From Code to Charisma: Applying principles of Seduction to elevate your freelance career and leadership impact

Göran Hielscher once spilled juice over his laptop in a taxi on the way to a client. The slides were gone, so he talked without them, and he got the job. That story opens his talk on 14 May 2025 because it shows what he cares about: not the deliverable, but how you connect. Seduction, in his sense, has nothing to do with flirting: he means magnetism, invitation and a good experience for your clients. He is a coach and facilitator for leadership training.

What the talk covers

• The iceberg: skills, brand and social media are visible. Underneath sit your personality, how you interact and the words you use. He calls what clients feel "behavioral branding" and links it to experience design: prepare the setting for a conversation, remember a client's daughter's birthday, choose the seat in a negotiation.
• A framework spelling "seduce": sensation (read body language and micro-emotions), emotion (soften instead of getting angry when your price is rejected), clarity, uncertainty (feel it without rejecting it, and use a little of it in the client), charisma (record a conversation to see how you come across) and environment.
• Exercise: invent your "business seducer avatar" from what you show and what runs in the background, add a superpower and an inner conflict. Audience examples: the storytelling designer, the empathetic developer, the authentic coder.
• Conference tricks: give someone silent presence for a moment, and repeat names to remember them.

Q&A

How to build trust remotely as a new freelancer? Show interest, ask clients what they liked about your proposal, and play a little less expert than you are so others open up. For introverts: use listening as a strength and tell people you are processing.

Who it's for

Freelancers whose technical skills are strong and who want to improve how they connect with clients.