Why STEREO Coaching

From Obstacle to Opportunity

It's not if.... it's when

It's not the question if you'll face obstacles, but when.

Simple straight plan versus complex reality with obstacles representing life challenges and growth

In every situation, you have two options:

react (automatically)
or choose (consciously)

Most people react. STEREO coaching helps you choose.

The obstacle stays the same. Your experience will be different.

Why you suffer

It is not the situation that creates how you feel.
It's your thought about the situation.

Two people can experience the same event and feel completely different.
Because they think differently about it.

When you believe your thoughts without questioning them, they feel true.
And those thoughts create emotions like anger, frustration, or humiliation.

STEREO Coaching helps you

see how your mind works
realize that your thoughts are not facts, but interpretations
become aware how thoughts create emotions.

Illustration of brain characters showing different emotions like stress, frustration, and overwhelm

Does this sound like you?

❝I don't know what to do.❞

❝I don't have time.❞

❝It's too hard❞

❝It's not fair.❞

❝I feel like I'm behind.❞

❝I should be further along.❞

❝It needs to be perfect.❞

❝It's too hard.❞

❝I'm not good enough.❞

You're not alone

Thousands of riders and instructors have shared these EXACT thoughts with me in coaching sessions, emails, and in my private groups (and I'd bet that these thoughts are familiar to millions of people.)

It's not your fault

The real reason you suffer is not because something has gone wrong or something is wrong with you. It's a hidden mechanism most people don't see.

The hidden force

Imagine yourself scrolling through social media, receiving lots of loves, likes and positive comments....

But then there’s that ONE negative comment....

And suddenly, all your focus shifts to that one comment.

You start thinking about it for days!!!

Why is that?

Illustration showing many positive thoughts and one negative thought dominating attention

Positive–negative asymmetry of the brain

Diagram showing the brain focusing more on one negative thought than multiple positive ones

We all have a subconscious tendency to focus on the bad and on what's wrong.

We all have a bias for negativity.

Your brain is not broken.

This positive–negative asymmetry in our brain is designed to protect you.

It's a survival mechanism, but in a modern world it's not always helpful or useful.

Your brain on autopilot

A primitive brain in a modern world can not only ruin your day, but your dreams:

It's determined to keep you in the comfort zone.
It brainwashes you that it's impossible.
It has the power to make you quit on your goals.
It convinces you that you've hit a dead end.
It's telling you to give up and go home.

Whatever it tells you feels real and it feels true.

But it's just an invisible power that stands in the way of your results.

Illustration of a person digging in the wrong direction while missing success, symbolizing autopilot behavior

STEREO Coaching helps you become aware

You can start down the path of balancing your brain with these simple steps:

1. Pause

Between stimulus and response is a space.

2. Observe

In that space, observe what you think, feel and do when you face that stimulus.

3. Choose

By noticing what you're current thnk-feel-do pattern creates for you, you have the option to choose differently.

STEREO Coaching helps you pause, observe, and choose instead of react, repeat, and reinforce the same pattern.

What does STEREO stand for

The STEREO Map shows you how your experience is created:

S timulus — what happens
T hought — what you think
E motion — how you feel
R esponse — how you react
E ffect — what you experience
O ptions — what else is possible

Instead of getting stuck in reaction, you learn to move all the way to options.

The O is where you open up the power of choice:

You do not erase the negative.
You do not force positive thinking.
You learn to give equal airtime to other thoughts, meanings, and possibilities.

The goal is to see clearly, and when you see clearly, you can choose differently.

Stop living on autopilot

Most people are not consciously choosing their thoughts, emotions, or responses.

They are reacting.

This happens fast and automatically:

something happens
a thought appears
an emotion follows
a reaction takes over

There is no pause, no awareness, no choice.

This is what keeps people stay stuck in the same patterns.

Start creating Space

The key to change is creating space between stimulus and response.

In that space, you reclaim your power.

