Meet Ana Cerensek | Mental coach, performance psychologist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Ana Cerensek and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Ana, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?
As a psychologist, I saw people from my field being good at helping others, but not being quite good at entrepreneurship. That was my main drive, becoming good at entrepreneurship because you have to be good at balancing private/work life, planning, organizing, and leading others. That was a big thing for me, it meant lots of “coming out of a comfort zone” style of thinking.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
Growing up in Croatia means that you get to go to a psychologist only if something is wrong with you. Through our practice and brand called Mental training, we wanted to make psychology something that everyone is proud of using or going to. Also, we have a mission through our brand to make psychology usable and accessible to all. After almost 15 years in practice, we are proud to have achieved it! Mental training is the place where you go if you want to become the best in your field, and that is why Olympic athletes, top Croatian actors, or managers from the most successful business are one of our clients. It wasn’t easy to come to this point in my career. Lots of people were not familiar with this perspective in psychology and it took a lot of change in mindset overall. I did lots of free lectures, wrote books, helped others achieve great things, and believed in them (and myself) for a small fee, but it all paid off in the end. You just have to believe in an idea and work really hard to make something new work. Especially if that new idea is completely out of the box.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Living in Zagreb for the last 26 years made me an expert in showing around, especially because I moved around the city 17 times 😉 I guess I like the changes in my life. For a week you should explore the historic building in the center of the town, like the Zagreb cathedral dating from the 19th century (although, the first church that was built in that exact same place dates from the 11th century). The whole upper town is a historic delight with all the fortresses, and museums. When you get tired of walking around, have a coffee on Tkalciceva street and watch people pass by, or have a craft beer on Opatovina street and look at the old shops in one of the oldest markets in Croatia.
Nightlife is colorful and wild, you should visit some of the nightclubs with dinner options combined with cabaret. If you prefer to stand up comedy, you should visit “Crazy House”, but you’ll have to learn the Croatian language before you go there 😉
There are lots of venues where you can see music, from small punk-rock clubs to grande venues with classical music or big names in the music business.
But, if you ask me, the restaurant scene in Zagreb is a must! After all, we are a Mediterranean country and we are proud of our local cuisine, but if you like to try food all over the world, you can do that while visiting Zagreb.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
My shoutout goes to my husband, without who I wouldn’t have the chance to work as much or to be as fulfilled daily. He is the person that teaches me much, and with who I share my ideas (he gets them vetted) 🙂 There is no greater power in any life than that of a supportive relationship. But it has to be unconditional, which mine is. To reach that kind of a connection you have to truly know and love yourself, so my shoutout goes to me also for succeeding in that too!

Website: https://en.mentalnitrening.hr/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/anetisi

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ana-%C4%8Deren%C5%A1ek-889b6146/

Image Credits
Mateja Vrckovic Aktivna Hrvatska Personal archives