Career Coach | Helping You Design Your Dream Career and Land Your Ideal Job | Life's Too Short To Settle, So Don't!

Feeling Stuck in Your Career? Let's Change That!

You know that nagging feeling when your career isn't quite right? When you've worked hard, achieved success, but something's still missing? 

I get it, because I've been there myself and I'm here to help professionals in the Netherlands, just like you, get unstuck and land high-paying, fulfilling jobs. 


- What I Do
I guide expats and local professionals to design careers they're truly passionate about. No more living for the weekends or dreading Monday mornings!

✅ Achieve laser-focused clarity on your ideal career path
✅ Create a compelling personal brand that attracts dream opportunities
✅ Master insider secrets to stand out in the Dutch job market
✅ Negotiate confidently and secure the package you deserve


- Why Work With Me?
I worked in recruitment for a decade, from start-ups to Fortune 500s, and saw firsthand the effects of having an unfulfilling career. I've interviewed thousands of people on the subject of career fulfilment and discovered the pattern of what makes people fulfilled in their careers and what doesn't.

I also realised that if applied, anyone could have a fulfilling career, and this is what I now teach my clients. Here's what you'll gain:

🚀 Accelerated Career Progression: Land your dream job faster than the industry average
🔍 Deep Self-Understanding: Uncover what truly drives you and aligns with your values
💪 Boosted Confidence: Showcase your unique skills and experiences with pride
🇳🇱 Dutch Market Expertise: Benefit from specialised knowledge of the landscape in the Netherlands


- My Guarantee
I'm so confident in my approach that I guarantee you'll identify and land a fulfilling job. I'll work with you until you do – no exceptions.

I've helped hundreds of people step into their dream jobs. You can read what some of them say in my testimonials at the bottom of this page 🤗

Ready to Redefine Your Career?
👉 DM me here on LinkedIn to book a free career strategy consultation
👉 Visit alicegraves.com for more insights and resources

Remember, life's too short to settle for an unfulfilling career. Let's design a future you're excited about – starting today!

P.S. Curious about how my clients get clear on their next steps? Check out my free workbook in the Featured section!

The STAR method is overcomplicated and honesty....I really don't like it!  I believe there's a much simpler method....

Situation. Task. Action. Result.

Task and action? Who actually talks like that?

It feels unnatural. And when something feels unnatural, it's hard for your brain to hold onto it under pressure.

Which is exactly when you don't want to forget your framework.

In an interview, under pressure, people staring at you waiting for your answer.... 

Your brain is already working overtime in an interview. The last thing it needs is four steps to navigate mid-sentence.

So here's what I teach instead.

Three steps. That's it.

The Trailer. Movie. Final Scene.

(Yes, I love films 😁)

I find it much simpler to remember and personally...I think the answers it produces are so much better! 

Watch the video below where I break down exactly how to use it 👇

My clients who struggled with STAR found this method clicked for them straight away.

So if you relate, give it a try.

And if you want help perfecting your interview answers, drop me a DM. It makes more of a difference than you'd think. 🎯

Alice Graves-Nguyen

Hey! I'm happy you're here. I know you're frustrated and overwhelmed. You used to love your job and now you're not so sure. 

Your priorities have changed and you're questioning if you're making the right choices for the person you are now. 

I know how you feel, because I've been there myself.

I worked in recruitment for over decade and my clients ranged from Fortune 500s to start-ups.

And I loved my work!  

Everyday for 10 years I loved going into work. I really, loved my work.

And then I had my wonderful children and things changed. My priorities changed.

And yet there was a part of me that didn't want anything to change. 

I wondered if I was selling out if I wasn't so driven? 
Was I weak if I wanted to leave early to collect my son? 
Was I a 'bad' employee if I didn't think about work on the weekends because I was having too much fun making cupcakes with my kids?

I didn't want to give up my career. 

I've always loved working it's brought me so much fun in my life, but I was struggling to define the new person I was and to figure out how to fit my career into my new life and the new me. 

I felt very lost and confused and it is a very confusing time for parents. 

I spent a good few years navigating that journey. 

Working out the new me, because as much as we hate to admit it, we do change after having kids.

And in that journey I found a way to reignite my passion for work, so I could have a fulfilling career that aligns with my new priorities in life.

Because I wanted to enjoy my work again, but at the time I really didn't know how to balance it all. 

So if you relate to what I went through and you're ready to feel excited again when you go to work, drop me a DM! 

Please don't spend the next 20 years of your life waking up everyday feeling un-inspired. It really doesn't have to be that way, so let me help you. 

