My year was very eventful. And although I hadn't chosen a motto at the beginning, it became clear to me over the course of the year: Flow of the Innerpreneur! What? What is that supposed to be? According to Ron Rentel's understanding (2007: Karma Queens, Geek Gods and Innerpreneurs These are people who create their inspiration from within, whose own business is their personal fulfillment, and who strive for social change. The focus is not on the growth of the company, but rather on their personal growth. They want to achieve something, be independent, require little adaptation or conformity, and are willing to take risks. They believe in authenticity (oh yes!), are guided by their values and passions, build on honesty, follow a unique path (authentic, after all ;)), are very creative, want to do "it" better, want to move the world forward. They combine career, adventure, and reflection equally in their lives and businesses, are permanent learners (always learning, after all ;)), and are constantly developing (comfort zones are truly stretchable!). They want to positively change society. And that pretty much says it all. My year 2021 was the year my innerpreneur really got into the flow. And this is just the beginning.

Lifelong learner - Lives up to the title

Those of you who know me personally know that I am almost addicted to learning, discovering, and trying new things. At least half of my investments go towards learning. Whether in my professional or personal life. This year too, I have lived up to my title as a „lifelong learner“ in this regard. Big and small.

The large and medium-sized advanced training courses this year

In general, on the one hand, I have the training as Certified psychological coach with Christine Hoffmann and Vera Popper completed, which I started in 2020. Immediately after that, I also completed in this year Training to become a certified psychological trainer started with the HOFFMANN method and also finished successfully. Part of this was also a professional photo shoot with the wonderful Klemfrau Photography Andrea Klem. You can find the photos on my homepage on the various pages. Here are a few behind-the-scenes pictures that Nina M. Feuerstein took. In parallel, I also completed a six-week online course on Gender and Diversity at Porsche University of Applied Sciences Completed. A course I've wanted to take for a very long time and that I was able to attend as an external lecturer for the Fern FH (many thanks again for this!). Of course, also „The Blog Bang“and subsequently„The Content Society“Judith provided me with two incredibly intensive training courses through her wonderful sympatexing. Here, I not only found a great additional women's network, but above all, learned a tremendous amount about writing, website design, social media, and visibility.

The smaller learning spaces, which were no less effective

For example, in the online training for trainers at the FGÖ Education Network, I heard about the wonderful Helga Pesserer and Birgit Pichler Everything learned to make my online formats health-promoting. In addition, I was able to learn from the project „Power backpack“ (a book and a website for women* who have experienced violence) from the associations Ninlil and Easy Reading attend the „Easier Reading“ seminar with the wonderful Maria Seisenbacher. Because I want to make my offers barrier-free and build my business step by step so that I don't exclude anyone from the outset. Quite the opposite, I want my website to be optimized for screen readers, and for me to also have offers that are written in simple and easy language and can implement them well. With this seminar, I've taken one step, and more will follow in 2022. After I attended a 3-day online business workshop with Sigrun in December, I am currently also at the 12-Day Masterclass "Kickstart Your Business" Because a goal for 2022 is for me to put my desire for an online business into action. This year I was also allowed to participate in the workshop „orthogonal competence“ with my colleague Daniel Juling to complete. We exchanged exciting life topics in a small group, and it was overall very enriching. If you're interested in a workshop like this, feel free to contact me, and you'll receive a partner offer. Additionally, I was one of the first people to enjoy Nina Maria Feuerstein's Feuerstein Masterclass, which was particularly effective for my elevator pitch. In addition, there were several other formats with very exciting content, such as the FGÖ Conference, which takes place every year and was conducted online for the 2nd time this year. And the conference of Network Storytelling Café Switzerland, which was incredibly exciting. As well as various other formats that I can't recall right now (I should keep better notes 😉). So, those were my dedicated „learning spaces“ in 2021. However, I didn't exclusively learn in those places, of course. As a general rule, I take something away from all situations, experiences, and encounters. Even from bad presentations, I learn how I don't want to do things. So I'm constantly learning. A lifelong learner, you could say. I believe there will be a blog post about that sometime too.

Independence in Old and New Clothes

I have been self-employed and working full-time as a registered business consultant, coach, trainer, and facilitator for three and a half years. Since obtaining my business license, my business has developed steadily. However, rarely has so much happened as in this year, 2021. Things were developed, conceptualized, and founded, I became a member of new associations, and the growing complexity naturally required some innovations behind the scenes as well.

