Dealing with stalkers was rooted in Frans Timmermans of his school days.
The Dutchman became famous six years ago as his country's foreign minister with a moving speech at the United Nations. Russia-backed separatists shot down flight MH17 filled with Dutch citizens, and Timmermans passed on the feelings of a shocked nation to the world.
In his next job as first vice-president of the European Commission, he faced right-wing populists like Nigel Farage from the UK and autocratic leaders in Hungary and Poland.
Last year Timmermans, a member of the Dutch Labor Party, waged a passionate and energetic campaign to become President of the Commission.
And for a week, it looked like they would name it.
But his tenacity had caused too much bad blood with Budapest and Warsaw, and that opened the way for the conservatives to unite around a Christian Democrat alternative, Ursula von der Leyen.
Timmermans assumed a supervisory role of the European Green Agreement as one of the Commission's three executive vice-presidents.
To succeed, it must confront governments and vested interests that are rushing to revive the economies collapsed by the coronavirus.
This means ensuring that the billions of euros spent by the EU and its member states transform rather than entrench polluting industries and infrastructure.
Timmermans begins his first podcast interview with how composers from Jacques Brel to Bruce Springsteen were a source of comfort and inspiration to him.