– Where did you live before, and how did you get to Austin?
I never thought I’d ever be in Texas, in Austin. But, in my Soviet childhood, I dreamed a lot about distant countries and travels. So, in principle, it happened!
I was born in Russia, the hero city of Volgograd.
I studied English at school, but a year before entering the university, I learned French and entered the Faculty of Romano-Germanic Philology. Then, together with my best friend, we successfully passed the DALF (examination in advanced study of French in the field of humanities and social sciences) at the French government attache in Saratov. After that, we both entered several French universities. And soon, they continued their studies at the Faculty of Sociology and Psychology in Aix-en-Provence (France).
For nearly ten years, I worked as an HR manager for an international digital security company, which brought me to Austin in 2013 to help the local HR department cope with the company’s rapid growth in the US. Here I met my then-future husband. And already in the summer of 2015, I finally moved from France to Austin.
Photo: Student years in France.
– Tell us about your work. How did you organize your company? What were the difficulties? What interesting cases do you remember?
After moving to Austin, I decided to open my online language school, “LanguageStreet.” This business was quite successful but did not last long. I had first to suspend and then completely close my online school due to (but rather THANKS to) the birth of children, one year difference.
Becoming a mother, you begin to look at many things entirely differently: life values, perception of yourself, and your role in this life change.
While editing my LinkedIn profile, one day, I came across recommendations from my former colleagues and bosses about myself. They clearly showed how much they value my human qualities, emotional intelligence, ability to listen and hear, empathy, and effective coaching of employees. By the way, the students of my online school also told me more than once that my lessons were not just lessons for them but a kind of life coaching session that aroused interest in introspection and self-knowledge.
Today, after passing several specialized trainings and certifications in the field of Life Coaching and NLP (neuro-linguistic programming), I start working with clients who want to change something in their lives, sort out and resolve problems in various areas: personal life, relationships with family and friends, friends and colleagues, career and business, setting and achieving goals for personal and professional growth, finding your calling, finding new meaning in life and even improving health, but it is important to note here that I am not a doctor and do not treat any physical or mental illness, we are talking about the impact of other areas of life on health, which are sources of imbalance, about the awareness of what should be changed in the regime, which habits to get rid of, and which habits to form or strengthen. All this is just a brief description of the possible areas of study.
– What do you like most about Austin?
I honestly admit that having left the Cote d’Azur of France, where I lived most of my adult life, Austin did not become love at first sight for me. Instead, I fell in love with this beautiful and unique city gradually.
Now I understand better what “Keep Austin weird!” means. This city has a soul!
Austin is a city of freedom of expression, progressive and creative people, entrepreneurs of all sizes and sizes, and people who care about their physical, moral, and spiritual health.
There is beautiful nature and a lot of sun! And yet, it’s just a paradise for those who love music and music festivals.
– How do you participate in the life of the Russian-speaking community?
I try to support Russian-speaking entrepreneurs as much as possible and, in general, various interesting initiatives of our compatriots. There are so many talented people among us!
My eldest son is taking speech development classes at Austin Russian School.
I go to Russian-speaking specialists in beauty, health, and sports, order “our” cakes on occasion and without, and also recommend Russian-speaking specialists and entrepreneurs to my friends because I know from my own experience how difficult it is to start live in a new country, and how important support is compatriots.
I am sincerely pleased with the solidarity and mutual support of the Russian-speaking residents of Austin. I have never seen this before. So let’s continue like this!
– What event in the life of the community you liked the most?
My children are delighted with New Year’s performances for Russian-speaking children at school Sputnik. I was pleased with the opening of BEM and the new restaurants where you can order many popular dishes from the post-Soviet space. The organization of Russian-speaking bachelorette parties was the main hit of last year! Thanks to Anastasia Bourgeois. I heard about various thematic meetings, games, and watching films in Russian, but so far, I have not had the opportunity to participate in them, except for picnics personally. All this cannot but rejoice, do you agree?
– What do you do and enjoy besides this?