The Founding of "Future Business Consultants"

Even though I founded my business some time ago, another founding took place this year: the Future Business Consultants. With 8 wonderful management consulting colleagues - with whom I am volunteering together in the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Experts Group at the Vienna Economic Chamber have been working together on the founding for over a year. We are a team that combines a wide range of expertise, experience, and life and work worlds, and we have one thing in common: the desire for our world to become more livable and the conviction that companies are a central anchor point in this. Our mission is successful – because fit for future generations and sustainably managed – businesses and organizations in which people are at the center and cooperation takes on a new dimension.

A year of new ideas and concepts

Besides the founding, the year was also marked by conceptualization and (further) development. I developed various new trainings, created new moderation designs, continued, rethought, and implemented various evaluation activities, and my network has grown to include some wonderful people. (For me, this has always been an essential part of my business: cooperation. One of the reasons I became self-employed back then was that I wanted to implement many great projects and activities on exciting topics with great people.) Some of the formats developed this year I was able to implement directly, others had to be postponed to the new year due to the pandemic situation. One of the concepts is a deep concern of mine: As a North German, one of my goals and wishes is to gain more of a foothold in my home region with my business again. Simply because I miss Northern Germany. With my wonderful friend and colleague Bianca Engelmann This year, I took the first step back to my homeland. Together with her, I developed two (consecutive) seminars that will be held on the North Sea next year. The dates and location are yet to be announced. These seminars are for all those who want to take more time for themselves, strengthen their resources, build their resilience, draw strength, and find strategies to look ahead and move into their future with confidence. For the conceptualization, we went together to the island of Baltrum to develop the concepts directly in the environment where they are to take place: surrounded by wind, waves, in nature, at our power spot, on the so unique, so special, beloved North Sea. Together with my colleague Michael Bauer-Leeb Additionally, I have designed a wonderful format for the FGÖ educational network. This was initially scheduled to take place in Reichenau an der Rax, Lower Austria, in October but was subsequently canceled. Next year, this format will be offered again with slight adaptations, this time in Vienna. Together with the participants, we will dedicate two days in this seminar to the topics of health promotion, climate and environment, their interdependencies, and their impact on our own quality of work and life. The seminar will take place in June 2022, spots are still available, and the cost is 100 Euros for 2 days. For the FGÖ educational network, I will be offering another 2-day seminar next year focused on solution-focused approaches, which I conceptualized with great care in 2021. I am looking forward to exploring with the participants in November 2022 how solution-focused approaches can support them in their lives and careers during both easy and challenging times. This year, I also completed my training as a psychological coach and, during that time, developed training modules that I will offer in the future. Among these is a group coaching program that will be offered online next year (stay tuned!). Additionally, as a kind of final exam, my colleague Nina Maria Feuerstein and I implemented the training „Shine Your Light – Being Yourself at Work: Fulfillment Instead of Burnout.“ This is a workshop for anyone searching for their authentic path in their professional lives. I've been working with my colleague Benedikt Schmidt from Germany for some time now on developing a retreat format. And so there are many other ideas waiting to be refined and implemented in the new year. So it won't be boring. And other concepts that I'm still working on and which will be published in the future.  

The growing complexity also demanded a few innovations in the background.

The ever-increasing complexity of a business with various pillars also required a review of the foundation. On the one hand, I have expanded my memberships. In addition to my previous memberships (Entrepreneurs for the Future, Sorority, CSR Experts Group, ARGE proEthik) I am now also a member of the DeGEval - Society for Evaluation and the Hypnosystemic Forum Austria. In all these areas where I volunteer or am a member, my core values are also reflected, which are an integral part of my professional activities. Apart from that, there were a few other innovations. For example, I set up my office at home so that I can hold appointments here with colleagues or clients, e.g., coaching sessions. At the same time, I have rented space in a practice near Mariahilferstraße. In the Praxis "Inner Peace" on Stumpergasse I also offer coaching sessions now. Additionally, I've further professionalized the foundation of my business: since mid-year, I've been doing all designs with Canva, which I find really simple and has professionalized my layouts a great deal. Additionally, there is now a Online calendar booking and payment system. I have a Business account erected, have an accounting system introduced, with which I can create automated invoices and quotes. I have also applied for the UID number and will no longer be operating under the "small business" label next year, but will be charging VAT. And a lot has also happened regarding the homepage, but more on that in the following chapter.

