Dare to Be Real

Empowering Women Who Have Put Their Talents, Dreams, and Ambitions on the Back Burner

Stop Living in Other People’s Dreams. Connect With Your Authentic Self So You Feel Empowered to Assert Your Own Needs and Desires Without Self-doubt or Guilt

My Offerings

R

Rediscover Your Motivation

You’ve lived your life for others and their dreams for long enough that you finally see that your own life lacks fulfillment. While everything feels mundane right now, your future can change. Identify your strengths based on your present to bring back the motivation to thrive in being your own self.

R

Authenticity Of Being

You’ve cared for everyone’s well-being but now realize it was a fear of being criticized or judged to avoid conflicts. You’ve sacrificed greatly and yet feel unappreciated. Take a deeper look at yourself to uncover your values and authenticity. Use them to progress towards a future of clarity and inner peace.

R

Future of Potential

You’ve missed out on your personal and professional development as your focus was on everybody but you. You battle with self-doubt and self-worth believing you’re not good enough. Your journey of self-discovery brings in the freedom to accept and love yourself. Propel towards living a life of meaning and purpose.

About Me

Anine Ekelund has a background as a management consultant and has facilitated leadership training programs worldwide and in Fortune 500 companies. She has worked as a confidence and courage coach since 2004, founded and led several support networks, conducted speaking engagements, and facilitated workshop series since 2006. She coaches in English, Swedish and Norwegian.

Her credentials include:

    • ICF Coaching Certificate Co-Active Coaching with CTI – coaching training Institute, 2003
    • Leadership Graduate with Coaches Training Institute, 2003,
    • Certified Speaking Circle Facilitator, 2004
    • Intermediate studies in Communicology with Come4Change, 2008
    • Strong in the Broken Places. Grindberg method, 2010
    • Positive Psychology Certified, University of Pennsylvania, 2019,
    • Master in Holistic Health Education, JFK University, 2001
    • Bachelor in Business Entrepreneurship and Management, Hawaii Pacific University, 1990
I’m Anine, a certified life coach, workshop- and retreat facilitator with a Masters in holistic health education. I have been practicing worldwide both online and in person for the past twenty years. I work with kind-hearted women who struggle to stand up for their needs and wishes. A woman who has put her own talents, ambitions and dreams on the backburner to support her loved ones. She has woken up to the fact that she has missed out on her personal and professional development since her focus has been on everybody but herself. She feels unhappy and stuck, affecting her ability to live a life of fulfillment and reach her true potential.
My own journey to personal growth began in childhood. With my parents being separated and facing various health issues, I battled many physical, mental and emotional challenges alone from an early age. I grew up in a harsh judgemental environment. Due to medical treatments, my body developed food intolerances. Moreover, people around me didn’t support me and neither of them really cared or understood the negative impact it had on me. I didn’t know how to cope with my pain, so I learned to disconnect mentally and emotionally to survive. This had a negative impact on my schooling. In my late teens, I woke up, realizing that I had given up on myself and my future opportunities. It scared me. I then decided to take charge of my life and began to look for ways to feel and be my best.
I reached many milestones. I got good grades, was successful in my career, got married, and had two wonderful children. Yet, despite having worked hard on my personal growth for more than twenty years, I still suffered from self-doubt and imposter syndrome.
I was trying to feel better about myself by improving my weaknesses. I realized I was looking in the wrong place. It suddenly became clear to me. If I wanted to feel and be my best, I needed to connect with my strengths and self-worth. It was at that point, I came up with the model for discovering one’s “true” identity and life purpose that I am using now to help other women. A model that is developed from my personal experiences and how things can turn around if you choose to ignite the fire inside you.
My transformational program helps women like you begin the rewarding journey of self-discovery. Connecting with one’s true self and life-purpose heightens self-confidence and courage. You more easily assert your needs and desires and set healthy boundaries, free from guilt or self-doubt. The result is newfound freedom, inner peace and personal power, leading to a life filled with energy, happiness and fulfillment.
Since that day sixteen years ago, my life has transformed, and so have the lives of hundreds of others who I have helped. My relationship with myself changed from one of self-judgment, to one of self-acceptance, appreciation, and self-love. For example, instead of feeling like a victim and being reactive in my communication with my husband, I now ask for what I need and want from a place of worthiness and groundedness. My husband and I have strengthened our relationship, have a healthy power balance, and developed a deeper loving connection, which I know is very rare.
Just like me, you do not have to settle for a life that doesn’t feel good, one that stops you short of your dreams. Using the knowledge and experience I have gained, I am passionate about connecting other women to their life purpose so they too can thrive.

