"Introspection was necessary to broaden my perspective, and I also have a concrete list of points that I can work on."

Linda Schellekens is 34 and lives in Nijmegen with Jelle and their son Daan. After her studies, she found herself at Jumbo by a happy coincidence. She now works as a category manager at their headquarters. With the ambition to grow into a more strategic role where she would manage more people, she joined the Rebel Leadership Program.

Results should never come at the cost of people, which is something I strongly believe in. Yet, I could be quite harsh in my judgment. I’m energetic and goal-oriented, and in my speed and enthusiasm, I can sometimes be too direct. I don’t always stop to consider others. If I wanted to manage larger teams, I knew I had to change that. That’s why, during the Rebel Program, I wanted to work on my communication skills.

I quickly realized that this meant exploring who I really am. To progress and work well with others, you need to be able to understand yourself. It was really helpful for me to be forced into that introspection. How often do you actually sit down and do that? I come from a family of horticulturists, where hard work was central. That has benefited me greatly, but it has also given me a focus that not everyone shares. Through my coaching sessions with Floor, I realized that I’m quite competitive and that I carry that over to others. When some people in the program said, "My core value is having fun at work," I thought, "Well, for me, results come first." In the past, I’d quickly judge that as good or bad, but now I’m more forgiving and able to see the nuance in it.

The focus on introspection, combined with the group dynamics, really set Rebel apart as a leadership program for me. The conversations and interactions with others truly expanded my perspective. I think you can quickly get stuck in your own tunnel of what is good or bad. I really enjoyed the exercises where we gave each other feedback at the end of the sessions, like the post-it notes with wishes. A few times, I got the feedback "try to keep the fun in it." That created awareness for me that I was sometimes too focused on getting the best outcome.

Interestingly, during the program, I was told from different perspectives that I radiated calmness. That’s not something people usually say about me at Jumbo; it’s usually the opposite. In a work environment where performance is the priority, I apparently take on a certain role. But in a setting where I don’t have to demand anything from myself, another version of me seems to emerge. I think it could be really interesting if I can bring that version forward more at Jumbo, too. It could be good for me as well.

I’m already working on bringing that calmness into my communication. When my mind is spinning again, I do breathing exercises to calm myself down. As a result, I also feel more in tune with myself. I tend to approach everything from my head, from logic, but connection happens through feeling. Because I can now better understand myself and see my own shortcomings, it’s easier for me to look at what others do without judgment. I value them for who they are and engage in a calm conversation. That allows me to get closer to others and creates more space for connection. I really want to get to know them, not just ask them what they had for dinner the night before. But it also works the other way around: I share more about my experiences, both about my home situation and how I experience things. Where I might have gone off and sulked alone in the past, I now express when something doesn’t feel right.

I believe a good leader must also be able to balance two key aspects: keeping an eye on the human element and ensuring that business objectives are met. I want to create an open setting where everyone feels comfortable. This aligns with my personality—I take good care of the people in my immediate surroundings—but it sometimes clashed with my tendency to work so hard that I focused solely on the result.

Rebel didn’t just push me to reflect on myself, but it also allowed me to wrap up the program with tangible outcomes. It’s really helpful to have a list of things to work on, a toolbox to use in the coming period, and to bring my goals even closer.