DM me now!

Career Coach | Professionals in the Netherlands come to me to get unstuck in their careers and land high paying fulfilling jobs | DM me and book your Free Career Strategy Consultation

If you're unhappy, you are allowed to change..I know that sounds obvious, but you'd be amazed how many people don't believe this.....

They've been in the wrong job, the wrong career, the wrong environment for so long that somewhere along the way they stopped believing they had a choice.

They started calling it practical and realistic.

But really?

It was just fear dressed up in sensible clothing.

I know because I've been there.

And I know because I speak to people every single day who are living a version of their life they don't want.

Maybe that's you today.

Maybe you woke up this Monday with that familiar heaviness.

That quiet voice that says something needs to change.

Here's what I want you to know.

That voice is not being unrealistic 

It's wise.

And it's been trying to get your attention for years!!!

You don't have to have it all figured out and you absolutely do not have to hand in your notice or blow up your life!

You just have to take one teeny tiny step in the direction of something different 

One honest conversation with yourself. One application you've been too scared to send. One DM to someone who might open a door.

Because here's what I know for certain after years of helping people change their careers 

The people who change their lives aren't the ones who had it all figured out.

They're the ones who got tired of waiting until they did.

And they took one small step on a Monday morning just like this one.

So if something needs to change 

Change it 💙

👉 If today's the day you decide things are going to be different, DM me. Let's figure out what your first step looks like.

Everyone knows what to do. Customise your CV. Network.
Prepare for interviews. Every career coach will tell you the same thing.
But here's what nobody's telling you....

Knowing WHAT to do and knowing what to do FOR YOU are two completely different things.

👉 Someone tells you they used Easy Apply and got a job in a month.
So you try it.
Nothing.

👉Someone says they networked their way into their dream role.
So you network.
Nothing.

I call this the copy and paste problem...

And you start to think, what's wrong with me?

Nothing is wrong with you.

But the Easy Apply person came from a brand name company that recruiters are lining up to hire from.

The networking person had a Harvard network full of people who owed them favours.

But if that's not you, then their methods won't work for you....
What worked for Paul won't  work for Peter.

Your strategy has to match YOUR reality.
Your market value.
Your timeline.
Your specific situation.

I had a client who had been searching for nine months. She was on a tight timeline.  We threw out everything she'd been doing, built a strategy around her situation.
She had a job in 30 days.

Another client, totally different situation. No urgency, niche experience, wants to switch industries entirely. For him we built a completely different strategy. 

Both clients found new jobs, but if they had used the same strategy it would have failed. 

Stop copying what worked for someone else.
Figure out YOUR market value. YOUR timeline. YOUR situation.
Then build a strategy around that and watch what happens.

👉 If you're putting in the effort but not seeing the results, the problem probably isn't your work ethic. It's your strategy. DM me and let's build one that actually fits you.

If you've landed a new job and still feel empty... this is why.

When you're unhappy at work, you want out. And Fast.

So a new job looks like the answer!

But here's what I've learned after years of coaching people through career changes

The timeline isn't the problem. The rush is.

Because before you can find the right role... you have to find yourself again.

And that takes time.

Most of us have spent years, sometimes decades, hiding who we really are at work.

Wearing the mask, being who we thought we were supposed to be.

You can't undo that in a week.
You can't figure out what truly lights you up in a day.
You can't reconnect with your strengths, your values, the kind of environment where you actually thrive... in an hour.

And if you skip that work? You'll land a new job, but six months later you'll be sitting in a different office feeling exactly the same way.

And unfortunately I see this pattern play out time and time again

But the people who genuinely enjoy their work and life are the ones who gave themselves permission to slow down first.

To ask the uncomfortable questions
To sit with the uncertainty and do the inner work before the outer.

So if you're feeling the pressure to just go, go, go right now...

Take a breath. Stop for a moment. 🧘

It might feel like you'll miss the "perfect" opportunity if you don't apply to every job out there. 

But I promise you, pausing to figure out what YOU actually want, and why you're unhappy where you are is going to save you soooooo much time in the long run.

👉 If you're ready to slow down and do this properly, DM me. That's exactly where we start.

My dad said he'd be so disappointed if I ended up in some boring office job. I was 25 when my acting career failed and those words were louder than anything else in my head.

Because I hadn't just failed a career, I'd failed him (or so I thought)

So I ran away to Thailand for a year. Not because I wanted an adventure, but because I was too ashamed to face anyone.