About Me

Anine Ekelund has a background as a management consultant and has facilitated leadership training programs worldwide and in Fortune 500 companies. She has worked as a confidence and courage coach since 2004, founded and led several support networks, conducted speaking engagements, and facilitated workshop series since 2006. She coaches in English, Swedish and Norwegian.

Her credentials include:

    • ICF Coaching Certificate Co-Active Coaching with CTI – coaching training Institute, 2003
    • Leadership Graduate with Coaches Training Institute, 2003,
    • Certified Speaking Circle Facilitator, 2004
    • Intermediate studies in Communicology with Come4Change, 2008
    • Strong in the Broken Places. Grindberg method, 2010
    • Positive Psychology Certified, University of Pennsylvania, 2019,
    • Master in Holistic Health Education, JFK University, 2001
    • Bachelor in Business Entrepreneurship and Management, Hawaii Pacific University, 1990
I’m Anine, a certified life coach, workshop- and retreat facilitator with a Masters in holistic health education. I have been practicing worldwide both online and in person for the past twenty years. I work with kind-hearted women who struggle to stand up for their needs and wishes. A woman who has put her own talents, ambitions and dreams on the backburner to support her loved ones. She has woken up to the fact that she has missed out on her personal and professional development since her focus has been on everybody but herself. She feels unhappy and stuck, affecting her ability to live a life of fulfillment and reach her true potential.
My own journey to personal growth began in childhood. With my parents being separated and facing various health issues, I battled many physical, mental and emotional challenges alone from an early age. I grew up in a harsh judgemental environment. Due to medical treatments, my body developed food intolerances. Moreover, people around me didn’t support me and neither of them really cared or understood the negative impact it had on me. I didn’t know how to cope with my pain, so I learned to disconnect mentally and emotionally to survive. This had a negative impact on my schooling. In my late teens, I woke up, realizing that I had given up on myself and my future opportunities. It scared me. I then decided to take charge of my life and began to look for ways to feel and be my best.
I reached many milestones. I got good grades, was successful in my career, got married, and had two wonderful children. Yet, despite having worked hard on my personal growth for more than twenty years, I still suffered from self-doubt and imposter syndrome.
I was trying to feel better about myself by improving my weaknesses. I realized I was looking in the wrong place. It suddenly became clear to me. If I wanted to feel and be my best, I needed to connect with my strengths and self-worth. It was at that point, I came up with the model for discovering one’s “true” identity and life purpose that I am using now to help other women. A model that is developed from my personal experiences and how things can turn around if you choose to ignite the fire inside you.
My transformational program helps women like you begin the rewarding journey of self-discovery. Connecting with one’s true self and life-purpose heightens self-confidence and courage. You more easily assert your needs and desires and set healthy boundaries, free from guilt or self-doubt. The result is newfound freedom, inner peace and personal power, leading to a life filled with energy, happiness and fulfillment.
Since that day sixteen years ago, my life has transformed, and so have the lives of hundreds of others who I have helped. My relationship with myself changed from one of self-judgment, to one of self-acceptance, appreciation, and self-love. For example, instead of feeling like a victim and being reactive in my communication with my husband, I now ask for what I need and want from a place of worthiness and groundedness. My husband and I have strengthened our relationship, have a healthy power balance, and developed a deeper loving connection, which I know is very rare.
Just like me, you do not have to settle for a life that doesn’t feel good, one that stops you short of your dreams. Using the knowledge and experience I have gained, I am passionate about connecting other women to their life purpose so they too can thrive.

My Clients

My Clients

Severine, 42 years old

Belge, Social Entrepreneur &
Founder of AMA the giraffe (amagirafe.org)

“My greatest take-home value after taking the course Dare to Be Real Identify Your Life Purpose, is to trust myself more, to be more grateful, and the importance of increasing my awareness in my daily life.
I am more aware of small but intense daily moments and am more grateful for the luck I have had in my life. I am also more aware on the first impression I give to people I meet, which has not always been positive in the past.
After the first course with you Anine, my happiness level increased. I am more able to see the positive sides of even difficult situations. Even when I am tired or a bit overwhelmed by my children for example, I manage to see the positivity of the situation and take one step back to enjoy the simplicity of the time together.
I am more in true connection with the people I cherish as my children, family and close friends. I can now allow myself not to be too ‘perfect’, but rather to be me. All of these experiences have helped me to feel inspired to position myself more confidently as someone who has great self-worth and who deserves to think and behave as she does. I now see that I have something valuable to bring to others and to the world.
I have looked all my life for why I am here on earth. I’ve looked for something meaningful to do and it is thanks to our work, your courses and the collective collaboration on the retreat guided by your leadership and energy that my “AMA the giraffe” project was born, which is now being launched world wide to bring love and connection to children.
Anine, you are full of energy and you have a dream to really make a change and it is not often you meet with people like that. You are also very smart and clever and you can read people and lead them in the direction they need to go. I feel that you have the ability to empower people to reach their dream, to be able to help them find their inner voice to make a difference with their lives.

