CEO

“Since our meeting, your advisory words have been linguering in the back of my mind when addressing my executive team. This trusted sparring of finetuning elements was just what I needed. I understand why you come recommended. Your sparring translates very impactful and I am looking forward to our next meeting.”

CEO

“You are exceedingly clever in your analyses. The level of finetuning in your advisory and distinct mindset proves very valuable for our organization.”

CEO

“You are a motivator without equal.”

CEO

“You are extremely sharp in communication and stakeholder prep advisory – It is a pleasure discussing with you. I need to take notes.”

International Project Director

“Never have I before met such a strong motivational speaker. Julie is like a sword of pure energy both inspiring in presence and words. When meeting first time, actually I overheard her speaking to another person, I thought; “Who is this person?! I will have to introduce myself and how can we work together!”

PVP

“I am very impressed. I have been contemplating the strategy for more than a month and you just answer it in 20 minutes. Please give me a moment I will write it all down.”

CEO

“I have very few Achilles heels, but when they hit; It brings me great calmness knowing that you are there having my back.”

CXO, Global Company

“Du er eminent dygtig til at løfte mennesker. Jeg er voldsomt inspireret i samtalen med dig og din høje grad af diskretion er værdsat.

CXO, Pharmaceutical Industry

“Thank you for responding to my call with such short notice. This conversation had immense value to me. I admit, this morning I felt like I needed to go to war. But now I have a very clear-sighted plan on how to engage without disturbing waters impacting negatively on my team. I needed this bounce – Thank you”

Global Senior Project Manager, Global Pharma, C20

“I don’t know how Julie did it. But in some way, she managed to transform me out of a very unpleasant phase during the pandemic, where I did not feel at ease at all. I speak six different languages and I am responsible for matters at which FDA and EMA are censoring every little tiny bit of my work, and I have never received anything else but highly positive performance feedback nor at the company I work for. However, I had in some way ended up with not believing in myself or being afraid of not being good enough at my work. This had been on my mind for weeks or months. I was referred to Julie by private contacts and we sat down for a meeting, at an outdoor restaurant as this being during the pandemic, and we talked. We talked for three hours. During the meeting, I wrote down thoughts and skills in this tiny booklet she had given me. And when I stood up, I felt completely at ease. And when I returned at home that evening; It was like all of my concerns had disappeared. I don’t know how she did it. But I truly admire that and her, and I am very thankful. I kept the booklet as there is a very special way of perceiving myself and my skills in that booklet. To my surprise, I did not need more than just that one meeting to change my perspective. I highly admire Julie and I recommend anyone whom are in doubt about how to understand own skillset or own situation to invest in a meeting with Julie. In my mind she is a magician.”

Executive, Pharmaceutical Industry

I am listening to every single word that you are saying. This is good. This is not only beneficial, but a direct imperative for understanding complex leadership dynamics and hence crucial for any highly valued stakeholder interaction, stakeholder management, and business development.

Especially because we are interacting in a global matrix with multiple experts and leads from many different cultures and each having different professional (and underlying personal) goals.”

Senior Medical Director, Global Pharma, C20

“I highly appreciate your honesty and guidance. I need this for navigating cleverly and making the right choices in this current phase.”

Senior Scientific Director, Global Pharma

“You have an extremely evolved empathic intelligence. You observe dynamics and unspoken interactions in the room as no one else. I know I am good – But you are even better! Incredible useful.”

Senior Director, Global Pharma

“You are amazingly inspiring. I am just blown away. Have you ever considered writing a book.”

Senior Global Medical Director, Global Pharma

“You have spot on nailed it! This is exactly what is needed for global talent development in this industry”

Anonym

“Julie jeg tror ikke helt, at du ved, hvilken værdi det egentlig har for mig, den måde du er på. Jeg er selv kun ved at forstå det. Jeg indrømmer, at jeg skulle lige se dig lidt an til at starte med. Du smiler altid og har en meget smittende positiv udstråling. Det er ikke lige det, jeg forbinder med at kunne forstå og tale om de ting, jeg ser inden for mit felt. Men det har du modbevist.

