Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Steliana Van De Rijt-Economu. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Alright, Steliana thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. So, let’s start with a hypothetical – what would you change about the educational system?

The current U.S. education system is focused on developing individualism and perfectionism through testing. I believe the new generation needs social and collaborative skills. That’s why, in my book Parentship, I emphasize the idea of shared leadership in families and teams. This approach is meant to help both parents and children thrive.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I grew up in a small village on the Romanian Black Sea Coast, during the pre-Internet era. After graduating as an Economist, I quickly became frustrated with the limited opportunities in my hometown. At 21, I moved to Bucharest for my first HR job at Kraft Foods. When the chance to intern at Nike’s European HQ in Amsterdam came up, I seized it. Over the next 20 years, I honed my passion for leadership development through roles at Nike, Vodafone, and Shell International, coaching leaders from over 20 nationalities and delivering more than 10,000 hours of leadership training across the globe, from Lagos to Calgary and London to The Hague.

In 2020, I launched Mothers as Leaders, a global leadership coaching practice. I’m driven by helping working parents—especially mothers—rediscover their dreams, and leadership potential. My first book, Mothers as Leaders, was created for women leaders. The second book, ‘Parentship. A leadership guide for families and teams’ presents many practical ways for a family to be more than the sum of its parts. Central to this is the shift from each family member asking, ‘What do I want or need from my family?’ to asking, ‘What does the family need from each of us?’”

Our coaching company focuses on helping all leaders, men and women, to look more closely at “how” they lead, equipping them with improved skills and strategies to inspire, impact and influence their teams, their colleagues and their key stakeholders. The result is a more adept leader whose executive presence increases team performance and business profitability. We help people own their strengths and remove self-doubt. We have been running successfully since 2020, two group programs: ‘The leader lab for Mothers as Leaders’ and ‘Thrive with Positive Intelligence’ . Our most proud local achievement was the ‘Mothers as Leaders’ training series for The Woodlands township community back in 2023, when could reach mothers from all backgrounds and professions

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

Pivoting seems to be the story of my life, ever since I was a student. Sometimes life has a different plan for you, and you need to adapt. When I was 22 years old, I was still studying and living in Romania. I was the President of AIESEC Constanta, and I ran for a VP Partnering position within the country team of AIESEC Romania and I lost to a peer by a short margin. It was a tough failure to accept, as I was the President of our local committee and I saw the tears in the eyes of my supporters. After a few hours spent crying while hearing everyone partying through the night in our Beach Conference Hotel center, I decided to wake-up early in the morning and show up at our university campus for an internship interview I was planning to cancel, if I would’ve gotten the job. In the interview I was confident but at the same time humble and respectful and the Selection Board chose me for my first paid traineeship abroad at Nike European Headquarter in The Netherlands. The one year I spent abroad completing my traineeship in HR Services launched my corporate international career that lasted twenty years.
The leadership lesson I took from that defining moment was to allow negative emotions to happen, because strong emotions and tears will give you the motivation and drive you need to pivot in a different direction. I try to tell the same message to my children, but I am not sure they want to follow their mom’s advice.

Any advice for growing your clientele? What’s been most effective for you?

Despite the generic advice offered by marketing and business gurus about building an email list and using push e-commerce emails to sell a standard online program, I didn’t find standardization and automation helpful for growing my high-paying clients. While this strategy can work well for product-based businesses, I offer tailored, personable executive and team coaching for parents. Over the past five years, I have primarily gained new clients by attending networking events where my niche audience gathers and by writing original content for LinkedIn.
The most important first step was mapping my extended network—I reached to people who met me in my student years and to people who worked with me in my 40s. My first speaking engagements for Microsoft Romania, Heineken, and Renault came from invitations sent by second- and third-degree LinkedIn connections. It’s important to cherish your network and do good if you want to meet good.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.stelianaeconomu.com
• Instagram: @Steliana_mothersasleaders
• Facebook: Mothers as leaders
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/steliana-van-de-rijt-economu-icf-pcc-actc-5740a81/
• Youtube: steliana van de rijt

Image Credits

Elena Trenkoska, Mindy Hamond, Sjors van de Rijt, Dr Donna de Haan, Steliana Economu, Saule Baig