Come out of hiding and become visible

2021 was also all about visibility. Until now, I had been very careful to strictly separate private and professional matters. What is easy to manage while employed is almost impossible as a self-employed business consultant, coach, and trainer. Especially when it comes to being authentically successful. Therefore, this year I decided to dissolve this division and bring the two sides closer together, ultimately merging them. This process is not yet complete, but I have already implemented the most essential steps this year. These include, among others:

• Merging my private and work Facebook profiles under my name and creating a Facebook page
• Opening an Instagram account that will be used professionally as one of my main channels to disseminate current information to the world in an accessible way.
• the complete overhaul of my website and the launch of a blog
• Setting up a newsletter and an email list with a corresponding system
• The willingness to conduct interviews and to become completely visible in one's authenticity

Merging my private and professional Facebook profile

Merging my private and professional Facebook profiles under my name took a lot of effort. Afterward, I received various witty feedback from friends and acquaintances. Previously, I had a Facebook profile for my business as a networking tool for people who were strictly in touch with me professionally. I always kept that profile strictly separate from my private profile. On the private profile, however, I was more active and connected with over 1000 contacts, mainly my friends from all over the world whom I've met throughout my life. For example, in the Samba Batucada community or during my time in Chile and Spain, during my studies and school years, on various trips, or in a professional context if friendships developed from it. This private profile primarily operated under my "stage name," Nanu Raya. I was actually mostly known by this name in the music and art scene in which I am active. When I merged the profiles and changed the name to my "regular" name, some feedback was indeed like, "Oh, your name isn't Nanuraya, I didn't know that. That's interesting." When merging my profiles, it became truly apparent for the first time how little my friends from this large private network knew about what I actually do in my life and what profession I pursue. At the same time, I realized how many chances and opportunities I was missing out on. After unifying the profiles, I also noticed how much easier it was now to manage them, and how much energy it had cost me to maintain different profiles.

Opening an Instagram account to easily share current information with the world

Similar to my Facebook profile, I felt the same way when creating my Instagram profile, again with some effort (within the scope of The Blog Bang). Although I already knew Instagram from a private profile, I hadn't used it professionally at all. So far, I've been on Instagram under my first name. On that profile, I mainly shared various impressions from my surroundings. For example, a flower bed in full bloom in the middle of the city, a play of shadows from the subway with a view of the Danube and the setting sun, etc. Additionally, I have another profile of mine on which I've been more or less active for some time: surrounded_by_faces. This profile is the platform for my passion for pareidolia (the phenomenon of seeing faces in things and patterns). Pareidolia accompanies me in my daily life and always brings a smile to my face. Everywhere I go, I see interesting, sometimes funny, happy, or evil faces around me. Discovering them is simply fun for me. So, I had these two profiles on Instagram until now. Now, my new business profile has been added, which – I must admit – is still a playground for me. At the very beginning, I briefly thought about buying a consultation and setting it up immediately as my central sales channel, but I consciously decided against it. Because I felt that if I immediately focused on social media numbers, I would lose the motivation to fill this channel according to my nature, my needs, and my ideas. Since it's my playground for creativity and experimentation, people will see very different designs and posts when scrolling through. You'll have to be patient a bit longer until a clear design emerges here, and I'm not promising anything; it's quite possible it will simply remain a playground 😉

