Previously, Ben served as the Chief of Communications at De Nederlandsche Bank, where he worked closely with the President and the executive board on issues of public trust, financial and political communication, and institutional responsibility.

Lives in Amsterdam with his wife and their two daughters & works all around the world.

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Building

‍Pacidomo, a place in Portugal dedicated to slowing down, reflection, and inner work. Not a typical holiday home, but a space designed to create clarity and perspective for leaders.

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Favorite restaurant

‍I have a special love for ‘De Kas’ for special occasions. Honest and clean food produced with love in a spacious ambiance. I don’t feel rushed and can talk with friends or business partners for hours.

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A city that shaped me

‍Paris. I studied law at the Sorbonne when I was 21. It feeds my romantic and spiritual side by always visiting the special cathedrals and parks.

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A place I return to

‍Portugal.

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Go-to drink‍

A cappuccino made of a smooth and strong coffee bean. I don’t drink much alcohol, so my go-to is an alcohol-free pear cider.

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Something I wear that feels like me‍

The midnight blue NASSAU suit. More formal. Made from Super 130’s Doppio Ritorto wool. Fine fibres, double-twisted yarns. Strong, refined, with a natural sheen.

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Another piece I rely on

‍The black utility suit from NASSAU. Made from Loro Piana Twister. High-twist wool. Resilient, breathable, quietly functional.

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A coat

‍This grey wool coat from Maison Margiela. The base shape is classic. The integrated scarf in the same material shifts it. Protective. Slightly mysterious. More mantle than coat.

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A watch you wear or admire?‍

I don’t focus on brands. Simplicity matters more to me than whistles and bells. 

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An object I care about

‍Ultima Thule glasses by Tapio Wirkkala for Iittala. Inspired by melting ice in Lapland. 

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A daily constant

‍Connecting with people, I love a deep conversation.

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A perfect evening

‍Creating atmosphere by lighting candles, playing good music, and taking my time to make family dinner. 

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A favourite artist

‍Olafur Eliasson. I am especially in love with his big sun in Tate Modern, the Weather Project. This work invokes mystery and new possibilities for me.

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‍Ben on Responsibility, Inner Work, and a Quiet Sense of Style‍

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Career and consequence

Ben’s career began in places where language has consequences. After years as a political and financial spokesperson, he became Chief of Communications at De Nederlandsche Bank. He worked closely with the executive board and with leaders such as former President Klaas Knot, operating at the intersection of monetary policy, media, and public trust. “At that level, communication isn’t just about expression,” he says. “It’s about responsibility. One sentence can affect markets, stability, or trust.” The work demanded restraint. Precision. An understanding that timing and silence can matter as much as words. “It trains you to think before you speak,” he says. “And to realise that clarity doesn’t mean saying everything all the time.”

From the outside, it was a coherent career. Structured, demanding, influential. Internally, something else was taking shape. “I wasn’t unhappy,” Ben says. “But I felt a growing gap between the responsibility I carried outwardly and my deeper wishes to follow my own path. I wanted to give shape to my own voice instead of being the spokesperson for somebody or something else.

“I wasn’t unhappy. But I wanted to shape my own voice and carve out my own path.”

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A parallel path

Rather than making a sharp break, Ben began a parallel path. Alongside his work at the bank, he trained in leadership and spiritual disciplines, from coaching education at INSEAD to working with the Shamans in the Amazon forest. What started as curiosity became commitment. “Spiritual work is often misunderstood,” he says. “For me, it’s not about religious belief or fairy tale escapes. It’s about awareness of who you are. About seeing how inner patterns shape your outer reality and decisions.” That awareness reshaped how Ben thought about leadership.

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What he does now

Today, Ben is the founder of FEIER. Through FEIER, he works with leaders and entrepreneurs in navigating complexity, big responsibilities, and new change, combining executive coaching with immersive retreat programs. His work is informed by academic insights from institutions such as Harvard Business School and INSEAD, but rooted in lived practice and experience. “Most people I work with are highly capable,” he says. “What’s missing is not skill, but awareness.”

In practice, the work is concrete. I might support the client in recognising why negative patterns repeat, or why success no longer feels fulfilling. “You don’t fix that with working harder, doing the same again and again,” Ben says. “You fix it by going inside, understanding the root causes of your coping mechanisms, and finding the real goals you want to aim for in life, professionally and personally.

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Slowing down as discipline

For Ben, slowing down is vital: “When distraction falls away, things that need attention surface. That’s where positive change really begins.” As a result, he knows better what to bring into his coaching and retreats to make sure that quality and real change prevail.

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Life, family, place

Ben lives in Amsterdam with his wife and their two daughters. Family life, Ben says, sharpens his presence. “Children respond to who you are and what you do, not who you say you are.” That need for presence also inspired him to start Pacidomo, a place he is developing with his family in Portugal. It’s not a typical holiday home, but a place for leaders and entrepreneurs to reflect in a period of transition. The space provides a slowing down so you can step out of habitual old patterns. “It’s about finding your own answers within” Ben says. “Only in that way, real lasting change can happen”.

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Style without contradiction

When the conversation turns to style, Ben keeps it brief. “I never set out to develop a style,” he says. “It emerged as my life became simpler.” Fewer pieces. Better materials. Less noise. “If I don’t feel a big yes,” Ben adds, “it doesn’t enter my wardrobe.” Style, for Ben, is understated. “Living and working without inner contradiction,” he says. “That’s what I am aiming for.”