whisper. Clear. Honest. No hype. 3️⃣ Pick one visibility habit that feels energizing - and do it for one week.

This episode is for anyone who wants to be seen and heard without burning out, pretending, or shouting over the noise.

A quiet confidence approach — for more freedom, flow, and fun.

🔗 Explore Melitta’s work:

Download the first chapter of her new book: http://www.melittacampbell.com/chapter

Website: www.melittacampbell.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/Melitta

What if your biggest transformation starts with just 90 seconds of courage?

This episode unpacks how impromptu speaking can help you rewrite not just your script - but your identity.

Tara Gopal Chattopadhyay is a Distinguished Toastmaster, global tech leader, and culture-shifting communicator - and President of the Impact Toastmasters Club in Geneva. He shares how leaving his hometown - and later, his comfort zone - helped him find his voice in every room.

We covered:

• Breaking free from the “stay quiet” script of his upbringing — and discovering the power of self-expression

• Why Toastmasters feels like walking into a bookstore — everyone is a story waiting to be heard

• How public speaking sharpens leadership — from boardrooms to job interviews

• Cultural cues and communication: why some teams speak up in writing but stay silent in meetings

• Why stories stick — and how emotion beats metrics when it comes to influence

• Listening as an underrated leadership skill (and how Toastmasters trains that muscle)

• Using AI as a copilot — without outsourcing your originality

✨ Practical Takeaways:

• Try impromptu speaking (like table topics) to stretch your voice and spontaneity

• Journal longhand — it sharpens your thinking, voice, and self-trust

• Let AI be your brainstorm partner, not your ghostwriter - keep your voice human

Your life. Your rules. For more freedom, flow, and fun.

Links: 🔗 Connect with Tara on LinkedIn 🎤 Join us at Impact Toastmasters Geneva 🌐 Find a Toastmasters Club near you

From redefining ambition and walking away from the climb, to finding your non-negotiables and building a career with joy and presence - this is for anyone standing at a crossroads and craving more freedom, flow, and fun.

🎧 Listen now on all major podcast platforms. Just search Play It by Your Rules or Meggi Rombach and hit follow!

💬 Enjoyed this episode? Leave a review or share it with someone who needs to hear it. Your support helps spread the vibe.

👉 Want more? 🔗 Follow me on LinkedIn 🌐 Visit mindset-mastery.ch

What if the traits we label as “too much” — too intense, too detailed, too sensitive — were actually your team’s biggest untapped advantage?

In this episode of Play It by Your Rules, I sit down with Xenia Matthies — business psychologist, systemic consultant, and founder of NeuroSynergy® — to explore how neurodivergence can become a competitive edge in leadership and team design.

We dive into:

• The many shades of neurodivergence - and why our brain (and nervous system) work differently.
• “Spiky profiles”: what they are, how they show up, and why they can be a superpower for teams.
• Co-regulation as the next frontier of leadership - tuning into energy, creating safety, and leading with presence.
• Moving from awareness to action - building workplaces where everyone can thrive.
• The four pillars of neuroinclusion - at the individual, team, and leadership level: self-awareness, co-regulation, clarity, and structural support.
• Practical tools like cognitive team mapping and team playbooks - turning inclusion into daily practice.

✨ Practical takeaways you can try today Xenia’s 4 micro-rules for everyday neuroinclusion (or simply good management): 1️⃣ Ask instead of assume. 2️⃣ Share instead of expecting. 3️⃣ Observe before you interpret. 4️⃣ Together - rather than against each other.

Because the future of leadership isn’t just about emotional intelligence - it’s about neuro-intelligence.

🎧 This episode runs a bit longer to give space for a deeper dive into concepts such as co-regulation - what it is, how it works, and why it might just be the next leadership frontier. Tune in and see how these insights could reshape the way you lead, live, and collaborate.

🔗 Explore Xenia’s work - mostly in German: 🌐 Website: www.xeniamatthies.com

🎥 Online Keynotes:

• Führung braucht Klarheit (Online recording – paid): Watch here

• Abenteuer Neurodivergenz – Mein Survival-Kit für ein selbstbestimmtes Leben (Free): Watch here

📚 Books:

• Playbook Neuroinklusion — practical guide to neuroinclusion: Read here

• Manifestieren aus dem Nervensystem: Amazon link

• Mein Kind hat ADHS – und jetzt?: Amazon link

🎧 NeuroLeadership Podcast: www.xeniamatthies.com/podcasts/neuroleadership

What if midlife isn’t a crisis — but the ultimate leadership accelerator?

In this episode of Play It by Your Rules, I sit down with Aneace Haddad — global nomad, tech-entrepreneur-turned-coach, and author of Soaring Beyond Midlife — to explore why your 40s, 50s, and 60s might just be your most powerful chapter yet.

We dive into: 🔹 Why AI is a midlife advantage — and how experience + AI = rocket fuel. 🔹 The radical reframe: 50 is the midpoint, not the end — with two-thirds of your career still ahead. 🔹 Legacy as presence — creating moments now that echo for decades. 🔹 Why answers are cheap, but questions are priceless in the age of AI. 🔹 The neuroscience of midlife: slowing in some areas, but gaining a new superpower — comfort with paradox.

✨ Practical takeaways you can try today: 1️⃣ Name one identity you’re ready to release — and notice what expands when you do. 2️⃣ Swap “having the answers” for asking better questions. 3️⃣ Try the 100-Year Prompt: journal for 5 minutes on who you are at 100 — then choose one tiny step your future self would be proud of today.

This episode is for anyone in midlife — or approaching it — who’s felt doubt creeping in. Too late, too slow, too stuck. It’s here to flip that script and remind you: midlife can be your most expansive chapter yet.

🔗 Explore Aneace’s work: 💻 aneace.com 📖 Soaring Beyond Midlife: The Surprisingly Natural Emergence of Leadership Superpowers in Life's Second Half → Get the book

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🎧 Listen now on all major podcast platforms. Just search Play It by Your Rules or Meggi Rombach and hit follow!

👉 Inspired? Share this with someone who needs a midlife reframe.

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