Jeg har ikke før mødt nogen uden for job, hvor det giver mig noget at dele elementer fra de ting, vi ser. De gange jeg har prøvet og endda selvfølgelig meget censureret. Folk vil jo gerne, men de forstår slet ikke rammen og bliver ukomfortable bare jeg giver udtryk for en lille smule, som har rørt mig. Så lader man jo være. Du er helt modsat. Du sidder bare og lytter. Jeg kan se i dine øjne, at du er helt med. Jeg føler mig tryg og kan tage min kappe af.

Jeg kan huske første gang du talte om min kappe og selv nævnte nogle ting, som jeg har respekt for. Det havde jeg slet ikke regnet med. Men jeg kan mærke, at du har skabt et rum, hvor når jeg har brug for det, så kan jeg tage min kappe af og pause et øjeblik.

Almindelige mennesker forstår jo ikke, hvad det her kræver, og det skal de heller ikke. Jeg elsker mit arbejde og jeg har valgt det, fordi jeg er den, jeg er. Men det betyder jo ikke, at nogle af de grimme ting, ikke kan koste på kontoen.

Det kan jeg huske, du sagde til mig en dag og der følte jeg mig set. For det koster på kontoen. Men jeg ville stadig aldrig vælge anderledes i situationen. For jeg ER den, der tager dén, velvidende at den koster. Men alternativet ville være værre og det, at du forstår, betyder noget for mig.

Du får ganske simpelt kappen til at føles mindre tung, jeg føler mig stærkere og bare set for den jeg er. Den jeg er og det jeg gør, når andre ikke tør”.

Senior Medical Specialist

“I like to think I know my worth, my strengths, and weaknesses and what direction I am headed in. In the spring of 2019, I was facing some difficult decisions of what direction to take my career and life. I spend the good part of the last 9 years travelling the world to better myself and achieving my dreams, but I really couldn’t see where to go. Everyone I spoke with in my network either had a share in my direction or wanted me closer geographically. I am so glad I hired Julie. In the centre of every conversation was “what makes you tick” and after a few sparring sessions, Julie gave me a toolbox for how to value my skillset in a different light tailored to my goals. As most lifelong learners and academics out there I can criticise myself and see my weaknesses far better than my strengths and thanks to Julie I saw myself and my skillset in a different applicable positive light and landed the job of my dreams. I highly recommend Julie as a career mentor and sparring partner.“

Senior Scientist

“Julie, du giver mig følelsen af at være på landsholdet! Vi sidder flere og lytter, men det er som om, at du taler direkte til mig, eller rettere du taler direkte til mig, du taler til hver enkelt af os, mens vi er sammen! Så vi er både OS SELV og SAMMEN om det. Sikken en holdfølelse og sikken et engagement. Jeg er DYBT inspireret!”

Leader for 400 employees, C20

“Thank you. This is very useful advice. I believe this will be a clever way of mitigating exactly, what I have been contemplating. I will see how I can implement this already from next week. Thank you.”

Afdelingsleder for 20 ansatte

“Hold kæft hvor er du dygtig Julie, hvordan fanden kan du ændre en hel situation på 2 timer!”

CEO, Co-Founder & Board Advisor

“Julie hun er et af de få mennesker, som både forstår nuancerne i kompleksiteten og det at eksekvere.”

Clinical Operations Manager, Global Pharma

“Julies mentorship, insight, and extensive knowledge have been extremely valuable and highly appreciated in my career path. She has a kind and welcoming being and has multiple times gone above and beyond to provide me with the absolute best help and feedback. I highly appreciate and recommend her mentorship.”

Scientist

“Thank you so much for all of these suggestions and advice! I’ve gone from basically having a minor identity crisis to being super excited about all the possibilities I seem to have. I’m so inspired and thankful”

Senior Project Director, Global Pharma, C20

“Julie har en helt særlig evne til at afkode årsagssammenhænge under både sagte og usagte præmisser. Jeg har haft stået med et par beslutninger, hvor der i mit valg lå en stor risikoafvejning for min karriere fremadrettet. Der har jeg haft glæde af en forudgående snak med Julie i lukket rum.”