Redesigning my website from scratch and launching a blog

Actually, one of the biggest changes has been the redesign of my website since the middle of the year. Before, I only had a simple, basic online business card with the most important information about me. A one-page website with legal notices, a privacy policy, and terms of service. The site wasn’t beautifully designed, nor was it visually appealing in terms of color or adorned with nice pictures; it was purely pragmatic, meant to establish an online presence. A site that I long believed would be sufficient for me. I first truly realized that this wasn’t the case when my instructor in the coaching and training course recommended me to someone, and that person then decided against it because of my website. It simply didn’t align with her and her needs. From today’s perspective, that’s completely understandable. I looked for it, but unfortunately I didn’t take a screenshot of the site back then. Otherwise, I would have loved to show you the before-and-after here. But at least you’ll get a description: It was gray-blue and white, with my logo and a square font proclaiming: consulting.triggers.perspectives. Below that, in three tiles that rotated when you hovered over them with the cursor, revealing a short sentence about evaluation, consulting, and coaching. Below that, a list of my qualifications, and below that, a list of my publications. Period. Yes, that’s right—I hadn’t even thought to include my name. After realizing that it was high time to tackle the site, I decided against it for the simple reason that, in a pandemic year, it was impossible to invest in such a project alongside my major continuing education courses—let alone hire someone to do it.  But that made perfect sense to me, because I’m incredibly curious and eager to learn (surprise :P). So I took matters into my own hands. Of course, it was perfect that within the Content Society, creating a beautiful website was a central topic with plenty of guides, tutorials, and tips and tricks. This allowed me to proceed step by step, and it didn’t take long before I had redesigned my website. At first, it consisted only of a blog so I could publish my newly written articles. Bit by bit, an "About Me" page, a services page, and now more and more subpages for various services, etc., came into being. You’re currently on this new site.

Setting up a newsletter and an email list

One topic I've been putting off for a long time was the newsletter. Do I want to write a newsletter? Do I need one? Do I have interesting news? Who would be interested? Do I even have the time for it? Isn't it too complicated and time-consuming? And so on... What changed my mind was the clear statement from a business coach: Without an email list, you won't achieve your goals. That's basic. So, alright, then it was time to set up an email list and a newsletter. I actually only created this possibility recently, and in the end, setting it up was quite simple. It only took me about 4 hours, thanks to the really great instructions for Active Campaign from the Newsletter Sprint in The Content Society. Now I'm totally happy that this cornerstone has also been laid. I don't know yet how often the newsletter will come out in the future. I'll let myself be surprised ;). At any rate, not too often, because currently I don't have time for that myself. If you like, feel free to sign up here.  

The willingness to be an interview subject and to become fully visible

A somewhat indirect change that has occurred within myself regarding visibility this year is the following. Like many other people, I have often viewed myself very critically. When I heard or saw myself, for example, in videos or photos, I was rather hesitant to publish them. This year, I have almost completely shed that hesitation. I am much more willing to give interviews, I dare to be much more authentic and open in them, and I let everything happen in the moment. That's such an incredibly good feeling! One example of these bursts of courage include the interview with Judith Sympatexter, photos where I make funny faces, and videos where I also slip up. And all of that is me. So what. This is also a part of visibility that has changed this year: accepting myself even more in my authenticity and letting that authenticity shine outwards.

Many wonderful businesses, projects, and people that I had the pleasure of supporting in 2021

As many of you know, I’ve built my business on several different pillars. For the past 10 years, I’ve been working in collaboration with the Institute for Systemic Organizational Research (I.S.O.) in the field of workplace health promotion, serving as an evaluator for many different projects. I continued this work in 2021 as well. At the same time, I have another pillar of my business in a position at "Tut gut!" Gesundheitsvorsorge GmbH in Lower Austria. Here, I work as a consultant on the Workplace Team alongside 13 other wonderful women. We support companies, municipal enterprises, kindergartens, clinics, nursing and care centers, as well as care and support centers in Lower Austria as part of workplace health promotion. I am responsible for the Industrial Quarter and the Thermal Region south of Vienna. At the same time, I also work as a trainer, coach, and management consultant. I don’t do most of my work here alone, but rather 90% of it in collaboration with other wonderful colleagues. For me, collaboration is an essential part of my work.

In 2021, I was able to accompany these wonderful projects.