Instead of reacting, you can choose:

a different thought
a different perspective
a different way of seeing the situation

This is where transformation happens.

Not outside you, but in what you think, feel, do and create.

❝We cannot choose our external circumstances, but we can always choose how we respond to them.”❞

Epictetus
(c. 50 – c. 135 AD)

❝Between stimulus and response there is a space.
In that space is our power to choose our response.
In our response lies our growth and our freedom.❞

Victor E. Frankl
(1905 - 1997)

How STEREO Coaching works

STEREO Coaching works by bringing awareness to the space between stimulus and response.

Without awareness, your think-feel-do pattern stays automatic.

You react based on habitual thoughts, conditioning and past experiences.

With awareness, you see the process.

And when you see it, something changes.

You don’t fight the negative.
You expand your perspective.

You give equal airtime to other thoughts, meanings, and possibilities.

And from there, you can respond differently.

That is where choice and change become possible.

The STEREO process step by step

STEREO Coaching uses a structured process to guide change.

You learn to:

Identify the stimulus and situation
Observe your thought about it
Notice the emotion it creates
Recognize your response
See the effect and impact it has
Explore alternative options

This process makes the invisible visible.

And it helps you become aware and make conscious choices.

Without awareness

❌ Not being aware of the space between stimulus and response.

❌ Feeling stressed or worried when facing problems

❌ You react automatically most of the time.

❌ Indecision

❌ You react on impulse, emotion, and habit

❌ Feeling stuck and powerless

With awareness

✔ More clarity about what's happening and why

✔ More calm in challenging situations

✔ You stop reacting and gain more control over your behavior

✔ More confidence in your decisions

✔ You act with awareness, intention, and choice

✔ Moving forward

STEREO Coaching helps you move from reacting automatically to responding consciously.

This shift changes how you experience life and all its obstacles.

FAQ

1. What is STEREO Coaching?

2. For who is STEREO Coaching?

3. Do I need STEREO Coaching?

4. Is this the same as positive thinking?

5. How is STEREO Coaching different from other methods?

6. Is this for everyone?

7. How quickly will I notice a difference?

8. Is STEREO Coaching hard?

9. Why do people understand this but still not apply it?

The Yes / And Sheet

For riders, instructors, coaches, teachers, and anyone who find themselves overthinking, overdoing, or going in circles.

How to Feel Better guide showing a book about changing thoughts and emotions

Expand Your Thinking

Discover the 10 most common thoughts that keep most people stuck – and what is also true.

Not to change your thoughts,
but to balance and expand them.

See new options ⬇

Start reclaiming your power of choice

You cannot always control what happens.

But you can learn to control how you respond.

STEREO Coaching gives you the tools to do that.

And that changes everything.

Because you’re no longer at the mercy of your mind.

ABOUT MARIJKE

STEREO Coaching is developed by Marijke de Jong. After decades of coaching riders, instructors, and professionals worldwide she knows how to help people break free from what keeps them stuck.

MORE ABOUT MARIJKE

PRIVATE COACHING

For those who are ready to stop abandoning themselves and start living in alignment. It's a space to let go of old patterns and return to your true self. Work directly with Marijke.

Limited availability. Not for everyone.

BOOK A CALL

STEREO Coaching helps you become aware

STEREO Coaching is developed by Marijke de Jong, based on years of coaching riders, instructors, and professionals worldwide.

It helps you see what's really going on:

The situation is not the problem.
The negative thought about the situation is.

It’s not what happens that creates your experience.
It’s that you make it mean.

This is how your experience is created:

your thoughts cause your emotions
your emotions drive your reactions
your reactions create your experience

If your thinking doesn't change,
your experience stays the same.

Your brain naturally focuses on the negative.

STEREO Coaching doesn’t remove the negative.
It helps you give equal airtime to other possibilities.

When you change what you think, you change how you feel.
When you change how you feel, you change what you do.
And when you change what you do, you change what you get.

It gives you the awareness and tools to make that change consciously.