Senior Analytical Scientist, Global Pharma, C20

“Jeg har i forskellige perioder sat pris på at sparre med Julie især omkring interne karriereveje i industrien. For mig har det stor betydning, at Julie kender branchen inde fra og samtidigt forholder sig meget konkret til netop de elementer, som er fagligt og personligt vigtige for mig i mit arbejdsliv og i min karriere. Hun er meget konkret og nøgtern i sin sparring, og det værdsætter jeg. Julie har som fortrolig mentor min absolut varmeste anbefaling.”

Clinical Specialist

“Tak for at du har været der igennem denne beslutningsproces. Du er ganske imponerende.”

Specialist, Specialist Task Force

“Kære Julie. Tak for et meget inspirerende og motiverende møde i dag! Du guider med oprigtig interesse, faglig og menneskelig indsigt altid min opmærksomhed over på mulighederne fremfor begrænsningerne. Du er en stor kilde til inspiration. Jeg letter på hatten og kipper med flaget!”

Anonym

“Da jeg skulle finde ud af, hvem jeg ville vælge som privat karriererådgiver læste jeg mange anbefalinger. Julie havde en som sprang mig i øjnene. Der stod: “Hun har en evne til at få mig til at se mine kompetencer i et andet lys”. Den sætning bed sig fast i mig, for det var netop det, som jeg havde brug for.

Jeg stod et sted, hvor jeg gerne ville skifte karrierespor. Det var egentligt fint, hvor jeg var, men der var nogle faglige områder fra tidligere tid, som trak meget i mig, og jeg vidste ikke helt, hvordan jeg skulle komme derover. Dem som jeg sparrede med privat og fagligt, gav mig i virkeligheden bare en følelse af at “løbe panden mod muren”.

Jeg havde allerede prøvet lidt forskellig sparring med skemaer og kompetancehjul, men det gav mig ikke rigtigt noget brugbart. Det var meget standard og ikke den forståelse og sparring, som passede til min situation.

Så jeg valgte at tage et møde med Julie. Jeg bor meget langt væk, så hun inviterede mig på frokost og så tog vi en snak. Det var første gang i meget lang tid, at jeg følte mig både fagligt og personligt mødt, jeg var helt overvældet over blot effekten af første møde. Al konformitet var sat til side, det handlede blot om at forstå mig, hvad jeg ønskede og med et fokus på hvilke muligheder, som vi skulle skabe. Jeg elskede Julies spørgsmål: “Hvor vil du gerne hen?”. Hun kiggede mig direkte ind i øjnene og spurgte: “Hvor vil du hen, hvad vil du arbejde med og på hvilken måde?”

Jeg var slet ikke i tvivl om, at det var det rette match, og at det var hos Julie, jeg ville have et forløb. Jeg kan huske at være “blown away” efter første møde over den tillid, entusiasme, mulighedsskabende perspektivering og faglighed, som jeg blev mødt med og så af en person, som bare var “helt nede på jorden” i ordenes mest positive forstand.

Som person selv, kan jeg godt lide at have mulighed for at kunne gå i dybden og at have tid til overvejelser og især i den proces, som jeg var i der. Jeg vidste jo godt, at jeg stod i en privilegeret situation, og derfor var det vigtigt for mig, at det var en proces.

Jeg havde brug for at få tydeliggjort nogle ting overfor mig selv. I hele forløbet fik jeg opgaver skræddersyet til mig. De tog udgangspunkt i samtalerne, og i hvad som rørte sig i mit arbejdsliv. Nogle var meget konkret faglige og udfordrende og andre mere personlige og eftertænksomme. Jeg fik derfor utroligt meget ud af både selve 1-1 møderne og også de opgaver, som jeg lavede hjemme.

Foruden de planlagte møder, var det også en rar ting at have en “åben kanal”. I mit forløb har det været aftalt, at jeg kunne ringe eller skrive, hvis der pludselig opstod noget, hvor sparringen havde værdi øjeblikkeligt også uden for almindelige kontortider.

Forløbet hos Julie har givet mig en helt anden forståelse af mine egne kompetencer.

