#124 Survival, Strength, and Saving Lives: Arjan Erkel on 607 Days in Captivity and Rescuing Girls from Exploitation

1h24 | 03/07/2025

Description

In this gripping episode, Sander and Jim sit down with Arjan Erkel, who shares his harrowing experience of being kidnapped and held hostage for 607 days in Dagestan. Arjan walks us through the terrifying moment of his abduction, the psychological battles he faced in captivity, and the resilience that helped him survive. He also discusses his remarkable mindset shift, the unexpected relationships he built with his captors, and how he reclaimed his life after being freed.

Beyond his personal story, Arjan sheds light on his work with Free a Girl, an organization dedicated to rescuing children from sexual exploitation. We also dive into what businesses and individuals can learn from his experiences—resilience, adaptability, and the power of taking small steps in difficult situations.

Support Free a Girl!

The Free a Girl foundation, has already rescued over 8,000 children from sexual exploitation.

Join the mission by donating, spreading awareness, or supporting the Paperclip Challenge to raise $100K.

🌍 Learn more & donate: Free a Girl

💡 Support the Paperclip Challenge: Help us trade up from a guitar and amplifier to $100K to support this cause. You have something to trade? Reach out to us via paperclipchallenge@optilearn.co.uk!

Connect with Arjan

📖 Book: Held Hostage – [Available on Amazon]
🌐 Website: ArjanErkel.com

🌐 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/arjanerkel/

Connect with Mastering Agility

📢 Follow the podcast for more inspiring stories
💬 Join the conversation on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/mastering-agility
📩 Contact us for trades or sponsorships

👉 If you enjoyed this episode, leave a review and share it with someone who needs to hear this inspiring story!

Check out our sponsor:
www.xebia.com

www.scrummatch.com

www.wiserbees.com

www.masteringagility.org

Hosted on Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

About Mastering Agility

Why is it that products are so hard to develop and deliver?

How can we truly deliver value with so many different variables that can affect the outcome?

We are Sander Dur and Jim Sammons, professional consultants and trainers who support organizations in their pursuit of creating valuable products. Passionate about helping the community and practitioners apply the theory many authors and thought leaders bring to the industry, we started this podcast to make these concepts more accessible.

This podcast will change your career and organization. You’ll be entertained while learning about the industry’s leaders and other practitioners, and you’ll feel familiar with the situations discussed as we invite guests over and discuss tools, concepts, models, metrics, leadership, frameworks, and many more elements that help you deliver amazing products.

Both of us understand the many struggles, challenges, antipatterns, and dysfunctions many of us face in our daily working lives. We are here to provide actionable advice and strategies for you to create continuous improvement. You will find things that actually work for many organizations, as we and our guests have tried and tested them.

You will find a goldmine of actionable information from many fields, including the space industry, Formula 1, psychology, and Silicon Valley’s top entrepreneurs. We break down these complex topics into easily digestible insights that you can start applying in your careers right away. The best part is that you can even join our live recordings to ask your most burning questions and get them answered based on your needs!

We dive deep into the world of business agility, product discovery, delivery, validation, product management, and product frameworks like Scrum, Kanban, LeSS, and many more. We’ll explore the benefits of decentralized decision-making, autonomous empowered teams, leadership, and much more. We empower you with the information you need to become the leaders your organization deserve.

Hosted on Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

About Mastering Agility

Why is it that products are so hard to develop and deliver?

How can we truly deliver value with so many different variables that can affect the outcome?

We are Sander Dur and Jim Sammons, professional consultants and trainers who support organizations in their pursuit of creating valuable products. Passionate about helping the community and practitioners apply the theory many authors and thought leaders bring to the industry, we started this podcast to make these concepts more accessible.

This podcast will change your career and organization. You’ll be entertained while learning about the industry’s leaders and other practitioners, and you’ll feel familiar with the situations discussed as we invite guests over and discuss tools, concepts, models, metrics, leadership, frameworks, and many more elements that help you deliver amazing products.

Both of us understand the many struggles, challenges, antipatterns, and dysfunctions many of us face in our daily working lives. We are here to provide actionable advice and strategies for you to create continuous improvement. You will find things that actually work for many organizations, as we and our guests have tried and tested them.

You will find a goldmine of actionable information from many fields, including the space industry, Formula 1, psychology, and Silicon Valley’s top entrepreneurs. We break down these complex topics into easily digestible insights that you can start applying in your careers right away. The best part is that you can even join our live recordings to ask your most burning questions and get them answered based on your needs!

We dive deep into the world of business agility, product discovery, delivery, validation, product management, and product frameworks like Scrum, Kanban, LeSS, and many more. We’ll explore the benefits of decentralized decision-making, autonomous empowered teams, leadership, and much more. We empower you with the information you need to become the leaders your organization deserve.

