Start your career with CHARACTER AND HUMANITY
Socially confident. Emotionally aware. Mentally focused.
Lasting success starts with a strong inner foundation
We provide a structured approach to the lessons others learn through experience and setbacks.
You’ve learned how to pass exams. But who has prepared you mentally, emotionally and personally for the transition from school or university into working life?
START YOUR CAREER WITH CHARACTER AND HUMANITY is a personal development programme designed to strengthen young people’s mental, emotional and social skills. We make complex psychological concepts accessible and practical early on. Our approach brings together established knowledge from psychology, neuroscience, business and selected philosophical approaches, shaped by the insights of experienced professionals.
We cannot wait for the education system to adapt and prepare school leavers for an increasingly complex, technology-driven world. We are taking action ourselves, helping young adults start their careers with both professional skills and inner strength.
Young people gain structured, practical and scientifically grounded knowledge that gives them a valuable head start in working life.
For graduates
At school, you’re told what to do. Afterwards, you’re expected to think for yourself and find solutions. We prepare you for precisely this transition, helping you think more clearly, develop emotional awareness and understand how to work well with others.
For employers
We support your apprentices’ mental wellbeing, encourage personal responsibility and help them understand their role and take an active part in their own development.
For parents
Among the many programmes available to young people starting their careers, START YOUR CAREER WITH CHARACTER AND HUMANITY offers something that is often missing: an inner sense of direction. Step by step, we help young people move towards a future with clarity, self-confidence and social confidence. Our lasting approach also supports parents during this formative stage of their children’s lives.
Our programme for graduates and university students
5 days | At Lake Ammersee
Personal Development Programme
Start Your Career with Character and Humanity
Have you finished school, or are you at university and looking to make a thoughtful decision about your next step? Spend five days at Lake Ammersee. Step away from your daily routine, put your phone aside and take time to focus on yourself.
Surrounded by like-minded people, you’ll develop your emotional skills and gain essential psychological knowledge to help you approach your career with greater awareness and confidence.
You’ll be supported by a professional team and joined by others who are exploring similar questions.
In the evenings: optional meditation, walks by the lake and sport.
Your parents are welcome to join us on the final day.
Find clarity and a career direction that feels right for you
Our five-day personal development programme combines in-depth personal growth with practical experience in a dynamic, interactive setting at Lake Ammersee. Through a variety of indoor and outdoor activities, you’ll develop the skills that really matter for a successful start to your career.
Who is this programme for?
This programme is right for you if you:
- Want to understand yourself better before deciding on your next step.
- Are open to self-reflection and enjoy personal development.
- Are weighing up different options, such as university, an apprenticeship, time abroad or a job.
- Are about to start university.
- Would like greater self-confidence and a clearer sense of direction.
What you’ll gain
After these five days, you’ll:
- Have a concise grounding in essential psychological concepts.
- Understand your strengths, values and motivations more clearly.
- Make decisions more thoughtfully and confidently.
- Have a personal plan for your next steps, grounded in a realistic assessment of your options.
- Feel calmer and more focused.
What to expect
The programme combines knowledge with practical experience, creating space for fewer outside distractions and greater inner clarity.
- A scientifically grounded personality profile.
- Practical exercises, self-reflection and learning through active participation.
- Skills for the future, tailored to your individual personality profile.
- Emotional awareness and regulation, explored alongside philosophical perspectives.
- Interactive learning rather than traditional classroom teaching.
- Practical, focused development of mental, emotional and interpersonal skills.
- Essential psychological knowledge brought together in a concise format — insights that might otherwise take years to acquire.
- A guest talk from an inspiring speaker.
Throughout the programme, you’ll be supported by a professionally trained team certified by Werner Katzengruber. Werner also joins parts of the programme in person as our psychology expert.
How you’ll benefit
- Develop essential skills in emotional intelligence, mental resilience and confident interaction with others.
- Gain greater clarity about your next career step.
- Make more confident decisions about university, apprenticeships and work.
- Strengthen your motivation and confidence to take responsibility for your own path.