But here's what I've learnt since then and what I see playing out with so many of my clients 

So many of us are walking around with a loud, disruptive voice in our heads, and it's not our voice!!!

Its the voice of the parent, or teacher, or culture. 

It's the version of success someone else decided was the only one for us

And no matter how hard you work, or promotions you get, or how impressive your title looks 

It'll never be enough

Because you're not chasing your dream, you're still trying to silence that voice

I see it constantly.
- The client who's chased a director title for years, only to realise she never actually wanted it.
- The client who keeps changing jobs thinking the next one will fix it, but it never does
- The client who earns crazy money and looks successful from the outside but dreads Monday mornings more than most people dread a dentist!

The job changes don't fix it

Because the job was never the problem

The was the noise.

So that's where we start.

Not with your CV or LinkedIn

But with YOU!  

And we ask the question most people are terrified to ask themselves:
Who are you? Not the person you need to be to 'fit in' or 'be loved' 

But the real raw you

And when you can answer that question

That's when the noise finally stops

And the right path is so easy to see

That's the work I do.

And it frees my clients to finally open the door to the career that actually fits them

Not who they were told they 'had' to be 

If ready to silence that voice, then I'd love to talk

Drop me a DM and let's figure out who you really are and what YOU actually want ❤️

The most heartbreaking thing I hear from successful professionals?
"I don't know who I am anymore." Not from people who've failed, but from people who've done everything "right"......

And here's the thing, I think I know exactly when it happened.

Ask a five-year-old what they want to be and they'll tell you without blinking.

Zero hesitation and Zero shame! 

But ask a 38-year-old professional the same question.......

"I don't know."
"Something more meaningful, I think."
"I just want to feel excited again."

We act like adults are more complicated

But I don't think that's it

I think somewhere along the way, we forgot who we are.

Maybe someone laughed when you told them your dream and that hurt.

So your mind, your brilliant, protective mind, decided to bury that dream deep.

Because it was trying to protect you. It didn't want you to feel that pain again.

And for a while? It worked.

You distracted yourself. With promotions, salaries, holidays and the life you supposed to want 

But here's something a much wiser person than me once said:
Buried emotions don't die.

Urgh don't you just love that! And it's so true! 

Because those dreams you pushed down? They'll find a way to come back.

It's that creeping feeling that something's missing. The quiet voice that whispers: is this really it?

And that's why, when people join my Design Your Dream Career programme, we don't start with job titles.

We start with YOU.

Who are you, actually?
- Not who your parents wanted you to be.
- Not who your company needs you to be.
- Not who LinkedIn thinks you should be.

Who are YOU?

And the feedback I get from people going through this process?
It life changing! 

This isn't about quitting your job in a blaze of glory, it doesn't have to be dramatic.

For some people, just knowing who they are again, what they like, what makes them tick, what they actually value, is enough.

It's enough to make better decisions.
It's enough to stop tolerating things they never should have tolerated.
It's enough to finally feel like themselves again.

And sometimes that's everything.

The programme will open the door to your next chapter.

But what it will always give you, no matter what, is yourself back.

And that's worth more than any job title.

👉 If you've been feeling that quiet pull, that sense that there's more to you than your current role is allowing drop me a DM. Let's have a conversation. You might be closer to clarity than you think.

She turned down a €14,000 pay rise 😱  and felt nothing but relief 🤗 
How's that possible???

A few months ago, my client landed a role she loved

Great culture, great people and work that actually energised her!

Then out of nowhere, a well-known brand came knocking with a more senior role and a salary jump that would have made a very real difference to her life 

She reached out to me in a bit of a panic
"what should I do???"

And honestly? I understood her confusion

Because on paper, it looked like a no-brainer.

But here's what we did together.
We went back to the work she'd already done on herself.

The exercise where she'd mapped out what actually drives her long-term, not just what pays the bills for now, but her long-term vision

And when checked if the new role aligned with that?
It didn't

The role was pulling her away from the area she wanted to grow and away from the kind of work that lights her up

So she turned it down.

And the moment she did, she told me she didn't think about it again.
Not once.

And then she shared something that meant the world to me! 

She said:
"Would I have just taken the role with more money before working with you? Absolutely."

That's not indifference, that's clarity and she worked damn hard to get that.

That's what happens when you've done the real work and figured out who you are and what you want.

Because if you don't know what you actually want, every shiny offer will feel like the 'right' choice.

My programme frees you from making career decisions on autopilot.

It'll give you a framework so clear that when the big moment comes, you'll know exactly what to do.