Inden jeg mødte Julie, tænkte jeg, at min karrierevej bar præg af nogle forskellige faglige områder, og jeg syntes, at det kunne være lidt svært at se, hvordan de kunne være springbræt til der, hvor jeg havde i tankerne at ville hen.

Men efter mit forløb hos Julie, ser jeg mig selv, min erfaring, mit CV og mine kompetencer i et helt andet lys. Det er en gave, for jeg hører til dem, som godt kan lide at udvikle sig, at have en kontinuert læringskurve og at bidrage, og det spejler Julie. Og på en måde som jeg ikke har mødt hos nogen anden før.

Jeg ville meget gerne skrive mit navn på, da Julie har min absolutte varmeste anbefaling. Men af strategiske årsager vælger jeg/vi at undlade, da jeg kontinuert er i en dynamik om samarbejdsaftaler og i visse grene opfattes ekstern privat sparring fortsat konventionelt som et svaghedstegn. Sådan tænker jeg nu ikke. Jeg tænker på det som en ufattelig gave, at jeg valgte at sætte mig ned til den frokost der med Julie og derved ændre hele mit syn på, hvad jeg skal fremadrettet.

Det kan jeg kun anbefale og med Julie.”

Læge, Hospital

“Jeg kan så godt lide, at du selv har stået med blod på handskerne. Det har så meget min gensidige respekt, at du forstår, at nogen gange er der bare en nul bullshit-tærskel, for vi har ikke sekunderne til andet. Det er bare en ramme og et ansvar, som man skal forstå og forstå, hvordan det er at være i og at skulle træffe beslutninger i. I hvert fald for at det har værdi at tale om for mig.”

Læge, Onkologi

“Tusind tak for et rigtig godt første møde i går. Jeg var helt høj ovenpå vores snak og ser virkelig frem til at få gravet lidt mere i, hvad der er det rigtige for mig.”

Læge, Akutmodtagelse

“Har haft min første pt med diabetisk ketoacidose – takkede guderne for dig og insulin.”

Læge, Neurologi

“Tak Julie – som altid. Det der gør, at du trænger mere klart i gennem end andre jeg har haft som mentor/vejleder/rådgiver, er dine uddybende bemærkninger, og afrundet med perspektivet! Tak.”

Anonym

“I mit fag må man ikke lave fejl, da det kan koste menneskeliv. Derfor skal vi igennem stress-simulationstests ved optagelse. Dem var jeg alligevel hånden på hjertet lidt nervøs for, da mit drømmejob var på spil. Gennem netværk stødte jeg på Julie og valgte at tage en snak med hende. Hun var helt genial til mentalforberedelse, hun mødte mig fuldstændig, hvor jeg var og tog i samtalen udgangspunkt i nogle stress-situationer, jeg kendte til fra arbejde, og som jeg var helt tryg ved at håndtere. På testdagen gjorde jeg fuldstændig, som hun havde sagt, og jeg var “in the zone”. Jeg var én blandt meget få, som klarede testen og jeg fik stillingen”.

Senior Specialist med ledende ansvar

“Sjældent har jeg mødt nogen, som formår at skabe fortrolighed på det niveau, som Julie gør. Vi taler om det, som er vigtigt og som har værdi. Værdi for mig i mit arbejdsliv og i mit liv. Det gør, at jeg kan være hudløs ærlig på en helt anden måde over for mig selv – uden at blive præget af andre. Mine beslutninger fremstår derfor knivskarpe.

Det er et fremragende værktøj. Det sparer min tid, mine tanker og det giver mig ro i mine beslutninger”.