Laure, 44 years old

Marketing director
I feel more connected with myself

“Taking your course have helped me to begin to reflect more on myself and of the importance of self-care. It has made me realize that I need to identify what makes me happy and what makes me shine in order to prioritize it in my life. I love adventure and of doing a lot, and I used to live my life 150%, doing as much as I could fit in one day, making sleep the least priority. Due to helping other people and because I am driven and have great capacity to get things done and can handle many things at once, I have struggled setting off time for myself.
This course has confirmed that I have to make changes to live more in line with my values and make space for the most important things in my life. Thanks to your beautiful energy I have managed to put new healthy rituals into my life. I understand now the importance of recharging MY energy to be able to give of myself to others.

I have learned to focus on doing less things instead of being all over the place.
I feel more settled and although I have not been able to shift all the behaviours I wanted to just yet (this takes a little time), I have identified more clearly what to change and how to get there.
I am amazed at how good you are at bringing the talents out in others and bring them to light. I have now learned that some of my strongest strengths were in a different area than what I thought.
I probably would have lingered longer in the job I had, even though I knew it was time to leave. I was trying to clarify the choices I needed to take to find my way but you helped me dare to take the jump and trust that I will find my way. You taught me that every step I take bring me closer to who I want to become. I now feel connected with myself and also have begun an education that is connected to who I am and to my purpose. Knowing I will be working in the future within an area that I am passionate about and find important in the world, is making me immensely inspired, fulfilled and happy.
Thank you Anine very much for opening your heart to me. You have such strong leadership abilities and a lot of charisma.”

Anne Christine Solheim, 54 years old

Personal Trainer. Ski & Windsurfing Instructor

“The course DARE TO BE REAL with Anine has been an exciting start of my journey to find my inner compass, a happier life, get more energy and feel better. Anine gave me the possibility to challenge myself in a safe, encouraging and lovable atmosphere and she inspired me to practice and make small steps in my goal to Dear to be Real. I have truly experienced the difference it has made for my long term goal to reach my next level professionally and in my relationships.
My greatest take home values are that I have a deeper sense of gratefulness, I have become more patient, it’s easier to love, seeing the beauty in people and the surroundings. I live more in the present, I am able to SEE people more as they are. I am less suspiciousness towards other people, or said in another way, I trust people more fully, because I trust myself more.
I have learned that happiness is more about what I place my focus on. The more GOOD and HAPPY things and the less I focus on negative things, I automatically feel better and happier, and get more energy I gain. It’s normal to have days which are great and some days that are not. The more I focus on what exist in the moment, the more of it I get, either if it’s positive or negative. What I have learned is that I have the power to choose what I want based on.
By working with various tools to better understand myself, I have learned what is good for me and that I have the power to choose how I want my life to be.
Thanks to this course, I have begun offering exercise classes online. I have dreamed of sharing my passion for physical strengths and health for years and have numerous credentials as a personal trainer but I was held back by so many different things. With new confidence and courage I have dared to make this leap that I have longed to do for so long. Sharing my skills and knowledge to make a difference to people who would like to be stronger is feeling hugely meaningful to me.
I highly recommend this course because the content. The tools offered have been missing in my life previously to reach a greater understanding about myself. My life purpose statement that we created is supporting me and reminding me of who I am and that I am enough. This has boosted my confidence.
A special thanks to you Anine, because without your glow and interest in people, including your presense, this course would not have been the same.”

Anna, 56 years old

Sweden/Health & Nutrition Coach

“I can’t put the words together to describe how happy I am to have been taken on a journey to gain new insights as to what it means to be me, to discover who I really am and what resides inside me. To be taken on a step by step journey into myself has been very valuable because in the past found it difficult to explore within myself. The materials and exercises you gave us were so interesting and spot on.
I have come to realize that I in the past have suppressed a lot of the true me and therefore lost touch with myself, my voice and my ability to assert my needs and wants. I now I feel the vastness of what I have inside. I dare to speak my truth without guilt.
On a mental and emotional level I used to have a lot of worries and bad thoughts that made me feel unsure and sad. With clarity of who I am, I feel stronger and more self-assured and with greater self-confidence. I also feel my feelings in a better and stronger way instead of running away from them.
Learning of my potential has given me strengths, wellbeing and happiness. I believe in myself more because I have greater proof in who I am with all the tools and exercises we did. The course has made me feel that I am stronger and can go out in life and look for ways to use it. My new awareness has also inspired me to use my gifts with greater pride.
Where I stand and how to use my strengths going forward. Now take time every day to do something useful and I have built in better routines into my life.
This course and the steps I have taken thereafter, has helped me get clear about what was not working for me in my life. Now I am beginning with a clean sheet of how to design my life. From this place of less distraction I am better able to think ahead and imagine my future and formulate what I can do. In the past if was easy for me to fall back to routines or to do things to run away from more serious stuff that I want to do. Today I feel that I am a free person and that I am ready to make the steps towards doing something that I can enjoy going forward. I have faith that with small steps I will see where they will take me
Anine you have an enormous amount of knowledge and you have such great memory. You remind me of what I am capable of and sometimes I feel that know me even better than I know myself. I am so happy for the support you are giving me and that we also have had so much fun together.
Thank you so much!”