• In cooperation with the Institute for Systemic Organizational Research May I, as an evaluator, accompany Georg Zepke and myself on the following projects:
  • The "Mindful 8th - Being old and living well in Josefstadt". One of the WiG, dem FGÖ and the Josefstadt-funded project, which I have been involved with since 2019. This year, as an evaluator, I had various tasks again, such as participant observations - e.g., on mindfulness day Interviews, questionnaires, and reflection.
  • The project "Be Smart - Eat Healthy" the WiG, sponsored by the FGÖ I have also been involved as an evaluator since 2020. This project focuses on promoting a healthy food culture in schools in different districts. Although the project could initially make little progress in schools on-site due to the pandemic situation, it was possible this year to conduct some surveys (participant observation, interviews, document analysis).
  • The "Fit Calf - Fit Environment" project at FH Campus Wien, which I have also been accompanying as an evaluator since 2019. This project promotes sustainable and active mobility among FH members (students and employees).
• In cooperation with the Loop Management Consulting Am I involved in this project as a consultant alongside Georg Zepke?
  • The project "Healthy Network in Viennese Kindergartens" is a project that we are accompanying as consultants for the development of a future strategy.
• A very special evaluation project started this year together with my colleague Monika Finsterwald. For Schönbrunn Palace, we are implementing the evaluation of measures to raise visitor awareness for the protection of cultural heritage. I am particularly pleased that this project originated from networking within the cross-sectoral feminist network Sorority.
• As part of my work at "Tut gut!" Gesundheitsförderungs GmbH, I have had and continue to have the opportunity to support and guide various companies in implementing OHS (Occupational Health Promotion) or consolidating health management. This year, these included:
  • The completion of the health promotion project in Autohaus Schmuck. You received the "Healthy Workplace" award and have now transitioned to regular operations and sustainability.
  • The Municipal Works Hochneunkirchen-Gschaidt was re-certified by Quality Austria, received the plaque, and started another three-year phase of BGF sustainability.
  • This year, I also had the opportunity to accompany Mater Salvatoris for another year in the sustainability of the BGF.
  • The state of Lower Austria, together with "Tut gut!", is currently implementing workplace health promotion in the state. This year, I had the opportunity to work with many exciting departments. These included, among others, the State Office Directorate, various district administrative authorities in the industrial district, the regional building authorities, the building directorate, and the Department of Economy, Sport & Tourism.
  • Furthermore, the project "Healthy in Kindergarten Lower Austria" launched the "Tut gut!" initiative in cooperation with the BVAEB in Lower Austria. Here, I was able to implement the first appointments in two kindergartens.
  • Additionally, our team has developed a catalog of measures for the provincial clinics and care, support, and rehabilitation centers in Lower Austria. This is intended as a support measure for the heavy burdens that employees are exposed to during the pandemic. I am responsible for the implementation at the 20 locations in the spa region as a consultant, and it is currently starting.

 

Coaching, Training, Moderation: live, hybrid, online & by phone – everything was included

In addition to management consulting and evaluation, coaching, training, and moderation are also an integral part of my activities. Again, this is in various contexts. Of course, this also includes different formats in the aforementioned projects, from steering group meetings to results presentations, reflection settings, and survey formats. But beyond that, there have also been some moderations, trainings, and coaching sessions in various versions. In addition to in-person coaching, this year there was also a particular demand for online coaching or telephone coaching. The other formats were similarly mixed in terms of settings (well, I haven't had a telephone moderation yet ;P). At "Tut gut!", together with my colleagues Wilma Preiml and Andrea Hebesberger, I conducted the health officer training on the topic of "Communicating Successfully in Routine Operations" designed and executed. Even live, which is already a special feature these days. In addition, within the framework of "Tut gut!", I was also co-host with the wonderful Helga Pesserer, during the continuing education I conducted "Sustainability in Workplace Health Promotion", which again took place online, which is always a great pleasure. Together with Georg Zepke, I once again completed the seminar „Qualitative Research Methods“ WS 20/21 at the beginning of the year. In November, the course for WS 21/22 started with the next group of distance learning students. Bachelor of Science in Business Psychology. Many exciting research projects are always being implemented here. This semester, happily, these include topics such as the women's quota, brand analysis regarding vegan/vegetarian target groups, and many papers on sustainability and climate protection. As part of my training to become Psychologically certified trainer according to the Hoffmann Method I have also implemented various formats. Among them, part of the workshop "I as an Entrepreneur" together with my colleague Rhonda Staudner-Turin as well as the conception and execution of the online information events for the Coaching Masterclass from Christine Hoffmann and Vera Popper. And finally, as a capstone project for the training, the conception and implementation of a training session together with my colleague Nina M. Feuerstein: Shine your light - Achieve instead of exhaust. For the wonderful team at Interwork Supported Employment May I design the second day of your annual retreat moderate. A wonderful, also emotionally moving Tags in the wonderful surroundings of the Rax in the Payerbacher Hof.And at the end of the year, there was another new cooperation highlight. Some encounters are simply as if they were predetermined. Working, being, and cooperating as easily as with Stefanie Gründl is truly special. I had the pleasure of supporting her as a co-host/online moderator at two major events. One was a hybrid format, the Annual Event of the Showcase Regions Energy of the Climate and Energy Fund. We co-hosted these in Graz at the Helmut List Halle, where I acted as the voice for the online viewers. Additionally, we „spontaneously“ hosted the first Multi-Stakeholder Dialogue on the Implementation of the EU Child Guarantee in Austria implemented for the Federal Ministry of Social Affairs, Health, Care and Consumer Protection as well as UNICEF Austria. Spontaneously, as the original moderator fell ill and Stefanie, who was previously planned as co-moderator, became the moderator the day before, and I became the co-moderator. We prepared the event on a Sunday for Monday in less than 24 hours and then carried it out successfully and with a lot of fun. (Honestly, we rock, Stefanie!). A great team of organizers, a great photographer (Klaus Ranger), amazing sign language interpreters, super exciting and important topic, brilliant Team in the streaming studio and Event Team. What more could one want?