Anonym

“Det kan siges meget præcist. Julie hun forstår. Hun er ikke psykolog og hun er ikke organisationsteoretiker. Hun har stået med ansvaret selv og med fingrene lige nede i suppen. Så hun forstår udemærket, hvad det handler om uden, at jeg skal forklare alt muligt. Og det giver mig en helt anden ro. Jeg føler mig mødt, jeg føler mig forstået og ikke teoretiseret. Samtidigt er det helt tydeligt, at hun evner, hvad ikke mange gør, nemlig at tage udgangspunkt i mig og ikke at projektere egne præferencer bevidst eller ubevidst ind i samtalen. Og så dømmer hun ikke. Min oplevelse bliver derved, at jeg kan tale frit og frit i forhold til mig selv. Det har været en rar øjenåbner for mig. Jeg kan sige præcis, hvordan jeg har det, og hvad jeg vil uden omsvøb eller censurering. Hvilken befrielse det er. Nul censur, bare ærlighed og et frirum. Hun har sådan en evne til at anerkende en situation og så samtidig at “flippe” den. Jeg har oplevet at stå i en situation, som mildest talt tog alle mine ressourcer og mere til. Det var efterhånden også begyndt at påvirke min familie og så efter at have talt med Julie, 3 stive timer i træk, rejste jeg mig op tænkte: “Det her, det er jo i virkeligheden slet ikke noget, som skal tage mine ressourcer. Det er jo tværtimod decideret noget, som jeg kan bruge som en fordel i henhold til det, jeg vil fremadrettet” og så at rejse mig op og føle mig både glad og stolt. Det er noget af en evne. Jeg rejste mig op og stod fysisk på en helt anden måde, end jeg gjorte inden mødets start. Jeg er ret inspireret af hendes måde at tænke på og hendes måde at perspektivere.”

INSPIRING THE NEXT GEN

Medical Doctor, attending career talk “To PhD or Not to PhD”, keynote, 200 attendants, Mærsk Tower, 2022

“A few days ago, I had the pleasure of seeing your talk at the Synapse event, To PhD or Not to PhD. Despite the fact that you were addressing a large crowd, it felt like you were talking directly to me and to the hundreds, if not thousands, of hours that I have spent contemplating my career. I left feeling incredibly inspired and excited about the future, and I am very thankful for your talk”.

Peter Tougaard, Postdoctoral Researcher, Ghent University, Belgium

“Julie was my mentor during the last phase of my PhD and during my first postdoctoral position at the University of Copenhagen. I highly valued her mentorship especially in relation to professional scientific branding, CV strategies, and communication to external scientific stakeholders.”

Marius Burman Ingeberg, MSc Particle Physics, attending career talk at “To Phd or Not to Phd”, Synapse, 400 attendants, Lund, Sweden

“Thank you, Julie, for your wonderful talk! It was definitely one of the most inspiring career-related talks I’ve heard, and I learned so much from it. You made me realize that curiosity and constantly learning new things, along with always trying your best and being honest leads to great opportunities. You also taught me that in order to thrive, it’s important to stick to your interests and passions, which gave me further confidence to pursue paths outside my field. I feel more motivated than ever to produce the best master thesis I can, and I look forward to what the future has to offer!”

Martin Wiinberg, Immunotherapy Researcher, DTU

”Jeg vil personligt gerne sige tak for din vejledning på min nuværende inspiration. Med din hjælp fik jeg styrket min tro på, hvad lige netop JEG brænder for. På vej hjem i går, var jeg helt høj over afklaring og vores samtale.”

Caroline M. Junker Mentzel, PhD, Molecular Genetics Scientist

“During the first 5 months of my postdoc at the University of Copenhagen, I was fortuned to share an office with Julie Mou Larsen.

I was rapidly introduced to PhD- and Master students, who were appreciatively knocking on the door asking Julie for senior guidance on scientific study designs and data interpretation – and often in a more confidential setting also requesting career advice.

Julie had this ability to welcome people in their “current state” and then provide spot-on guidance.

I was impressed by Julie’s knowledge, enthusiasm, helpfulness and very detailed insight in relation to both high level scientific and human matters, a rare combination to such level, and I truly valued those months from many perspectives.

A few years later towards the end of my own postdoc, I had doubts about the direction of my academic career.

I contacted Julie for professional sparring regarding a possible transition from academia to the industry.

I am a molecular biologist specialized in molecular genetics and large scale analysis. Her background as a specialist and mentor in the pharmaceutical industry combined with her insights into the world of academia has therefore been essential for me as she “speaks the language of both worlds”.

She has helped me see my academic achievements in a new light and to identify my transferrable skills, opening up career paths that I would not have considered.

In addition, she has been absolutely essential in elevating my CV and job applications.

After Julie’s advice, I completely transformed the way I was writing both my CV and job applications.

