Executive Culture Coach at Blue Agile GmbH | Empowering leaders to foster a culture of excellence and innovation through coaching executives, enabling teams to surpass their potential and achieve remarkable results.

I’m Eva Gysling, a three-time Olympic swimmer and executive/team leader with 35+ years in complex organisations. I know real pressure - on the starting block and in the boardroom - and how much potential gets wasted when culture is left to chance, systems are poorly designed, and leadership behaviour goes unchallenged.

My work sits where Olympic mindset, executive leadership, culture and corporate mental health meet. Burnout isn’t an individual weakness, and “tough” leadership doesn’t justify daily micro-suffering - especially when it’s driven by bad behaviour. High performance without psychological safety is a contradiction. If people pay with health or dignity, it’s not performance, it’s system failure and a culture problem.

That’s why I created The Executive Edge - ASPIRE: a clear six-module framework for senior leaders who build healthy high-performance cultures on purpose. ASPIRE turns intent into standards, rituals and tools across:

• Pressure design
• Accountability
• Resilience
• Strategic agility
• Team confidence
• Culture anchoring

Purpose:
Design pressure, behaviour and collaboration so people can deliver ambitious results while staying healthy, respected and appreciated.

Who I work with (DACH)
• Senior leaders in tech, healthcare and other disruptive environments (and their leadership teams)
• People & Culture / HR leaders responsible for culture, mental health and leadership quality
• Interprofessional bridge leaders (Product, IT, Ops, Clinical/Service) living in the friction between silos
• Selected consultants, coaches and executive-education partners who want an Olympic-tested, tool-rich system to plug into their work

Together, we redesign how pressure, workload, behaviour, collaboration and culture are handled so leaders don’t have to choose between results and system health.

What I don’t do:
I don’t train people to “be more resilient” so they can tolerate the intolerable. No glossy wellbeing without accountability. No treating bad leadership as a private issue. Psychological safety is infrastructure, non-negotiable, measurable, and owned.

What working with me feels like:
Calm under pressure; direct, respectful and appreciative; Olympic-level standards with high respect for people. We install small, robust rituals/behaviors that hold when things get tough: clearer decisions, fairer load, healthier teams, and more honest collaboration. Proof, not slogans.

If this sounds like your world, let’s explore whether ASPIRE can help you build the healthy high-performance culture you actually want to own.

Eva Gysling, OLY

Most people remember one leader from their career.
Not the title → The feeling...

That feeling came from:
→ being trusted early.
→ before confidence felt solid.
→ before everything was figured out.

And also sometimes...

✅ A responsibility handed over sooner than expected.
✅ A decision made without someone stepping in.
✅ Support shown publicly when things got uncomfortable.

Those moments stay.

↳ They change how people think about themselves.
↳ They stop waiting for permission.
↳ They start taking responsibility.

This is where leadership actually shows up.

Power moves work forward in the moment.

Empowerment builds people who move work forward again and again.

That difference compounds over time.

- People think deeper.
- They own outcomes.
- They solve problems without being asked.

And eventually:

+ Teams become stronger.
+ Cultures become clearer.
+ Results stop depending on one person.

Leadership scales through the people around it.

The strongest leaders understand this.
Their focus shifts from control to capability.
From directing work to developing judgment.

The impact lasts longer than any role or title.

Leadership shows up in the people who grow under it.
That’s how leaders become great.

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3x Olympian | Executive Sparring Partner for Senior Leaders in D-A-CH | The Executive Edge - ASPIRE: High performance that protects people’s health and dignity

You don’t need more time.

You need fewer decisions.

Most people exhaust themselves
deciding what to do next.

That’s not productivity.
That’s friction.

Here’s my personal blueprint for focus and flow - simple, practical, repeatable:

1️⃣ The Anchor Task
Forget the endless to-do list.

Pick one non-negotiable task each day.
Finish it and the day counts.

Everything else is extra.

2️⃣ Energy Mapping
Stop managing hours.

Start managing energy.