Gimme the Beat: thump - thump - thump - thump - test - test - test - test test test ...

Naturally, all my activities – both professional and private – have always taken place under safe pandemic conditions. Personally, it's always been important to me that I and the people around me are doing well. That hasn't changed during the pandemic. Accordingly, it was a matter of course for me to get tested regularly from the beginning. When the opportunity for vaccination arose, I took advantage of it. Even though I would normally be considered a risk group due to a past thyroid cancer diagnosis, I wasn't in the first group. At the end of May, I was finally able to get my first Moderna vaccine. I received my second dose at the beginning of July and my booster shot at the beginning of December. All Moderna. But that's not all: after wearing masks for so long, I thought my antibodies probably aren't as good as in previous winters. Therefore, I decided to get a flu shot for the first time this year. I can no longer keep track of how many tests I've done this year. Here's a picture for you of the folders from the at-home gargle tests. In addition to that, I've done countless at-home nasal swab tests and have also been to testing centers so often that I can't count them anymore. But for me, it was just as right.    

Time with me - building new strength and power

One of the most important themes of 2021 is perhaps spending time with myself, my family, and my friends. Building new strength and new power and new trust in myself and others. After I had a very violent experience earlier this year that put me in mortal fear and caused me to develop post-traumatic stress disorder. When the worst phase was over, one of the strategies to get out of this was, on the one hand, my work. I really threw myself into it to distract myself emotionally above all else. That also worked, even though it was almost a bit too much again. Gradually, however, the need to do more good for myself, to simply find myself again, to return to myself, also grew stronger. It was a bit like picking up and searching for many fragments to bring them back together. In this regard, the image of a ceramic bowl repaired in the traditional Japanese style always came to my mind. In Kintsugi, the broken pieces are joined back together with gold. This creates a completely new, beautiful piece. My gold, with which I put these broken pieces back together bit by bit, consisted of very different things besides work. For example, I paid even more attention to my diet. Doing something good for myself also meant feeding my body good food. Whether it was - if possible - by going out to eat with friends and my partner. Or with wonderful home-cooked meals, homemade bread, and desserts. In addition, I ate almost exclusively vegetarian. I hardly eat meat anymore, and also less and less other animal products (cheese is my downfall ;)). Perhaps I will soon share a blog post with my favorite recipes and a reflection on this path towards a vegetarian and vegan diet with you.

The apartment is becoming more homey and cozy

At the end of last year, my partner and I moved into a larger rented apartment together. We feel very, very comfortable here and of course, shortly after the move, we set up quite a few things this year to make it even cozier. Some things also had to be replaced, such as the balcony door, whose hinges had become dilapidated over the years. The gas heater was also replaced. We have created a wonderfully cozy seating area on our balcony. With pallets and thick cushions, we can lie or sit here in winter and summer. In the summer, because it's nice and shady and pleasant due to the higher sun. In spring, autumn, and winter, because the low-lying sun warms us even at cooler temperatures. Currently, on December 31, 2021, it's about 15 degrees Celsius in the sun on the balcony... hello climate change (I think I'll write a rant about this topic). Additionally, in the building where our apartment is located, there is a sauna that all residents can use (for a fee to cover electricity costs). Of course, we also took advantage of that during the colder months. This apartment also offered me enough space for many, many online-guided fitness and dance sessions during the lockdown when the studios were closed.