Hosted on Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

Description

In this gripping episode, Sander and Jim sit down with Arjan Erkel, who shares his harrowing experience of being kidnapped and held hostage for 607 days in Dagestan. Arjan walks us through the terrifying moment of his abduction, the psychological battles he faced in captivity, and the resilience that helped him survive. He also discusses his remarkable mindset shift, the unexpected relationships he built with his captors, and how he reclaimed his life after being freed.

Beyond his personal story, Arjan sheds light on his work with Free a Girl, an organization dedicated to rescuing children from sexual exploitation. We also dive into what businesses and individuals can learn from his experiences—resilience, adaptability, and the power of taking small steps in difficult situations.

Support Free a Girl!

The Free a Girl foundation, has already rescued over 8,000 children from sexual exploitation.

Join the mission by donating, spreading awareness, or supporting the Paperclip Challenge to raise $100K.

🌍 Learn more & donate: Free a Girl

💡 Support the Paperclip Challenge: Help us trade up from a guitar and amplifier to $100K to support this cause. You have something to trade? Reach out to us via paperclipchallenge@optilearn.co.uk!

Connect with Arjan

📖 Book: Held Hostage – [Available on Amazon]
🌐 Website: ArjanErkel.com

🌐 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/arjanerkel/

Connect with Mastering Agility

📢 Follow the podcast for more inspiring stories
💬 Join the conversation on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/mastering-agility
📩 Contact us for trades or sponsorships

👉 If you enjoyed this episode, leave a review and share it with someone who needs to hear this inspiring story!

Check out our sponsor:
www.xebia.com

www.scrummatch.com

www.wiserbees.com

www.masteringagility.org

Hosted on Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

About Mastering Agility

Why is it that products are so hard to develop and deliver?

How can we truly deliver value with so many different variables that can affect the outcome?

We are Sander Dur and Jim Sammons, professional consultants and trainers who support organizations in their pursuit of creating valuable products. Passionate about helping the community and practitioners apply the theory many authors and thought leaders bring to the industry, we started this podcast to make these concepts more accessible.

This podcast will change your career and organization. You’ll be entertained while learning about the industry’s leaders and other practitioners, and you’ll feel familiar with the situations discussed as we invite guests over and discuss tools, concepts, models, metrics, leadership, frameworks, and many more elements that help you deliver amazing products.

Both of us understand the many struggles, challenges, antipatterns, and dysfunctions many of us face in our daily working lives. We are here to provide actionable advice and strategies for you to create continuous improvement. You will find things that actually work for many organizations, as we and our guests have tried and tested them.

You will find a goldmine of actionable information from many fields, including the space industry, Formula 1, psychology, and Silicon Valley’s top entrepreneurs. We break down these complex topics into easily digestible insights that you can start applying in your careers right away. The best part is that you can even join our live recordings to ask your most burning questions and get them answered based on your needs!

We dive deep into the world of business agility, product discovery, delivery, validation, product management, and product frameworks like Scrum, Kanban, LeSS, and many more. We’ll explore the benefits of decentralized decision-making, autonomous empowered teams, leadership, and much more. We empower you with the information you need to become the leaders your organization deserve.

Hosted on Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

About Mastering Agility

Why is it that products are so hard to develop and deliver?

How can we truly deliver value with so many different variables that can affect the outcome?

We are Sander Dur and Jim Sammons, professional consultants and trainers who support organizations in their pursuit of creating valuable products. Passionate about helping the community and practitioners apply the theory many authors and thought leaders bring to the industry, we started this podcast to make these concepts more accessible.

This podcast will change your career and organization. You’ll be entertained while learning about the industry’s leaders and other practitioners, and you’ll feel familiar with the situations discussed as we invite guests over and discuss tools, concepts, models, metrics, leadership, frameworks, and many more elements that help you deliver amazing products.

Both of us understand the many struggles, challenges, antipatterns, and dysfunctions many of us face in our daily working lives. We are here to provide actionable advice and strategies for you to create continuous improvement. You will find things that actually work for many organizations, as we and our guests have tried and tested them.

You will find a goldmine of actionable information from many fields, including the space industry, Formula 1, psychology, and Silicon Valley’s top entrepreneurs. We break down these complex topics into easily digestible insights that you can start applying in your careers right away. The best part is that you can even join our live recordings to ask your most burning questions and get them answered based on your needs!

We dive deep into the world of business agility, product discovery, delivery, validation, product management, and product frameworks like Scrum, Kanban, LeSS, and many more. We’ll explore the benefits of decentralized decision-making, autonomous empowered teams, leadership, and much more. We empower you with the information you need to become the leaders your organization deserve.

Hosted on Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

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