By way of introduction, I present you with eight facts about myself.

1. I am married to the most wonderful man in the universe. We are both from Russia and our first baby was born in Austin, Texas. We love this city and want to raise her here.

2. My family is truly multi-cultural. My grandma was born and raised in China. She strictly followed all the rules of Orthodox Church and hated communists. Her husband, ironically, was a radical communist. My second grandma was a gypsy. We also have Jewish people in our family as well as Mongols, Indians, and Ukrainians of different political and cultural beliefs.

3. I have visited more than 15 countries. I almost never visit popular tourist places, but prefer to discover more out-of-the-way places. I rarely plan the details of my trips, preferring to discover new things.

4. I am not afraid to go against the crowd. I learned that lesson in kindergarten when my friends talked me into licking an iron fence all together on a really cold day, just to see what would happen. I didn’t want to, but as all my friends did it, I did it, too. And yes, we all became glued to the fence with our tongues.

5. My leadership style was developed as a kindergarten teacher. During high school, I taught English to kids aged 3-5 years old. To motivate the children to study, I gave them a goal, for example, to perform a show for the parents. I strove to keep them interested each day with funny games and fairy tales. As it turns out, working with adults is not much different.

6. I once was named “the most trusted employee” of the Customer Service department of Home Credit Bank in Moscow. Employees from all different ranks and positions voted for me. It is the best trophy I ever received.

7. I was the only person in the bank who built a department and a team from scratch. I loved my job, but I left it to build a new life in a country of promise: America.

8. My true passion is helping people. For the last six years I have been teaching yoga and helping women to find their way and open their own small yoga studios all over Russia.