When: 2–6 August 2027
Where: Hofgut Algertshausen, Lake Ammersee
€2,250 per participant for the week
Includes meals, accommodation, a contribution to our solidarity fund* and assessment fees.
Registration deadline: 4 June 2027
Programme details and what’s included
- A five-day personal development programme at Lake Ammersee.
- Comfortable accommodation in a double room, for single or shared occupancy.
- Small groups of no more than 10 participants for individual support.
- Programme materials.
- Please bring a tablet on the first day for the personality assessment.
- Meals on all five days.
- A personal skills profile and development plan.
- Evening activities: yoga, meditation, walks by the lake and sport.
- Fun, fresh experiences, opportunities to step outside your comfort zone and plenty of new insights.
*€45 of your participation fee goes into our solidarity fund. This helps make the programme accessible to people for whom the cost would otherwise be a barrier. If this applies to you, please get in touch.
Our programme for apprentices and early-career professionals
Two 2-day sessions | In your company
Personal Development Programme
Start Your Career with Character and Humanity
Welcoming new apprentices or early-career professionals to your company? Our personal development programme helps them approach everyday working life with resilience, team spirit and confidence in their interactions with others.
Most mistakes arise not from technology or a lack of professional knowledge, but from the way people interact. People who understand themselves communicate more clearly, respond more calmly and work better in a team.
START YOUR CAREER WITH CHARACTER AND HUMANITY supports mental wellbeing and resilience early in a person’s career. It lays the foundations for strong, understanding working relationships and makes shared success easier to achieve.
Strong individuals. Clear focus. Less friction at work.
This interactive programme helps young employees take responsibility, act with greater confidence and find their place within your organisation.
Which companies is this programme suited to?
This programme is ideal if you want to:
- Help apprentices and early-career professionals take on responsibility sooner.
- Actively support mental wellbeing.
- Reduce uncertainty, overwhelm or difficulties with motivation.
- Improve team cohesion and communication.
- Establish a professional development plan for your apprentices and early-career professionals.
What your employees will take away
After the programme, they will:
- Have psychological insights that help build stronger working relationships.
- Take a more structured approach to tasks, feedback and expectations.
- Recognise their own strengths and limits more clearly.
- Put their knowledge into practice by taking greater personal responsibility.
What we work on
- Personal mindset, values and self-image.
- A personality profile with professional interpretation.
- Essential psychological concepts and how they relate to one another.
- Strengthening emotional intelligence through practical exercises.
- Developing emotional regulation and skills for the future, tailored to each individual.
Benefits for your company
- Faster integration of young employees.
- Less friction within teams.
- Greater independence and initiative.
- Stronger commitment to the company.
- Proactive support for mental wellbeing.
What your employees will take away
After the programme, they will:
- Have psychological insights that help build stronger working relationships.
- Take a more structured approach to tasks, feedback and expectations.
- Recognise their own strengths and limits more clearly.
- Put their knowledge into practice by taking greater personal responsibility.
What we work on
- Personal mindset, values and self-image.
- A personality profile with professional interpretation.
- Essential psychological concepts and how they relate to one another.
- Strengthening emotional intelligence through practical exercises.
- Developing emotional regulation and skills for the future, tailored to each individual.
Benefits for your company
- Faster integration of young employees.
- Less friction within teams.
- Greater independence and initiative.
- Stronger commitment to the company.
- Proactive support for mental wellbeing.
When: By arrangement
Where: By arrangement
Price: On request
Programme details
- Between two and five days.
- Delivered at your company or off-site at Hofgut Algertshausen.
- Group sizes adapted to your needs.
Our programme for schools and students in grades 8–12
Flexible dates | At your school or an external venue
Personal Development Programme
Start Your Career with Character and Humanity
Would you like to encourage more considerate, respectful relationships at school? Are you looking to help students develop a healthy relationship with social media?
Our personal development programme supports students in treating others with empathy and consideration in everyday school life. It strengthens emotional intelligence as a foundation for healthy social media use.
Most friction at school arises in the way people interact. Students who understand themselves better can recognise and regulate their emotions more effectively and engage with others more confidently.