More time for things that make me happy

In Vienna, I spent a lot of time doing creative things, like basket weaving, knitting, sewing, drawing, music, crafts, and so on. I also did a lot of sports. The manager of my Mrs. Sporty studio even gave me a punching bag so I could work off my anger at what was happening at home. That’s because the studios were closed. In the summer, I went out with friends, coworkers, or on my own to swim in the Old Danube, go cycling, or take walks. A few friends even came to Vienna in the summer. I really enjoyed spending time with my dear friend and coworker Bianca, and I was happy to spend a summer day with the Paderborn Carls from the samba group "Querschläger." For a friend’s surprise birthday theme party, I bought a costume for the first time—one I think is totally awesome. As the Hatter—the Hatter from Alice in Wonderland, only female instead of male—I really had fun dancing with my friends in the costume, with the makeup, and channeling the Hatter’s attitude, letting go of all my worries for a while. Overall, I drew a lot of strength from the time spent with the people who are very important to me in my life. Unfortunately, moments with my family were once again very rare this year due to the pandemic. My family is in northern Germany, and we don’t really see each other that often anyway. Even less so during the pandemic. The same was true for other wonderful people whom I didn’t see at all this year due to the circumstances, or far too rarely, since they live scattered across Europe. This made all the other wonderful people around me here in Vienna all the more important to me this year—especially during this difficult time of trauma. Mainly samba in the form of drumming, but especially samba dancing played a very special role for me here. We were even able to shoot another wonderful video here, which was released on International Samba Day. Dancing has given me back a lot of zest for life and filled me with energy.   What's also incredibly important to me is my offline month, which I've been enjoying for 3 years now. I don't work in August. This month is all about recharging my batteries and simply being, doing, and letting myself do whatever I feel like. And I do it in my hometown in the north. I spend time there with my family, with friends, and most importantly, with myself. By the sea, in the forest, and in nature, with lots of wind in my hair. It's simply the best. This summer, I was once again able to enjoy wonderful moments drumming. This was despite the cancellation of the Carnival of Cultures, which is one of my annual highlights. Before the pandemic, I used to come to Berlin every year for Pentecost to lead the carnival parade together with the Berlin samba group "Sapucaiu no Samba" (translated: The Frog Fell into the Samba) and many other samba dancers from around the world. Although the parade didn't happen this year, the wonderful Sapus managed to arrange for us to meet in smaller groups (meaning about 60 people in total, instead of over a hundred drummers and over 50 dancers) and, under strict safety regulations, still rehearse together and spend some wonderful hours making music on Tempelhof Field. It was simply wonderful. This community is something very special. Something else I started in the 4th quarter of this year is something that might seem strange to some. I started getting my nails done at a nail salon. Something completely new for me. Why? I was constantly worried about how my nails looked during professional appointments. Painting them never worked out, and somehow it took up too much of my time. And too much patience. My nails just never looked really beautiful. Now I've decided to get my nails done. And it's so relaxing: they look great for 3 weeks straight, and then again and again, and I don't have to struggle anymore. Truly relaxing. Maybe I'll find some basic outfits (or sew them myself?) so I don't have to worry about what to wear anymore. Truly relaxing. And besides, they're branded in my color :P. One of the coolest things I gifted myself this year, or rather, invested my birthday money from my parents in, is so significant to me that I'm dedicating a whole chapter to the topic.