It'll make it possible to turn down €14k and sleep like a baby.

If you're at a crossroads and you're not sure which way to go, that's usually a sign you haven't yet done the deeper work.

That's exactly where we start.

👉 DM me the word CLARITY and let's talk about what your next move should really look like.

I went to a networking event and ended up feeling like crap.....
Let me explain what happened


The event was incredible. Ambitious, beautiful, energetic women. I was talking, laughing, sharing. I was completely in my element.

And then I got on my bike to cycle home.

And that's when the voice arrived.

"Were you too loud?" "Did you talk too much?" "Were you too enthusiastic?" "Too much. Too much. Too much."

And just like that, the joy evaporated and was replaced by self-doubt and fear

Here's what's scary about that voice though. It doesn't just ruin your day

Over time, it changes your behaviour...

Because if every time you go to a networking event and the voice makes you feel like crap afterwards... you stop going.

If every time you speak up in a meeting and the voice gives you that nagging feeling... you stop speaking up.

If every time you chase the big opportunity and someone's voice (real or imagined) calls you "too ambitious"... you stop chasing.

You slowly, quietly, start shrinking yourself 

You start putting yourself in situations and environments that don't make you happy, but they keep the voice quiet.

And you do it for so long, you forget who you actually were.

It's not about finding a better job.
It's about understanding who you actually are.

Because when you know that, you choose the right environments for you. 
You choose the right people to surround yourself with. 
You realise what work will actually make you happy. 🤗 

That's what my Design Your Dream Career programme is all about.

Not just the job. But YOU.

As for me! I told that voice where to go and I'm already looking forward to the next networking event. 🙌

"I'm so happy I did this programme. Now I actually know what I want!."
My client said this mid-session, almost surprised by her own words.

And I felt it when she said it.

Not just the excitement.

But the relief.

Because she'd been stuck for a long time

Living with that feeling that something wasn't quite right, but not knowing what it was....

Like an itch you can't quite scratch, the answer to her questions always felt just out of reach

Am I in the right career?
Should I be doing something different?
Why does everyone else seem so certain and I just... don't?

She'd look around at colleagues who seemed to know exactly who they were. 

And quietly, in the back of her mind, the same thought kept creeping in.

What's wrong with me?

But there was nothing wrong with her

The problem is, that feeling doesn't go away on its own.

You can change jobs, get a promotion, get another 0 on your payslip

But the itch is still there...

Because it's not about the job, it's about not knowing yourself well to know what you actually need.

That's the work we did together.

Who are you? What do you actually want? What does work that adds to your life look like?  

And the moment she found it? The passion in her voice was unmistakable.

She was so excited! 

And that's what it feels like to finally scratch that itch.

So if you've been living with that quiet, nagging feeling that something needs to change but you can't quite put your finger on what 

You don't have to keep living with it.

👉 DM me the word CLARITY. Let's figure it out together.

Here's what nobody tells you about great interviews: It's not about having the perfect answer. It's about something much more subtle

It's whether or not your answer lands

And that comes down to one thing, matching energy.

Ever been in a conversation where someone was speaking the same language as you, using words you understood, but you just... couldn't build a picture of what they were saying?

You followed the words, but somehow the message got lost.

That's what happens when your communication style clashes with the person sitting across from you.

🧘‍♂️ The interviewer is stoic and measured? Bring that same calm, considered energy.
😊 They're warm and casual from the moment you walk in? Relax. Be human. Let your personality breathe.

This isn't about being fake. 

Or "performing" a version of yourself that doesn't exist.

It's about being smart enough to know that HOW you deliver your message is just as important as WHAT you're saying.

Because your brilliant experience, your hard-won skills, your genuine enthusiasm for the role, none of it matters if the person in front of you can't understand it.

Communication is a two-way street.

The best interviewees I've ever seen don't walk in with a script. 
They walk in knowing exactly what matters to this company, what problem they're solving, and they flex how they deliver it based on who they're talking to.

That's not inauthenticity. That's elite communication.

And it will open doors for you that rigid script-learning never will.

Ready to stop memorising and start connecting? Drop me a DM and let's work on your interview approach together.

You think a new job will fix everything, but what if it doesn't.......what if the job isn't the REAL problem....

I see this all the time with my clients and it's the thing nobody talks about.

Throughout our lives, most of us learn to hide who we really are. 

We put on the mask and become the person we think we're "supposed" to be at work. 

And slowly, we lose touch with who we actually are.

