How Simone Neeling spends the summer

Today Simone Neeling will share her experimental approach to holiday, cooking and home improvements. Let’s go!

About: Simone is Senior CRO Specialist and Webanalyst at VodafoneZiggo in the Netherlands. She recently won the Webanalyst of the Year 2022 award. Follow Simone on LinkedIn

How does your summer look like?

After spending the past two summers exploring The Netherlands, my boyfriend and I are super excited to travel abroad again this year. I’ll ‘hold the fort’ at work for a bit first, when my colleagues are travelling, and by the end of the summer we’ll head to Portugal. I am planning a 3-week trip through multiple regions, exploring their nature, wines and vineyards, colorful cities and surfable waves. Hiking tips for Douro and Algarve are still very welcome! 

As summer is the season where I usually feel most inspired, I’ll do some experimentation at home too – in the kitchen that is! I’ve been a vegetarian since I was a kid, and since about a year-and-a-half or so ago, I switched to a vegan diet for most of the time. I love cooking and trying out new recipes (which I rarely follow to the letter) to spice up common vegetables to a whole new level. 

And finally, I hope to get some more things done in the house. We moved into our first own ‘grown-up’ house last October, and as you can imagine there are still plenty of little and larger things to fix (call some rooms currently an ‘MVP’ if you will :)). I’m not the world’s greatest handy-woman, so I am sure I will collect plenty of fails and learnings in the process. Decoration is however where I get the most wins! Until then, I am very glad that we prioritized improving the garden in the spring, so that we can now enjoy our own few square meters of paradise during the sunny days and evenings at home. With a glass of wine under our pergola covered in ivy and cosy garden lights, my daydreams already bring me to the Mediterannée. A sua saúde!

Anything exciting you can share about the second half of 2022?

Looking ahead, I am excited about two training programs that are scheduled for this autumn. During the first one, I will further improve my public speaking skills. I truly enjoy sharing my experiences for a larger audience and I’m eager to learn how I can better present my stories. The second one is a more extensive internal program focused on developing leadership skills and making an impact. Exciting times! 

Thank you Simone, for sharing your summer stories.