I can only state that if you are ever in doubt about the direction of your career or need input for your CV or job applications, I highly recommend Julie Mou Larsen.”

Angelika Christensen, MSc Medicinal Chemistry, University of Copenhagen, PhD Student Novo Nordisk

“The first time I heard Julie’s speech was at an event “To PhD or not to PhD”. During the speech, Julie took us on an inspiring adventure; not only her personality but also her amazing stories motivated me immensely. Within the first few minutes of her talk, my friend and I could not stop saying: “fuck, she is awesome.” It was one of the best motivational speeches I have heard.

The second time I met Julie was at a mentees event. I was excited, as I knew that the event would be amazing. That day, Julie not only made a wonderful and inspiring speech but actually mentored us. She gave us many questions for reflections, that she supported with life stories to help us. After the speech, there was time for discussion as a group or one on one.

Julie proposed an additional meeting outside the program for the mentees to give us an opportunity to talk with her again.

When I told her about my field of interest, she started actively to find ways to help me. Julie truly wants to help other people and motivate them to follow their dreams.”

Anna-Maria Stouki, New Product Introduction (NPI) Engineer in Diabetes Finished Products (DFP) at Novo Nordisk, Attending Reflectorial & Inspirational Career Talk

“I really loved Julie’s speech! Exciting, inspirational and admirable. Julie’s talk was sure worth watching and help me widen my horizons!”

Muhammad Ali, Biochemist in Synthetic Biology & Bioinformatics, Founder, iGEM Bronze, 100 Global “Leaders of Tomorrow”, Health Security Future Fellow at Cambridge University and John Hopkins. Attendant International Career Speak

“Dear Julie,

Thank you for the encouraging words and inspirational talk. I work hard to train in multidisciplinary areas. I seek growth beyond the lab and learn the business and ethical side of our work. In our traditional system, scientists are excellent at value creation but don’t do so well in value capture. We will be solving real-world problems when we actively engage in public discussion about the value and repercussions of our work.

From your talk, it particularly resonated with me what you said about always asking ourselves how can we contribute whenever we walk into a workplace. We often get overwhelmed with chasing metrics, citations and publications that we lose sight of our real purpose. We are there to contribute and help make the world a better place. It is a very sacred job that we have been entrusted with.

It is phenomenal what you have been able to accomplish professionally and that you rejoice every moment with your family. Your child has an amazing example to look up to.”

Thea Holman, Intensive Care Nurse, Royal North Shore Hospital & UTS, Flight Nurse AirMed Australia, Mastering in Business Administration & Innovation in Health Care, CBS.

“I am getting in touch to express my gratitude for your mentee workshop, hosted by Synapse. As a mentee with no previous formal mentoring experience, it was highly beneficial for setting a foundation about how to approach this unique relationship between me and my mentor. The workshop helped me explore without hesitation my own objectives within my career and realise that there are no “wrong” goals to work towards. You also helped me explore and challenge my own values both personally and professionally, which helped me express myself in a safe environment with my mentor.
Thank you for helping me. Your workshop has given me the tools to be more introspective, to ask myself the right questions to learn more about myself.”

Attendee Workshop, Synapse Mentorship Program – Bridging LIFE Sciences

“Hi Julie, I just want to get in touch to thank you for speaking at the Synapse Mentee workshop last week. I had my first meeting with my mentor today, and your wise words really gave me a strong foundation to work towards. It’s helped me really think about what I want to achieve within my career, and that no goal is “wrong”, no matter how crazy it sounds. I really felt that I could express these in a safe environment for my mentor today. There are lots of different things that I have taken from your workshop and have already found useful, and I really wanted to express my gratitude for this.“

Anna Svetlova, BS, Molecular Biology and Chemistry, MSc student in Pharmaceutical Design and Engineering, DTU, Mentee, Synapse – Bridging LIFE Sciences Program

”Julie has a special way of connecting to people. She is a very charismatic person. In my life, I have been asked many times – What do you want in life? Usually, I would not be motivated to think about or think that it even matters. But when Julie asks the same question for some reason you start thinking about it and thus getting closer to an answer. With her energy, she inspires to get up off the chair and start making changes.”