And here's the painful part, when you're hiding who you really are, you can't perform at your best

Your career starts to stall and you start to feel really unhappy

And no new job will ever fix that feeling

Because before you can find the right role... you have to find yourself again

Watch this if you're thinking about making a move

If this hit home, DM me the word UNSTUCK and let's figure out what's really going on together.

I'm going to say something most coaches won't. Reading tips and knowing what to do is not the same as actually doing it....

And if you've been following me for a while, nodding along, saving my posts, but nothing has actually changed?

This post is for you 🤗 

I run a career coaching programme for mid to senior professionals who are stuck...

🤷‍♀️ Maybe you've been applying for months and hearing nothing back.

🤷‍♀️ Maybe you're in a role that's draining the life out of you but you don't know what else you'd do.

🤷‍♀️ Maybe you know you need to make a change but every time you try to figure out what that looks like, you hit a wall.

🤷‍♀️ Maybe you're just done. Done with feeling undervalued, underpaid, and underestimated.

Well that's exactly who I work with!

And here's what my programme will do for you.

👉 It will give you clarity on what you actually want, not just what you think you should want.
👉 It will show you exactly how to position yourself so the right companies notice you.
👉 It will teach you everything you need to know about finding a job from someone who spent a decade on the inside of recruitment, building the very processes that decide who gets hired and who doesn't.
👉 It will prepare you for interviews so thoroughly that you walk in feeling like yourself, confident, prepared, and ready.
👉 And it will get you out of your own head and into action (the best part!)

I don't do generic advice.
I don't hand you a template and send you on your way.

Everything we do together is built around you, your situation, your market value, your goals, your timeline.

Because what worked for someone else won't necessarily work for you.

And I will always, always tell you the truth, even when it's not what you want to hear....

Because that's what actually gets results.

The people I work with don't just find new jobs.
They find the right jobs.

And they do it faster, with less stress, and with someone in their corner the whole way through.

If that's what you need right now DM me the word READY and let's have a conversation.

Your next chapter is waiting.
Let's go find it. 🎯

You've tried everything. You've done the courses, read the books, taken the assessments, changed jobs. You should be happy....But you're not and you can't figure out why...

Here's what I see again and again with the people I work with. They're not confused because they don't know enough about themselves. They're confused because they've been asking the wrong question.

Everyone tells you to find your passion, identify your strengths, get clear on your values. 

And yes, all of that matters. But there's something more fundamental that almost nobody talks about.

It's how you are innately wired to interact with the world.

🤷‍♀️ Do you need people around you to come alive, or do you need solitude to think clearly? 
🤷‍♀️ Do you need to see the immediate impact of your work, or are you energised by the long game? 
🤷‍♀️ Do you need autonomy to thrive, or collaboration? 
🤷‍♀️ Do you need a clear structure around you, or does routine make you feel trapped?

These aren't personality quirks, they're fundamental conditions. And when your life doesn't honour them, you feel like you're slowly disappearing. 

Even when everything looks fine on paper.

This is why changing jobs doesn't always fix it. Because you take yourself with you. And if you don't know how you're built to operate..... you'll just keep recreating the same mismatch in a different office.

But when you do understand your wiring, something shifts. 

You stop looking for the one "perfect" job because you realise there isn't one. 

There are many and when you layer your skills and interests on top of that foundation the right direction becomes obvious.

And this goes way beyond work too. 

It affects your relationships, how you show up as a partner, a parent, a friend. All of it!

You're not confused because something is wrong with you. You're confused because nobody ever helped you understand how you actually work.

That's exactly what I do. If you're tired of trying everything and still feeling wrong, drop me a DM and let's talk.

Being able to deal with setbacks is critical if you want to reach your goals, here's why


I had a rough day and it would have been VERY easy to have spiralled downward, and trust me, I felt it coming.

But I caught myself, took a breath and put it into perspective and ended up having a great day! 

Here's why this matters for you 🫵 

Setbacks WILL happen. 
Rejections will land in your inbox. 
There'll be weeks where nothing goes to plan and it starts to feel personal.

It's not about avoiding those moments, because you can't

It's about what you do in the five seconds after they hit.

Because that ability to brush yourself off and keep going? That's what separates the people who reach their goals from the ones who don't.

And trust me, I've had my fair share of setbacks so I know what I'm talking about 😜 

👇 Watch this if you're in the middle of a job search and it's starting to feel heavy 

Ready to stop letting setbacks knock you off course? DM me UNSTUCK — let's talk.

taplio

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