In addition to life coaching, psychology, and sociology, I am interested in almost all aspects of a healthy lifestyle: sports, nutrition, healthy sleep and relaxation, leisure culture, meditation and visualization, the formation of personal growth habits, etc.
In a healthy body, healthy mind! It is NOT an outdated slogan from the Soviet era; it is a truth that does not require proof.
I remember one sales colleague who was always fit and tanned, even in winter! He regularly visited the solarium to give the impression of a healthy person who is successful and efficient not only in work and planning his professional tasks but also manages to find time for sports and outdoor activities. It is associated with professional and career success.
Today it is fashionable not only to look healthy but really be healthy!
Sport has become an integral part of my life, one of the main sources of joy and pleasure.
I spend a lot of time with my children. I ride with them down the hill on roller skates and scooters. It doesn’t matter how old I am or what people think of me. By the way, dependence on the opinions of others is generally a separate issue in life coaching, but this is not about that now.
I speak Russian, French, English, and some Spanish. My husband is from Argentina, so Latin American culture is interesting and close to me: art, music, dance, and especially their positive attitude towards life, which I lacked in Russia and France.
– What else would you like to tell about yourself?
I want people to know more about life coaching. I help people in the most difficult and, as it often seems to them, absolutely dead-end life situations, find a way out, find answers to any questions and problems that concern them, look at themselves from the outside, understand and accept themselves, get rid of limiting beliefs, discover their true potential, to take full responsibility for our lives, to realize that we are capable of resolving the unsolvable and achieving the unattainable.
Yes, we cannot control what other people think and do towards us. But we can take complete control over how we react to things, learn to control our emotions, and not depend on them.
In my life, there were not only prestigious universities and a career, there were many difficult moments: I lost my mother early, I started life from scratch several times in different countries (France, Spain, USA), I went through hunger, but happy student years, survived professional burnout (burnout), painful and very long divorce, toxic relationships, emotional blackmail and betrayal of those closest to me, severe depression and severe health problems. Yet, no matter how trite it may sound, all this made me even stronger mentally and physically and also strengthened my confidence in the correct choice of life coaching as a new stage in my professional career and life in general.
– What do you dream about for Russian speakers in Austin in the future?
It would be great if the Russian-speaking community of Austin created something like a public organization Alliance Française, let’s call it the Russian Alliance. For example, the main goal would be to spread the Russian language and culture, encourage the dialogue of cultures, ensure even greater cohesion and unity, and create a more prosperous cultural life for Russian speakers.
– What would you like Americans to learn about Russian culture, traditions, and holidays?
The first thing that comes to mind is the great Russian literature.
Ideally, of course, I would like Americans to learn more about the contribution of Russians to world culture and science. Perhaps I am mistaken, but it seems that in many of us, a sense of national pride has weakened or even extinguished. But we have a lot to be proud of!
In general, I would like Americans to learn a little more about our history, about the features of geography and religion. After all, Russia is a multinational, multicultural, and multi-confessional country.
Although most often, they ask us such ridiculous questions for us as:
– Why do we celebrate the New Year (and many Christmas) 2 times?
– Why do we have Santa Claus and the Snow Maiden instead of Santa?
– Why do we celebrate Victory Day not on May 8 but on May 9?
– Why do we have so many signs and superstitions?
– Why are Russian women always, so to speak, at the parade?
I will leave our national character and the mystery of the Russian soul alone. This is a separate philosophical topic. Here I just want to quote Fyodor Tyutchev:
Russia cannot be understood with the mind,
Do not measure with a common yardstick:
It has a special become –
You can only believe in Russia!
– How can the Russian speakers of Austin support you?
I know quite a lot of Russian-speaking residents of Austin, which means that many people know me and could recommend me and give my contact information to their friends and acquaintances. I work tete-a-tete and online. Here is my professional website – www.lifeanna.com. I can also be contacted by phone and email.
Contact information:
Anna Sleptsova Brocher
Website: https://lifeanna.com/
Interviewed by: Ekaterina Medvedeva-Kosova
Editor: Svetlana Banks
Publisher: Russian Cultural Center in Austin