This interview is part of our new FBCC Member Series, where we introduce our member companies to the network. This time we interviewed Anne Anttonen, a Career and Business Coach at our Corporate Member company Coach Chi.
Coach Chi provides a holistic coaching approach for women who desire to improve their life, both working and home, in order to achieve a more fulfilling and balanced lifestyle, living in a “flow” state most of the time. At Coach Chi, flow means going forward in life with a flow instead of fighting against anything. It is important to find what is important in life and focus on that. Coach Chi is welcoming and approachable; “working with us is motivating, inspiring, and empowering based on trust”.
There is a story behind the company’s name. “When you google the word “coach” there are so many pages coming up so I wanted to add something to it. The word Chi means “life energy “ in Eastern cultures (martial art forms) and I discovered it from Eckhart Tolle’s book ‘ The Power of NOW ‘. Chi also means “Who” in Italian and was often used word during my time in Italy in the late 80’s, 90’s, early 2000 and 2014. Finally, Chi describes a state of “flow”, the word used in sports; as a keen golfer, I have read a lot about “flow” and how to achieve it during my rounds of competitive golf. In summary, Coach Chi is bringing the state of “flow” to the client’s life, instead of fighting against odds.”
There are two things that play a role in the company culture. “Firstly, being a woman, I was lucky to be born and raised in Finland, and therefore Coach Chi’s culture is democratic, fair, trustworthy, straightforward, and methodological focusing on results. Secondly, I have lived abroad more than half of my life, in 6 different countries, and that has influenced the culture bringing more warmth, compassion, and belief in good.”
Hence while aiming to achieve goals, Anne considers the client’s individuality to make meaningful progress in finding that eluding “flow” state, the Chi. Everything she does is confidential.
Coach Chi has two workshops coming soon, focusing on the basics: Vision for the future followed by Identifying the most burning areas in life that need attention in order to achieve a harmonious, firm foundation for work and life in general. Workshops are for 2.5 hrs, usually at the weekend, on Zoom with max 5 people to create intimacy where participants are comfortable to share and learn from each other. Simple concepts, but very powerful if done honestly. “what you put in, you get out” encouraging responsibility for own decisions and actions. You can read more about Coach Chi workshops by clicking here.
Regarding the pandemic, the day-to-day life at Coach Chi has not changed much. “I have actually coped very well thanks to my healthy daily routines. We had started coaching on Zoom and Skype already last year, and the pandemic has made coaching online even more acceptable. I wanted to have my workshops live, but I have noticed that Zoom -workshops have proofed to be positive online experiences for many, enabling to gather clients together from different geographical locations.”
The only thing that has changed at Coach Chi is networking. “I have been trying to network online but it is not the same and I do not find it as rewarding as networking live. Now most of my networking is through old contacts.”
As a coach, Anne sees a lot of people talk about their wellbeing. Her number one tip for everyone working from home is to pace yourself out and have a good daily routine: have time off from screen & finish work at “office hours”, have a daily walk in nature, make sure you get enough rest (sleep hygiene). “A good sleeping pattern is very important, there are great apps for sleeping and I have personally found them very useful. After all, it is all about the simple things.”
The biggest benefit of being part of the FBCC for Coach Chi has been being able to connect with like-minded people, both Finnish and British and build links with other Nordic Chambers of Commerce members. “I also found the networking events very useful and now that the live events have changed to webinars, I have been participating online. I also found the Nordic Golf Society through you and I have been an active member.”