High energy → deep, creative work.
Low energy → admin, emails, chores.

Match the task to your state, not the clock.

3️⃣ The 2-Minute Rule
If it takes under 120 seconds, do it now.

Tiny tasks create invisible stress.
This clears it before it stacks.

4️⃣ Digital Fortressing
Focus is a finite resource.

Treat it like one.

Phone in another room.
Messages checked at set times.

Constant availability is not a performance metric.

5️⃣ The “Clear the Deck” Ritual
End the day on purpose.

Last 10 minutes:
– Tidy your space
– Close the tabs
– Write tomorrow’s Anchor Task

Future-you starts calm, not behind.

Time management isn’t about control.

It’s about design.

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Top Voice —Follow for posts on leadership, high-performance, and peak productivity 🦉 I help business leaders reclaim their time and accomplish more by leveraging the expertise of our top 1% offshore executive assistants

Favikon recognized me as one of their Rising Stars and ranked me as the #1 LinkedIn creator in the U.S. for the Remote Work and Digital Nomading category.

A milestone that reflects the people I serve.

It’s about the leaders, executive assistants, and virtual teams I have the privilege of supporting every day.

𝗛𝗲𝗿𝗲’𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗜 𝗯𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗲𝘃𝗲:
Time is a leader's most valuable resource.
Too often, it's drained by endless demands.

𝗪𝗵𝘆 𝗮𝗺 𝗜 𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗼𝗻 𝗟𝗶𝗻𝗸𝗲𝗱𝗜𝗻?
Because the world needs more successful leaders who create meaningful change.

My purpose is to help them get there.

𝗠𝘆 𝗺𝗶𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗶𝘀 𝘀𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲:
Help CEOs and founders win back their time, elevate their leadership, and become as strategic and wise with their time as they are with their decisions.

By partnering with exceptional remote executive assistants, we create room for:

↳ Strategic thinking
↳ Lasting success
↳ Well-being in the future of work

Our VEAs take care of the tasks that drain your time and energy, so you can lead with clarity and purpose.

Curious to learn how this could work for you? 

DM me the word “Delegate” or Book a Free Discovery Call to see how our Vera Executive OS Plan can give you the freedom, focus, and productivity you’ve been missing!

Virtual Executive Assistant
Outsourcing
Offshore Talent 
Offshore Executive Assistant
Executive Support
Administrative Assistant

Sandra Pellumbi

Want to grow fast in your career? Here’s how: 

Sit beside someone who’s already a few steps ahead.

You don’t grow by chasing people ahead of you.

You grow by sitting close enough to feel their pace.

Growth has a rhythm 

and the right people tune you to it.

When you’re around those who move with purpose,

you start questioning your own excuses.

You start thinking bigger.

You start believing you can.

That’s the silent power of proximity.

No lectures. No pressure. Just presence.

Look at who you spend your time with.

Are they reminding you of your potential…

or your limits?

Choose your circle wisely.

The room you’re in will shape the person you become.

P.S. Curious, is there someone in your circle who quietly pushes you to aim higher?

Credit to Dora Vanourek for the powerful message that inspired this post.

—
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🦉Top 1% Remote Work LinkedIn Creator 🇺🇸 Favikon | Follow for insights on leadership, remote work & systems to save time + accelerate growth⚡️35M+ impressions 🤝Helping CEOs & founders scale with world-class remote EAs

I notice this quiet pattern in so many capable people.

They downplay what they know.
Second-guess what they feel.
Pause right before they step forward.

Not because they’re unprepared
but because they’ve learned to doubt themselves faster than they doubt the situation.

We don’t submit the proposal.
We don’t send the message.
We don’t apply, publish, pitch, or ask.

And then we call it being realistic.

Most doors don’t close on us
we quietly close them ourselves.

Talent isn’t the problem.
Capability isn’t the problem.

Courage to move before certainty is.

So let this be your reminder today:

Apply anyway.
Share it anyway.
Send it anyway.
Ask anyway.

You are far more capable than the version of you that hesitates.

