Who is Anu Shenoy from Veira Life Pte Ltd?
What’s your story?
I am a computer engineer by training and started my career in the tech industry. In 2008 I completed my MBA at INSEAD and moved to Oil and Gas and worked at Shell. As a woman leader I did my best to support moms as they made their transition into motherhood because it felt like the right thing to do. But it was only when I had my daughter 12 years ago that I could truly understand the magnitude of challenges women face on a daily basis as they navigate their motherhood journey. My own journey was tough and despite all my resources and means I struggled quite a bit.
I have always known that I want to be entrepreneur and when I felt ready to quit my job and take the plunge into full time founder life, I knew from my personal experience that I wanted my company to be about supporting women. During Covid my co-founder and I started running a series of extensive interviews with women of all ages and from all over the world. It helped us figure out where we could create the biggest impact in the life of women. This is how Veira Life was conceived. Veira is a Femtech startup that provides comprehensive and personalised support to women in their motherhood journey. We do it through a custom built platform that hosts information, prenatal classes, coaching from certified maternity/returnity professionals, events, and an integrated teleconsulting platform that hosts a large panel of experts in health, wellness, fitness, psychotherapy and career.
Today, at Veira, we have users (both women and their spouses) from all over the globe. We feel blessed and privileged to be able to do work that is meaningful and creates real impact in the lives of women and families at a precious and vulnerable time.
How do you bring BALANCE to your roles as MOTHER:FOUNDER:SELF?
I do 3 things that help me bring balance:
1) I follow a routine in the morning that helps me start the day right.
2) I make time for and find happiness in the small moments – whether it be a walk in nature, a coffee break, Sunday brunch with my family, celebrating milestones and achievements with the team. I enjoy these moments with my full presence and intention instead of being distracted or multi-tasking.
3) I find time for self-care: yoga, strength training, eating right, reading a book, connecting with a friend.
All of this helps me fill my cup and be resilient through the roller-coaster of running a startup. I also
What are three words you would use to describe your experience of being a Mother/Founder ?
Meaningful, Passionate, Dynamic
What would you like to say to fellow mothers thinking of starting a business?
1) Be willing to learn, roll up your sleeves and dig in. Don’t be intimidated by the unknown. Once you put in the time to explore, do and learn – you will be surprised how quickly you will build your confidence in each new thing you try your hand at – whether it be drafting legal contracts, financial modelling, creating complex workflows or sales and business development. At Veira, we have a saying that
it takes us 15 days to learn something new. So devote 15 days of whole hearted work and research and you will be astonished at how far you will go.
2) Make time for your health. Take the time to refresh and renew your spirit. Building a business is stupendously tough and you will need your health and resilience. So don’t neglact your own self.
3) Find your tribe. You will find support in the likeliest and the most unlikeliest of places. So do not shy away from putting your hand up and asking for help or sponsorship or whatever it is that you need. What’s the worst that could happen – you will face rejection. That’s hardly the end of the world. Most times you will receive help and support.
4) Grow a thick skin. Reframe failures as milestones and learning opportunities. Take rejection in your stride. Run the Stop signs. Only you can decide what stops you. Only you can stop you.
Find & Know More about Anu and her brand
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- Website: https://veiralife.com/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/veiralife
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/veiralife/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anupamashenoy/
Click here If you are interested in knowing more about The Mother/Founder Movement & Community. To join us, click here for Association Membership.
