This employee is one of the best puzzlers in the Netherlands

ESSB staff member Paula Etman enjoys puzzling in her spare time. Together with her sister and friends, she made it to the finals of the Dutch jigsaw puzzle championship in Roelofarendsveen this year, finishing thirteenth out of 750 teams. “Though we mostly join in for the fun of it.”

The Erasmus School of Social and Behavioural Sciences’ operations coordinator developed a love for puzzling at an early age. “All kids do jigsaw puzzles at some point, but in our house it went a bit further”, she says. Her mother would regularly bring out 5,000-piece puzzles, which the family would complete together. They were so enthusiastic that Paula’s father built special boards to use as puzzle trays on the sofa, so they could puzzle and watch TV at the same time.

“I definitely did it every day until I was about twelve. After that, a bit less, but I still often joined my mum”, she says. Her sister is also a big fan of puzzling. “She doesn’t do it as often as I do, but she’s more competitive, which really helps during the championship.”

It started as a joke

Four years ago, Paula was at her parents’ holiday home with a friend. They were working on a wooden children’s puzzle that her father had once made. That’s when the idea of taking part in the Dutch puzzle championship came up. “It started as a joke”, she recalls. Her sister and her friend’s sister joined in, and the team was complete. “We signed up that same year, made it to the finals and finished in 24th place.”

They also made the finals the past two years. Paula still feels a healthy bit of nerves during the competition. “But the first time was the most nerve-wracking. Now we know who the competitors are, how the contest works and roughly where we stand.”

While many teams train intensively, Paula’s team takes a more relaxed approach. “We do have a few practice nights starting about a month before the final. We grab a 1,000-piece puzzle, set a timer and just go for it.”

No long sleeves

Last year, the team finished seventh, and this year they were again hoping for a top-ten finish. That didn’t happen in the end. “The championship is becoming more and more popular, so the competition’s getting tougher too.”

The final was held two weeks ago in a large sports hall in Roelofarendsveen. The competing teams were given a puzzle especially designed for the championship. Each team has its own strategy to complete the puzzle as quickly as possible. “We sort by colour”, Paula explains. “A puzzle with clear colour blocks, like red or purple, is much easier than one that’s mainly grey or orange shades.” Another important tactic: never wear long sleeves. “Before you know it, you’ve wiped a whole section of puzzle off the table with your sleeve.”

Her team completed the puzzle in 1 hour and 7 minutes, while the winners finished in just 51 minutes. “We kept hearing cheers from teams that had finished – it broke our concentration.” Paula’s team ended up in thirteenth place this year. “Not bad at all”, she says with a laugh. “Especially since we’re mainly in it for the fun.”

Work as a puzzle

Although she no longer puzzles every day, it remains an important hobby. “I even put it on my CV”, she says. As operations coordinator, her puzzling skills come in handy. “My job is basically one big puzzle. Bringing everything together, making connections, looking for what fits. Luckily I’m really good at that”, she adds with a wink.