Humans of Wikkelhouse # 2

Who: Rudi Hartmans (55), Systemic Coach
When: Bought his Wikkelhouse in 2023
Where: Schoorl dunes, the Netherlands
What: Coaching practice

“I use my Wikkelhouse as a coaching space: I’m a systemic coach for executives and entrepreneurs. Why systemic? Because I look at you in the context of the larger system you’re part of — how that system has shaped you. In professional life, especially at the top, it’s a constant balancing act between adapting and staying true to yourself.

Most leaders are masters at adapting, seamlessly aligning with what the organization wants. But in doing so, they often put a part of their true self on ice. You’re seen as a good leader, yet you feel your energy slowly draining. You start to wonder: Who am I? What do I want? Where is my growth? Often, it’s because people keep doing things their heart’s no longer in.”

“Coaching changed during COVID. Everything shifted. Instead of meeting indoors, I started coaching outside, walking through the Schoorl dunes. I felt it was time to really do things differently. Two years ago, I bought a Wikkelhouse.

Now, people come here instead of meeting in an office, and that already creates a different atmosphere. Being away from the workplace just feels safer.
And even the road to the ‘Ontwikkelhouse’ is part of the process. Heading into nature, slowing down a gear. Unwinding begins on the way.”

“In 2021, my wife Lieke stayed at The Unbound (now Basecamp) in Amsterdam. I went to pick her up, and we both immediately felt: this is a special little house. We were drawn to the design and the functionality: it’s well thought-out, natural, and sustainable. It really suits us.
Back then, I was already fantasizing about having a space in the garden for my own coaching practice, and two years ago, that dream came true.

Lieke retreats here now and then when she wants to stay close to home but still have her own space, to meditate or read.
And this past summer, when it was so hot, we even slept here with our son Tobias. The air conditioning cools the space in no time.”

“While we were furnishing the space, the song This Must Be the Place by Talking Heads came on the radio, one of our all-time favorites of both Lieke and me. The timing was so meaningful that I immediately went online and bought the second-hand maxi single.
In my free time, I’m a DJ and still collect records. When the vinyl arrived, I noticed that the sleeve featured someone drawing a blueprint, and that’s where I come from: I studied architecture at the Technical University in Delft and started my career as a building engineer.
Now, it feels like everything has come full circle: my work, my soul, and my passion. The record now has a prominent place in our Ontwikkelhouse.”