Time to read: 7 minutes
Today we introduce you to Anna Gudmundson, a Tech-entrepreneur and expert, a visionary leader and reformer of the future, using technologies.
How do you describe what you do? What is unique about what you do? What makes you stand out?
I’m the CEO and co-founder of Bioself Technology. We have developed an amazing product called Sensate that taps into the primal part of the nervous system to provide calm and relaxation in the moment and to increase stress resiliency over time. We stand out because people are finding this is the tool that works for them, both in terms of effectiveness, and, importantly, because they find they continue to use it. We use infrasonic frequencies and sound, which is completely natural to the body, it’s very affordable and super easy to use, which means that we can really help a lot of people!
What inspired you to go and do it?
I have worked in exponential technology for most of my career and I’m incredibly passionate about my own evolution as well as that of humanity (hence a no-brainer that I found myself at iDiscover and absolutely loved it). I’ve been gravitating towards solving big problems, deploying my experience and expertise while aligning my values across all areas of life. When my co-founder Stefan Chmelik approached me, I was impressed with his deep knowledge, integrity, and impressive experience, but then the user feedback and usage data blew me away and made me realize that we could have an impact in the world, helping millions who suffer from stress, anxiety and overwhelm.
What is the most challenging aspect of your work or the biggest challenge you have dealt with and how did you overcome it?
The biggest challenge with being a tech startup CEO is that the odds are strongly skewed against you. 9 out of 10 startups don’t make it. You don’t have enough people, time, or money to do what you need to do. It’s a constant game of prioritization and compromise, and you have to accept you can’t excel in all areas, while you simply can’t fail in some. Continuous or regular fundraising is a crash course in rejection and you need to see it as a great learning opportunity and not get discouraged. As the company grows, so do the risks and responsibilities. It’s a rapid escalator of ever-growing challenges. You have to love to grow, or it could feel rather brutal.
What is your current Mount Everest? What would you love to create in the world?
It’s a fantastic mission! Even low levels of anxiety and stress reduce our level of consciousness. We have to get out of that mode to solve all the other issues in the world. So the more people use Sensate to increase their stress resiliency, literally, the more consciousness there is on the planet and the percentage of people actively driving positive change increases. This is incredibly motivating! Taking a company from zero to serving hundreds of millions of customers in a short time frame is an insane challenge, but we’re going to do it – the world needs this product. What’s also very important to me is how we build this organization. I am devoted to everyone’s professional as well as personal growth, so that is part of our culture. Possibly less comfortable, but a lot more rewarding. I want to make sure that we’re not just conscious of what we do but how we do it. This demands a lot more from me, for sure, but it’s just the right thing to do and ultimately it makes me happy. I also know it will build stronger teams that create and achieve more.
What are the words that describe who you are in your essence and do you feel they are being expressed through your work?
I believe one of the key reasons I can take the amount of pressure and workload I do is because it feels aligned with my essence and how I uniquely can ‘serve’. Leadership responsibility, decision-making, and prioritization are things that stress some people out. These are things that always came fairly naturally to me. The fact that the product has to do with the next paradigm of science -where we understand the vibrational nature of reality- is also so me! I read Quantum Physics books for fun, so the geek in me is also happy. Finally, building an abundant organization is beyond the data and actions. This brings out the creative and higher aspects of me – something that I’m learning to have a more deliberate approach to since we have to trailblaze when it comes to the next generation of organization, motivation, and collaboration.
What is the most inspiring thing that happened to you as a result of iDiscover?
Wow, so much! Given my devoted interest in personal growth, I have done a fair amount of exploration, coaching, courses, and read a ton on the subject. The iDiscover framework which, to me, offered a full picture together with such relevant applicable tools and exercises blew me away. I use them *all the time*! My life is better in pretty much every area and has accelerated with the coaching I did following my Core 1. It keeps giving…
What do iDiscover and its community mean to you?
I’ve met truly amazing people through iDiscover! These relationships are very valuable because we share more than time and experiences. There are many dimensions to these friendships, plus it’s simply a group of fun, smart, interesting, and cool people, with an ambition to grow and increase consciousness. What’s not to love?
What is your most sacred daily/weekly/monthly ritual or performance hack that really works for you?
Meditation, Sensate sessions, Breathwork, and Gratitude. I’ve optimized my work and productivity over a long period of time – we could dedicate a whole other interview on the subject! – so my ‘performance’ now is really about life and energy – which of course I bring into my work as well. Meditation is such a superpower, a practice that literally improves every area of life. Sensate sessions are my go-to when I need a super-recharge break and don’t have the time or headspace to get into a meditative state, it’s also great before sleeping to improve sleep quality. Breathwork is my deeper practice. I’m a certified Alchemy Breathwork practitioner as well and I find that both practicing it and facilitating sessions for others is very profound and powerful. And gratitude is the simplest, yet life-changing practice. Changing our lens makes all the difference. Life is not an objective thing, and we all get to choose our lens and filters, to select what matters and what things mean.
Your best adventure ever was?
I’ll attribute my biggest adventure to my mother’s bravery. When I was 5-year-old, she took time out from her work, received a grant, and went on a big adventure into rural villages in Nigeria and Zimbabwe, as a single mother with a 5-year old, accompanied by a female photographer. Her not-for-profit project was successful, and for me, it was an experience that completely upgraded me. I couldn’t be more grateful for this experience and how it blew up my perspective, expanded my understanding of people, cultures, and life. It took me many years to see the impact it had on me to have spent those months in a very different environment, to have made friends from such different backgrounds, and to have experienced the abundance of community, love, and joy in some of the traditional rural villages.
What is your favourite quote or a question you want to leave us with?
A core belief of mine, which is also very aligned with the iDiscover framework is the freedom from expecting life to feel good or comfortable all the time. I believe that we either choose to get out of our comfort zone so that we can grow, or life will kick us out of it. And the latter can be a lot more painful! The more we grow the more we need to stretch. Forever. So the best we can do for ourselves is to learn to love to grow and be grateful for the uncomfortable opportunities to do so.
So the questions are: How are you actively getting out of your comfort zone right now? How are you deliberately seeking to grow?
And if you don’t know, there’s always iDiscover… ;)
Check out Anna’s inspiring work, Sensate.