Anna Karapetyan: Executive Office Leading Specialist
Anna Karapetyan started her career from the Yerevan State Engineering University, studying energy economics, then went to Stockholm to study for a Master’s degree at the Royal Technical Institute, and even though her specialization was purely technical, it paved her way to discovering life, the world and nature in a different light and way of thinking.
How did you start your career when you returned from Sweden?
After returning from Stockholm, I started working on the Armhydroenergy project, which was working on designing the hydroelectric power plant to be built on the Araks River in Meghri. It was a joint Armenian-Iranian project, where I was mainly engaged in translation. The greatest experience of this job for me was discovering Meghri and the people living there. I discovered and loved them, their daily life, their simplicity and hospitality, which was often reinforced by their persistent offerings of rose vodka. The dialect of the people of Meghri sounded very beautiful to my ears, which was at first incomprehensible to me, but then became very dear.
After working there for a few months, I moved on to working for Hydroenergetika LLC. I was involved in a joint German-Armenian pilot project which was working on financing the repair and construction of small hydropower plants in Armenia. We mostly did research.
Anna, wasn’t it difficult for such a feminine girl to work in such a technical field?
No, it wasn’t difficult, it was just very different from what I’m interested in today. While working in the technical field, I was also teaching at the Yerevan State Engineering University. After the birth of my first child, many things changed in my life and I started to find new interests for myself. I discovered Waldorf education when I took my son to Waldorf kindergarten. It is entirely based on Steiner’s philosophy, which stresses the importance of determining which developmental stage the child is in and what approaches are needed for the child in that specific stage so that he/she grows up healthy and learns to effectively manage his/her inner strength. To satisfy my curiosity and get to know the filed better, I went to work at the Waldorf kindergarten that my son was attending.
And when did you join FINCA?
I joined FINCA in 2015. After about 2 months of competitive interviews, I got a job as an executive assistant. I must say that I liked the atmosphere at FINCA so much that I came to work every day with great pleasure. The team was very united, people were especially warm to each other. There were frequent trainings and a lot of room for rapid professional growth. During these 5 years the company has changed 3 CEOs, I’ve worked with all of them and have learned something from each.
If you had the opportunity to change anything at FINCA, what would you change?
I would increase the number of team-building trainings and events, I would do programs aimed at human resource development, probably because I have always been interested in this field. In general, I am interested in the human being, his/her potential and unlimited opportunities for development, the discovery and improvement of which can definitely have a positive impact on the development of the company.
Anna, what were your dreams and hobbies as a child?
I always dreamed of being a psychologist, but since my parents were engineers, I automatically followed in their footsteps. I loved painting, and now, when I have a few minutes of free time, I paint. Painting brings out my inner self, my thoughts. I also used to play the violin during my school years. I have been practicing yoga for a long time, which for me, in addition to physical exercises, is a practice of clearing the mind and meditating. As a result of yoga, I became interested in and tried out raw foodism which was essentially an experiment to understand the effects of food on the human body and mind. It’s a very interesting field and there is a lot to learn.
What is the relationship between you and the nature?
I feel very harmonious with nature. One of the great things about working at FINCA is that the office is close to the English garden, where I often go during my lunch break. I try to be alone in nature and read a book, listen to music.
What is a woman’s mission in life?
I think a woman’s natural mission is to continue the generation, to raise children. But in a higher level of consciousness, the most important mission of a woman is to be a source of inspiration, first and foremost for her partner and then for the people surrounding her.
Do you think women in Armenia have an opportunity to bring their initiatives to life?
I can’t give a certain answer, I’d rather say that like a lot of other fields, this also needs a lot of development, although there are many programs aimed at financing and advising women to carry out their initiatives. I even participated in one. I applied to World Vision Armenia to finance the translation and printing of Naomi Aldort’s book called “Raising our children, raising ourselves”. For me, the translation of this book into Armenian was important because it presents an interesting approach on how to transfer parent-child relationships from reaction and struggle to freedom, power and joy. I really wanted to make it available for Armenian parents but my project didn’t win the competition.
What is your family like?
When I was born, I met my best friend in life, my sister who is 4 years older than me and with whom I am still very close. In the family I’ve created is my husband and my two sons. My eldest son is 12, he attends Aregnazan educational complex, plays the piano, sings, and already has a blue belt in karate. His favorite pastime is gardening. You can’t imagine the passion with which he takes care of our garden. My younger son is 4. My husband is a geologist, although he works in a completely different field now.
Is there a woman who inspires you?
My grandmother was a source of inspiration for me, who as long as I remember has always stood out for her femininity, gentleness and wisdom. Now I often watch Carol Toham’s esoteric lectures, which inspire me to some extent. Sometimes I might even see a woman passing by and be inspired by her character.
Who do you consider your spiritual teacher?
My yoga master, Trdat Donikyan, who taught me to be compassionate, full of love for life, for humanity.
What’s one lesson you’ve learned in life?
Always rely on yourself.
What is love?
Love is kindness, compassion, willingness to give a smile, kindness and everything you can give to another person, to the world. That’s how I perceive love.
What is life?
Life is the small, earthly part of our bigger path: an opportunity to learn something in a given period of time so that we take what we’ve learned to our next life or let what we’ve learned take us to the next level.
In that case, what is death?
It’s a return home from the small part of our path. I came to this idea after gaining some knowledge. I think a lot of knowledge is hidden from humanity and when you become familiar with it, you come to a more peaceful state, your approach to life changes and the world stops focusing on your own self. You look at life as a platform where you can learn a lot and give more to humanity. In this sense, Michael Newton’s book “Life Between Lives: Hypnotherapy for Spiritual Regression” had a significant impact on my way of thinking.
Favorite book?
“Life on the Ancient Roman Road” and “The Little Prince”.
Your motto in life?
My world takes care of me.
Favorite movie?
City of Angels.
Favorite actress?
Meg Ryan.
Favorite painter?
Van Gogh, Minas Avetisyan.
Favorite composer?
Arno Babajanyan.
The perfect man?
Caring and loving, generous and with a good sense of humor.
Destiny or coincidence?
There is no coincidence, everything is a result of causation. There is no destiny either, we can change everything as a result of our conscious choice.
God is…
Love, love, love, love…
Interviewer – Naira Tovmasyan