Activating your Authentic Identity with Sabine vanderLinden

The workshop “Activating your Mastermind Authentic Identity” on September 12 at Zurich Insurance in Zurich was aimed at visionary leaders. It was organized by Silvia Signoretti, President of the Swiss InsurTech Hub. Thanks to her, the great InsurTech Queen was able to guide the audience through her Authentic Identity program for a day.

Sabine vanderLinden is co-founder, CEO and venture partner of Alchemy Crew, a venture validation and adoption lab that uses open innovation, parallel experimentation techniques and ecosystem thinking to accelerate the development and commercialization of digital services from tech startups, scaleups and growth ventures With over 25 years of experience in the insurance industry, she was CEO and co-founder of Startupbootcamp InsurTech (UK) and Hartford’s InsurTech Hub Accelerator (Hartford, CT, USA), where she worked with over 30 corporate insurers and accelerated more than 70 startup projects.

She is also co-editor of The INSURTECH Book, a bestseller, a top 50 InsurTech influencer, an investor and a multiple award winner. In early December 2020, Sabine was named Honorary Senior Visiting Fellow of Bayes Business School for her work in business model disruption. She also wrote the foreword for Bryan Falchuck, The Future of Insurance volume 3, on partnership and collaboration.

The Authentic Identity Program

Sabine vanderLinden’s program invites you to explore people’s unique identity and helps align personal values with professional goals. Through a series of modules, participants were able to gain insights into their core strengths, uncover hidden patterns, and develop a compelling personal story characterized by authenticity and purpose. It starts with an Executive Identity Audit, in which you create your own Plum profile from Plum.io (a summary of your talents and insights into your personality that are relevant to your career) to find out what really drives and exhausts you. This fundamental step is crucial to understanding how personal experiences shape leadership styles and strategic decisions.

Challenges and dynamics of expression as influencers

The speaker emphasized that for those who tend to do influencer work, influencers are paid for their work like many journalists, but must maintain their personal voice and perspective. She highlighted the importance of respectful disagreement and self-reflection on one’s energy drains and initiatives within a team. Strategies for personal branding, authenticity, and how to leverage your strengths while mitigating your weaknesses in a professional setting were explained. Overall, Sabine encouraged an open dialogue about individual experiences and insights regarding teamwork and personal development. 

How should a company’s mission and vision be defined?

It is important that a company’s mission, vision and values be defined in terms of actions and impact rather than roles. Sabine emphasized the need for clear strategies and initiatives and suggested that companies focus on partnerships rather than building everything from scratch. Her motto has been for many years „Why build, wen you can partner!“ She emphasized the iterative nature of vision, mission and goal development, especially for start-ups, which can evolve with market feedback. Examples of successful companies such as Google, Microsoft and Instagram were used to illustrate effective mission statements. In addition, purpose-driven statements by influential figures such as Oprah Winfrey and Bill Gates were cited, underscoring the importance of a clear life or business purpose to differentiate oneself in the market. 

Bill Gates, Elon Musk, Karen Lynch and Sarah Blakely

The importance of aligning personal mission and vision with one’s beliefs and values is discussed using examples of well-known personalities such as Bill Gates, Elon Musk, Karen S. Lynch and Sarah Blakely. It highlights how these individuals communicate their missions publicly and the branding implications of their decisions. The narrative underscores the need for self-reflection when defining one’s mission and vision, while also taking public perception into account. In addition, practical tools such as mood boards and vision boards are presented that help manifest goals by linking visual elements to memories. 

Balancing traditional content with an internet and social media engagement

It is important to build small, targeted communities rather than focusing exclusively on large target groups. Sabine advocated for private platforms that foster deeper connections. The key persuasion principles were outlined, including reciprocity, scarcity, authority, consistency, sympathy, and consensus. She also highlighted the value of personal storytelling in professional contexts and suggested using various channels such as podcasts and social media for effective communication. Furthermore, she underscored the importance of trust and authenticity in business relationships and encouraged continuous learning and adaptation in a rapidly changing environment. 

BK

Read also: Let’s Talk Money: 4 Steps to Financial Freedom