My voice is finally getting space – inside and out

As I mentioned earlier, this year was marked by piecing together the scattered fragments of my self. A key factor for me in this process was the idea of finding my voice and giving it space. I did this in a variety of ways. For one thing, I started blogging. This allowed me to create a new space where everything that crosses my mind can find a place. That feels good. I also actively sought out spaces where I could use my voice to advocate for something bigger that is close to my heart. So this year—whenever regulations allowed—I regularly participated in various events to raise awareness or commemorate femicide and violence against women. It was also wonderful that the Rainbow Parade was able to take place in Vienna on June 19. Vaccinated, tested, and wearing a rainbow-colored face mask, I was able to spend a wonderful day with my friends, standing up for equal opportunity, humanity, and freedom, and celebrating these values. Because of my experiences at the beginning of the year, I started therapy—unfortunately not yet trauma therapy; I hope I’ll get a spot—and have been doing a lot of deep self-reflection, supported by antidepressants and anti-anxiety medication. At the same time, I’ve also taken advantage of many coaching sessions; this has allowed me to listen much more closely to my inner voice and engage in a dialogue with it more than ever before in my life. And I’ve gained some truly fascinating insights through this process. Something very special for me was how I invested the money my parents gave me for my birthday. I used it to fulfill a dream: ever since I was little, I’ve always wanted to perform on stage as a singer. I always sang in choirs at school, church, and so on, and I always really enjoyed it. But at some point I drifted away from it; I don’t even remember exactly how. That’s just how life goes sometimes. So when I started taking singing lessons this year, a dream came true. With the best singing teacher in the world and a wonderful person— Svenja with her four-legged companion Alissa - I've been training my voice since April. Weekly at first, now every 2-3 weeks, and it's incredibly fun. With each lesson, my voice surprises me anew with so many facets. Currently, I know: I have three registers that are slowly connecting and go from C to C2. I feel like I'm now on the path to giving my voice the place it deserves. At the same time, I'm also training my voice in all my professional formats. And even now, moderations, training sessions, and all other voice-based activities are much easier for me. Currently, I'm practicing songs like Alanis Morissette's "Ironic," Skunk Anansie's "Hedonism," Maria Mena's "Just Hold Me," Adele's "Rolling in the Deep," "Send My Love," and "Set Fire to the Rain," Massive Attack's "Teardrops," Kelly Clarkson's "Because of You," and Evanescence's "Bring Me to Life.".  

Conclusion and Outlook

My most emotional positive moments of 2021

• My perhaps most important realization in 2021 was: I never give up, nothing can stop me. For real. These were consistently small, very emotional moments for me. Because I was repeatedly allowed to experience, no matter what happens, I keep going. Step by step.
• Finally singing! Tears were actually streaming down my cheeks when I stood on stage for the first time in class after the first practice sessions, singing a song with a microphone. I was really trembling. It had been a dream for so long, and what my voice could do, how it sounded, that was just wonderful.
• The completion of my coaching training was also a moment like that: at the end of the last session, we had a standing party. What was special about it: beforehand, we all "beamed" ourselves into the future with the instruction: Imagine one year has passed and we're meeting again for a reunion. What would you tell each other then?

My 3 favorite blog posts of 2021 are

• Femicides? Not here! – Discrimination and the murder of women concern us all, including in the workplace

• An Advent calendar article I was allowed to write for the Christmas blog parade on the topic: Yes - No - Maybe? Your inner voice is your most valuable advisor
• 12 of 12 in June

My personal outlook for 2022:

These major topics are on my agenda for next year:

• My motto: Off to adventure and through the roof - there's still plenty of room to grow. Lorena „the Rocket“ Hoormann is taking off, heading for a six-figure business!
• Spend time with family, partner, friends, and myself
• more breaks 😉
• Setting up a website with maximum accessibility
• Also, complementing videos on Insta and doing lives, for example
• Create a YouTube channel for my business and provide short videos here for those on my email list and
• Find and implement a social media strategy

But these are topics for 2022 and they build on what has already happened this year. And I think the foundation is already good. Or what do you think? Thanks for reading and for looking back on my year with me. If you feel like reading more great stories or fascinating year-end reviews, here are my recommendations:

• Viktoria Cvetkovic Expert in visual notes
• Susanne Heinen Art Counseling
• Hilkea Knies - Voice Experience
• Silke Geissen - Potential Development Coach
• Stefanie Seitz Adventures with Children
• Iris Weinmann Online business and mindset coach
• Nicole Borho Soul Pillow Workshop
• Veronika Stix - Soul conversations, personality coaching, and magic
• Bernadette Volbracht - Ayurveda to go
• Sabine Scholze Grief companion
• Oh my Dog - Dog and human coaching (and the best singing teacher in the world 😀)
• Judith Sympatexter Peters   - You will also find all the articles at the end of their review here. As this is a blog parade initiated by her 🙂