START YOUR CAREER WITH CHARACTER AND HUMANITY builds the psychological foundations for mutual understanding early on, making it easier to learn together.
Why does this matter in schools?
This programme is valuable because:
- Media literacy requires emotional skills.
- Schools provide an opportunity to reach all children and young people.
- Prevention addresses difficulties before they become problems.
- It encourages respectful relationships and democratic values.
- Artificial intelligence makes human skills even more important.
- It supports mental wellbeing and improves the school environment.
What we work on during the programme
- Understanding what shapes our mindset and values.
- Recognising and regulating emotions through practical examples from social media.
- Learning to engage respectfully with different opinions, even when we disagree.
- Learning and practising debate as a foundation for critical thinking.
- Developing emotional intelligence as a basis for healthy social media use.
- Building emotional regulation as an essential skill for the future.
Who is this programme for?
This programme is right for your school if you want to:
- Help students become more aware of their emotions.
- Encourage a thoughtful approach to social media.
- Teach debating skills as a practical foundation for critical thinking.
- Develop emotional regulation as an important skill for the future.
When: Flexible dates available
Where: At your school or an external venue
What sets us apart
We are not a traditional careers advice service
We help young people move from listening to others to actively shaping their own professional futures. Drawing on carefully selected knowledge and established personality assessments, we work together to identify realistic career directions. We deliberately avoid presenting individual job recommendations as ready-made answers.
Our approach goes beyond conventional coaching
Our personal development programme follows a structured framework, combining well-grounded content with shared practical experience in small groups. Where needed, individual concerns can be explored further through separate one-to-one coaching outside the programme.
We are not opposed to technology
We use AI-supported assessments where they add value, while strengthening emotional intelligence as a foundation for responsible engagement with the digital world. To support focused work, we deliberately create an environment with few distractions.
We are not a retreat
Our peaceful, inspiring surroundings provide the setting for an intensive week of challenging work, while also allowing room for rest and concentration.
START YOUR CAREER WITH CHARACTER AND HUMANITY brings together the essence of two experts’ many years of practical experience, alongside insights from numerous books, podcasts and training programmes. This combination of format, depth and quality cannot be replicated by technology.
Your mindset and values
Why they matter
Your mindset is not fixed. It develops through honest self-reflection, deeper exploration, understanding and practice that becomes part of everyday life.
When people from different backgrounds come together, professional knowledge alone is not enough. We need inner stability, confidence in our relationships and a clear set of values to guide us through challenging situations.
Socially confident
You learn who you are, rather than who you are expected to be. You recognise your strengths, talents and limits without exaggerating or diminishing them. Understanding yourself helps you treat others with greater appreciation, laying the foundations for good collaboration and meaningful connections — including at work.
Emotionally aware
You take an honest, in-depth look at yourself without getting lost in overanalysis. This creates a foundation for genuine stability. You learn to notice your feelings more consciously, understand them more clearly and respond to them constructively.
Mentally focused
You build a strong inner foundation that helps you develop direction, confidence and trust in yourself. A fulfilling working life takes shape one step at a time.
What you’ll gain personally
What you’ll take away from START YOUR CAREER WITH CHARACTER AND HUMANITY
Some of life’s most important questions are: Who am I? What are my strengths? How can I use them meaningfully?
We help you find answers that support your personal and professional growth:
- Greater self-understanding. Gain clarity about who you are and the career direction you want to take.
- Essential psychological knowledge. Strengthen your emotional skills and maintain your inner balance at work.
- A clear sense of direction. Identify a professional field that suits your personality.
- Genuine connection. Meet like-minded people in person, with small groups, honest conversations and a supportive community. Yes, without smartphones — by mutual agreement.
- A well-founded skills profile. Gain a scientifically grounded basis for your next steps.
- The ability to navigate setbacks. Challenges are part of life. Learn to draw on your inner strength when you need it.
START YOUR CAREER WITH CHARACTER AND HUMANITY
We help you get ready. You take the next steps.
