About Me
I was born and brought up in Belgrade, Serbia, and spent my childhood in Serbia and Sweden.
I studied languages and cultures in both countries and obtained a Master’s Degree in Scandinavian Languages and Literatures from the University of Belgrade.
I moved to the US in 2005 and have lived in California, Florida and New York before I finally settled in Brooklyn, New York. My business is online-based, so I have clients all over the world.
I coach 1:1 and I also teach classes and workshops.
In early 2008, I was at a crossroads in my life and ready to give up on America and return home to Belgrade, defeated. However, I was introduced to a mindset workshop in New York City and it changed my life. I got clear on which goals I wanted to accomplish, called them “My American Dream” and systematically went about pursuing them. I felt amazing. All of my limiting beliefs were crushed and I felt empowered to take on anything in order to have the life of my dreams. I studied mindset and diligently attended workshops over the next three years and that’s when I realized the truth #1: When you truly decide that you want something, there is no way that you won’t be able to achieve it. The universe will help you by bringing you the right people and the right opportunities, all you have to do is stay present, say yes and confidently follow your dreams. It’s quite simple. It’s not always easy and it might require sacrifices, but if you dedicate yourself to it, it IS inevitable and it IS that simple.
By 2015, I had accomplished all of the goals that I have set for myself. But instead of happiness, I felt emptiness. I was loving my life much more while I was surviving and pursuing. Now I was super successful by my own standards (and the standards of my parents back home who saw me as superhuman and Rockefeller), but I didn’t want to get out of bed in the morning. On paper, my life looked great, in real life, it was anything but. And I didn’t know why.
That prompted me to go back to doing mindset work. I started with a 10-day silent meditation retreat. This is where I discovered the truth #2: When you sit in silence, the answers will appear. The answer that came to me was that the life that I had built had served its purpose, but that it had become too small for me. That was not easy to accept. For the next 5 years, I was on what I refer to as “My Heroine’s Journey”, inspired by the title of Joseph Campbell’s book. If you are not familiar with Joseph Campbell, they can also appropriately be called “To the Hell and Back”.
These years were far harder than my childhood in war-ridden Serbia, harder than my beginnings in the United States. They were harder because they involved breaking ties to my old life, the one that I had been building so enthusiastically in my previous years. I had to disassemble my “American Dream”. And even harder, I had to get deep and personal with myself, understand my previous motivations, lovingly break ties with the old version of myself that had built the old life, and finally identify a new future to be excited about. I had to face all of my fears, my feelings of shame and unworthiness and guilt and then recreate myself. It required enormous courage, strength and faith.
During this time, I was deeply engrossed in self-reflection, meditation, mindfulness, self-development and mindset work. I was trained and influenced by coaches, shamans and therapists. I have made massive changes to my life, which involved leaving my high-paying real-estate career, getting divorced and moving 6 times, all within a 3-year period.
“Conversations with Ana” were born as a result of my desire to follow the path that I believe was always meant for me. I have created a curriculum inspired by the teachings that I have been exposed to over the years as well as my own experiences. Today, I am beyond grateful for my beautifully complicated past that led me here and I am excited to inspire others on their way to self-realization and fulfillment.