Don’t disqualify yourself before anyone else does.

PS. If this resonated, repost and follow Sandra Pellumbi for more.

Employees don’t quit jobs. 
They quit the way they’re treated.

Most companies say they value their people.

Yet fail to create cultures where people actually feel valued.

But here's what actually makes people stay:

✅ Paid Well – Compensation reflects their worth
✅ Heard – Their voice actually matters
✅ Respected – Not just for what they do, but who they are
✅ Challenged – Growth is encouraged, not stifled
✅ Trusted – Micromanagement doesn’t exist
✅ Supported – Through wins and setbacks
✅ Recognized – Effort is seen, not overlooked
✅ Included – A real part of the bigger picture
✅ Developed – Opportunities to learn and grow
✅ Appreciated – Beyond performance metrics
✅ Empowered – Given autonomy, not just tasks
✅ Promoted – Hard work leads somewhere

Remember:
Retention isn't a strategy. 
It's an outcome of how you treat people every day.

Start by asking your team: 
"What makes you feel truly valued here?"

P.S. What’s one thing that made you stay in a role longer? 👇

—
♻️ Repost to help leaders build cultures people don't want to leave.
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Controlling your emotions is a superpower, especially at work.

Disrespect doesn’t always show up as shouting.

Sometimes it’s subtle.

A dismissive comment. 
A passive-aggressive tone.

And in that moment, you either react emotionally, or respond like a leader.

Here are 10 go-to phrases to help you hold your ground without losing your cool:

❌ “Whatever.”
✅ “Let’s keep this professional. I want this to be a productive conversation.”

❌ “You always interrupt me.”
✅ “I’d like to finish my thought before we move on.”

❌ “You clearly don’t respect me.”
✅ “I value respectful dialogue. Can we start again?”

❌ “Wow, that was rude.”
✅ “I’d appreciate a more respectful tone so we can move forward productively.”

❌ “You never listen.”
✅ “Let’s reset. I’m here to collaborate, not to compete.”

❌ “You’re being impossible.”
✅ “I’m open to different perspectives, but mutual respect is non-negotiable.”

❌ “That’s not true at all.”
✅ “I don’t think that assumption is fair. Let me clarify.”

❌ “Are you serious right now?”
✅ “Let’s stay focused on the facts so we can move forward productively.”

❌ “If you’ve got a problem, say it.”
✅ “If there’s a concern, I’m happy to address it directly and respectfully.”

❌ “I’m done with this.”
✅ “Let’s take a moment and revisit this when we’re both in a better headspace.”

Remember:
You can’t control how others speak to you

but you can control how you respond.

Agree?

P.S. What’s one phrase you wish you had said during a difficult moment?

—
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How to handle disrespect without losing control.png

You’ll know who the real leaders are...

when things get hard.

Because anyone can delegate.

Not everyone will defend.

True leadership shows up when:

- Credit is being handed out.
- Blame is flying around.
- Burnout is creeping in.
- Politics get loud.
- Recognition gets quiet.

Here’s what real leaders do when it matters:

1️⃣ They stand between their team and the storm.
→ Not because it’s easy but because that’s what leadership requires.

2️⃣ They protect energy, not just output.
→ Healthy teams don’t just perform, they last.

3️⃣ They advocate when it’s inconvenient.
→ It’s not about being liked. It’s about being right by your people.

4️⃣ They fight for fairness, not favors.
→ Because fair pay, fair credit, and fair workloads build trust.

5️⃣ They make it safe to speak up.
→ Courage at the top creates permission below.

6️⃣ They show what loyalty looks like.
→ The kind that isn’t performative, but proven.

Managers tell people what to do.

Leaders show people what they’re worth.

Because when leaders fight for their team, 

the team fights for the mission.

Do you agree?

P.S. Have you ever had a leader like that?

Credit to Daksh Sethi for the powerful visual.

—
♻️ Repost this if you’ve ever worked for someone who had your back.
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Managers who fight for their team are true leaders.jpeg

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