What you’ll gain personally
What you’ll take away from START YOUR CAREER WITH CHARACTER AND HUMANITY
Some of life’s most important questions are: Who am I? What are my strengths? How can I use them meaningfully?
We help you find answers that support your personal and professional growth:
- Greater self-understanding. Gain clarity about who you are and the career direction you want to take.
- Essential psychological knowledge. Strengthen your emotional skills and maintain your inner balance at work.
- A clear sense of direction. Identify a professional field that suits your personality.
- Genuine connection. Meet like-minded people in person, with small groups, honest conversations and a supportive community. Yes, without smartphones — by mutual agreement.
- A well-founded skills profile. Gain a scientifically grounded basis for your next steps.
- The ability to navigate setbacks. Challenges are part of life. Learn to draw on your inner strength when you need it.
START YOUR CAREER WITH CHARACTER AND HUMANITY
We help you get ready. You take the next steps.
About us
What is Better Generation?
The honest answer?
It is what we — Janina and Werner — wish we had had when we started our own careers.
Better Generation is the company behind START YOUR CAREER WITH CHARACTER AND HUMANITY. The programme was developed by a business graduate with 15 years of experience in human resources and a psychologist with over 30 years of practical experience.
It brings together knowledge and experience from real careers, real crises and meaningful insights, helping people navigate working life and life beyond it with perspective and a clear sense of purpose.
START YOUR CAREER WITH CHARACTER AND HUMANITY offers practical guidance towards greater inner clarity.
We help you understand yourself better: your talents, your values and your limits. We also equip you with essential psychological knowledge that provides a strong foundation for work and life.
Because understanding yourself more deeply helps you make clearer decisions — at work and beyond.
About Janina
I’m Janina, founder of Better Generation
Young people face one of their most important decisions as they begin their working lives, and they often face it alone. I know that gap. I experienced it myself, and it shaped me.
We are well prepared to demonstrate knowledge and meet expectations. But there is often little room for self-understanding or exploring what makes us who we are. Yet this is precisely the clarity employers later expect of us.
The original idea came to me just a few years after university, when I was working in learning and development. At the time, however, I lacked the courage to pursue it. My career was stable, interesting and demanding, so I continued working as an employee.
During those years, I was fortunate enough to become a mother of two. From the time my children were born, I began writing down everything that might help them later in life: knowledge they could draw on to build fulfilling careers and personal lives. I did not want them to reach adulthood without a sense of direction. I wanted to give them something lasting to rely on. That is why Better Generation and START YOUR CAREER WITH CHARACTER AND HUMANITY exist.
Historically, psychology has its roots in philosophy. A grounding in philosophical thinking helps us use psychological knowledge responsibly and apply our insights for people’s benefit. Over several years, Werner Katzengruber trained me in psychology. This knowledge has enriched me deeply and fundamentally sharpened my understanding of human development.
The programme grew out of these convictions. I have explored in depth what a successful start to working life truly requires — professionally, personally and psychologically. Today, I have the tools to share that knowledge with others.
I want to bring this idea to as many young people as possible and give them meaningful support as they move into working life: with a clear sense of purpose, self-confidence, self-awareness and fulfilment.
My professional background
- German Diplom qualification in Business Administration.
- German Diplom qualification in Communications (BAW).
- 15 years of human resources management in a leadership role.
- IHK-qualified Business Coach.
- Master-level training in Transactional Coaching with W. Katzengruber; Next-Gen Coach training with W. Katzengruber.
- Certified practitioner in MPPI personality profiling.
- 10 years leading youth holiday programmes for the City of Munich Youth Welfare Office.
About Janina
I’m Janina, founder of Better Generation
Young people face one of their most important decisions as they begin their working lives, and they often face it alone. I know that gap. I experienced it myself, and it shaped me.
We are well prepared to demonstrate knowledge and meet expectations. But there is often little room for self-understanding or exploring what makes us who we are. Yet this is precisely the clarity employers later expect of us.
The original idea came to me just a few years after university, when I was working in learning and development. At the time, however, I lacked the courage to pursue it. My career was stable, interesting and demanding, so I continued working as an employee.
