About Me — Sophie VL
A human figuring things out and documenting the journey.
Hi, I’m Sophie. I’m the odd combination of creative and analytical, ballsy but insecure, and both a spontaneous social butterfly and an introverted geek at the same time.
I used to be very good at introducing myself and telling my background story, using labels based on what I did in life. Like we all do. “I’m a full-time business analyst”, “I’m an online marketing coach”, “I’m a blogger and barista”… Labels that fit at one point or another, but are undeniably fleeting and left me with a big question mark around my identity.
These days I refer to myself as a human. A human with a unique personality, a big heart, and a lot of passions. A label that will suit me forever.
As far as my story goes, the one thing I can really tell you is that I am on a journey. I would love to say I finally have the life of my dreams so I can give you all the tips & tricks in my content —but I don’t. I’m currently not sure what my future will look like and I’m in the midst of a heavy personal growth season, but you know what? Life is a lot better than the time (I thought) I had it all figured out.
An Honest Backstory
I got my bachelor’s and my master’s degrees in business and studied marketing at business school afterward. I had a little obsession with wanting to speak at least four languages, so I managed to go to school or work in Dutch, French, English, and Spanish. That meant I could not only speak fluently but I got my accent right as well. Mission accomplished.
After college, I gained over three years of corporate experience in finance, marketing, and business Intelligence. I enjoyed my jobs but I was always running blogs on the side to feed my hunger for creativity & learning. I tend to get bored and anxious when I’m not learning something, growing somehow, or working on a creative project. An annoying little habit.
The topics I covered in my blogs were mainly related to health and fitness. I was that fit girl who was always trying new healthy recipes and working out in some way or another. I loved lifting weights and interval training, I regularly did running and badminton competitions and I always went to work by bike so I could stay active.
Up until then, I looked like I had it all together. I was succeeding in all areas of my life, never backing away from challenges and nailing everything I set my mind to.
Behind the scenes, I was an anxious mess. I had a bad case of perfectionism and spent my time beating myself up and procrastinating because I didn’t want to create anything that wasn’t “perfect”. I couldn’t get things done without strict deadlines anymore, which somehow became something to be proud of ‘cause I could handle a lot of stress and deliver anyway. Of course, the stress was self-inflicted, plus it came with a fair amount of emotional eating and stomach aches.
Over time I developed an extremely unhealthy relationship with food and a very negative body image. I suffered from bulimia and hid it from my friends and family for 7 years. On the outside, it looked like I had the perfect healthy lifestyle, but on the inside, it was a totally different picture.
The Turning Point
I knew something was off, I knew my anxiety wasn’t normal. There had to be a reason I couldn't feel balanced or peaceful. But since I refused to get help and admit I had a problem, I decided to dive deep into mental health literature myself. I spent months devouring all kinds of psychology and mindset books written by important authors and coaches, but also any textbook I could find on understanding the human mind.
Then I got ICF-certified in coaching and took additional courses on cognitive behavior therapy and neuro-linguistic programming. I also went back to college to take classes and I plan to eventually finish my bachelor’s in psychology. Yes, still an overachiever with too much on her plate — working on it.
A while before that, I turned my latest blog into an actual business. I created content about marketing and mindset and coached other online entrepreneurs to help them grow their business. Growing your online business as a solopreneur is more impacted by your own brain than any strategy you could ever try, so mindset coaching is a big part of the package. I loved it.
I got a life coach myself and I started going to therapy too. I recovered from my eating disorder two years ago and was able to develop healthier habits in relation to food and fitness. I quit my job to pursue my business full-time and I finally felt like I made it. I woke up pretty happy most of my mornings, experienced glimpses of inner peace, and was on my way to building a joyful life.
Most of the entrepreneurial stories I read end here, with the success story. They talk about how they overcame every obstacle and now have all the things they dreamed about. But that’s not real life, is it?
The reality is — even though I was earning a decent income and enjoying my freedom, I became increasingly lonely. I was running an entirely virtual business while isolating myself from my personal environment. I became a socially awkward human being and felt like my personality was dying a slow death.
Deep down I knew this wasn’t the ideal long-term lifestyle for me. I got a part-time job as a barista so I could be around people more often, which changed everything. I felt happy again. I loved going to work every day and looked forward to all my shifts. Annoyingly, I started to love my barista job a lot more than my own business, which set off a series of weekly panic attacks I’m still trying to manage. Imagine finally building the business of your dreams only to realize it doesn’t actually make you happy… It sucks.
The Road to an Intentional Life
This is when I realized life is an ongoing journey and I still have a lot of figuring out to do. There is no point in time when you finally make it and everything is amazing. There’s just the journey and enjoying the process.
I’m currently trying to discover what truly makes me happy, I’m doing a lot of work on myself and I’m figuring out my next professional move. I’m studying what it means to live intentionally, I’m re-examining my choices in life, and trying to put it into practice every day.
On Medium, I share this journey and all the insights I’m getting along the way.