During those years, I was fortunate enough to become a mother of two. From the time my children were born, I began writing down everything that might help them later in life: knowledge they could draw on to build fulfilling careers and personal lives. I did not want them to reach adulthood without a sense of direction. I wanted to give them something lasting to rely on. That is why Better Generation and START YOUR CAREER WITH CHARACTER AND HUMANITY exist.
Historically, psychology has its roots in philosophy. A grounding in philosophical thinking helps us use psychological knowledge responsibly and apply our insights for people’s benefit. Over several years, Werner Katzengruber trained me in psychology. This knowledge has enriched me deeply and fundamentally sharpened my understanding of human development.
The programme grew out of these convictions. I have explored in depth what a successful start to working life truly requires — professionally, personally and psychologically. Today, I have the tools to share that knowledge with others.
I want to bring this idea to as many young people as possible and give them meaningful support as they move into working life: with a clear sense of purpose, self-confidence, self-awareness and fulfilment.
My professional background
- German Diplom qualification in Business Administration.
- German Diplom qualification in Communications (BAW).
- 15 years of human resources management in a leadership role.
- IHK-qualified Business Coach.
- Master-level training in Transactional Coaching with W. Katzengruber; Next-Gen Coach training with W. Katzengruber.
- Certified practitioner in MPPI personality profiling.
- 10 years leading youth holiday programmes for the City of Munich Youth Welfare Office.
My values
Integrity
You know where you stand with me. No small print, no empty promises and no unnecessary frills. To me, integrity means keeping my word.
Connection
Everyone has abilities. People and their humanity come first. Genuine encounters allow those abilities to be seen. Where that happens, trust can grow.
Courage
Finding clarity sometimes takes the courage to look honestly at yourself and the openness to explore deeper questions.
Scientific foundations and collaboration
Our assessments use scientifically grounded methods for evaluating personality and aptitude, developed in collaboration with Werner Katzengruber and People Analytica.
The result is a precise analysis of individual potential and patterns of behaviour, providing a foundation for personal growth and thoughtful decisions without putting people into rigid categories.
Werner Katzengruber has advised companies, executives and individuals for more than 30 years. Psychological depth, a consistently people-centred approach and extensive practical experience make START YOUR CAREER WITH CHARACTER AND HUMANITY unique in its format.
Testimonials
Prof. Dr. Gerald Hüther
Neuroscientist
The personal development programme “Start Your Career with Character and Humanity” looks very professional. It is particularly relevant to the times we live in and helps counter the growing sense of uncertainty and lack of direction, especially among young people. Taking time to reflect on personal values and attitudes before starting a career is undoubtedly very valuable. I am sure many parents and companies would welcome the opportunity to support this kind of personal growth in their children and young employees.
Congratulations, Mrs Basko, on such a thoroughly considered and well-founded concept. All its elements fit together beautifully.
Miriam L. Betz
Managing Director
“Mrs Basko’s course was a real asset to our company. As Managing Director, I believe it is important to give our apprentices not only professional knowledge, but also opportunities to develop their sense of self-worth and belief in their own abilities. That is exactly what Ms Basko achieved through her seminar and its concise introduction to essential psychological knowledge.
Our young employees gained a better understanding of their strengths and of specific areas in which they can develop further. Ms Basko’s assessments of their development potential, which undoubtedly also draw on her extensive professional experience, provided valuable building blocks for our ongoing staff development.
For our apprentices, the course was like a colourful painting: stimulating, thought-provoking and truly encouraging. It was designed so that each apprentice could take away what was most relevant to them. I was particularly impressed by the professionalism and personal warmth with which Ms Basko, a trained business coach, supported our apprentices and met each individual where they were.
I found the course innovative, carefully considered and successful in every respect. I wholeheartedly recommend it to other companies with apprentices — and especially recommend Ms Basko herself, whose expertise and personal qualities are equally impressive.”
Contact and booking
Have a question or would you like to register?
Send us an email or give us a call. We’d love to hear from you!