Maria, 57 years old, Sweden

Anine is an inspiration to human beings. With energy, love, compassion and skilful leadership, she guides each one of us to deeper insights and connections. She uses her creativity to explore and open our inner selves to find words to define our life purpose. I am sooooo impressed by her commitment and dedication to the group and each of us individually. THANK YOU!

Malin, 26 years old, Norway, Marketing Coordinator

Anine just after our first week working with you I started to notice small differences in my life. I began noticing how much more present I was in my daily activities, just walking outside on a stroll was a new experience for me. I started to touch the leaves on the trees, noticing all the diverse birds singing. I began feeling how proper rest could unfold. Being present made me more aware of the things I’m able to change – here and now-  as opposed to future or past events, that I have no control over, and never will. The only things I can change is in the now and if my mind is somewhere else, I’m not able to change anything. Taking the time to write my gratitude has also made me more present in the day, it lets me focus on what I have instead of what I don’t have.

I’ve also learned how powerful my mind really can be. We can change anything with our minds, especially how we perceive the life around us. I’ve been thinking these thoughts before, but not to this extent.  I’ve learned that I must take time and prioritise time for ME to develop and flourish. I have to become strong in myself before I can let anyone else be strong for me. I’m now more aware of my values and I try each day to live in accordance with them. I was not aware of them before, therefore I was living a life without a purpose or meaning. I was not feeling that I was living my own life. I’m on a journey now to something better and I learned through this course that this is only the beginning of a never-ending development. Now I’m approaching that journey with confidence and eagerness, not afraid of becoming who I really am.

 

Being able to receive advice from someone who truly understands me has also been something I’ve cherished. It has given me such confidence to meet you Anine, you have truly seen me for who I really am.  Now, I no longer feel sad being me.

 

Not only have I noticed a change in being more myself, but also those close to me have seen a huge change. My mom said I now remind her of myself when I was just a little girl, with such great confidence and stronger love for life.

Struggling with an eating disorder. The tools you have shown me Anine has truly helped me to battle my eating disorder. I have during these weeks only had one fallback. I now tend to meditate more and I’m managing to avoid bad situations better. I also believe the confidence I’m building up has helped me battle the eating disorder. Being more grateful and present in the world has shifted my opinion about what’s important and what’s irrelevant.

Over the past years, I’ve not had a clear purpose or goal of how and with whom I want to live my life. I’ve not even been aware of the difference it can mean by knowing this. Now, after finishing the course with you Anine, I’m much more aware and present in my own life and I’ve received the guidance needed for me to take those steps in the right direction.

If you who read this want to make a positive change in your life, this course may be the key for you as it has been to me.

Jessica 30 years old, Sweden, PhD student

Yesterday I read this quotation from a poem by Thomas Merton:

“The true inner self must be drawn up like a jewel from the bottom of the sea, rescued from confusion, from indistinction, from immersion in the common, the nondescript, the trivial, the sordid, the evanescent.”

After attending Anine’s course, I feel for the first time that I understand HOW I can live like this. How I can be my true self, and reach the serenity I so deeply need?

In addition to understanding what my passions, strengths, and values are (big insights in themselves), with Anine I have learned the importance of creating spaces for myself in which I can find my true glow and nurture my energy.

I’m much calmer and more grounded, and I now gain energy from just sitting and watching the mountaintops or gazing out at the horizon over the ocean. That’s where I feel connected, and that for me reveals that, through my work with Anine, I have become connected with myself.

I am very impressed by how Anine managed to disentangle and clarify things that were a big mess in my head and heart. It was wonderful to talk with someone who so elegantly reads between the lines. Anine had the sensitivity to pick up on and help me see when I was too much in my own thoughts. Anine, thank you for that!

Charlotte 21 years old, University student, France

Anine has created this multi-step model used to grasp one’s full potential in life. Having completed this 5-step model in the span of 5 weeks, I can officially say that I now actively understand myself and how to make the most out of myself. Not only do I feel more spirited and lively, but my surroundings have also told me that I’m communicating radiant energy and looking “glowing”! I profoundly recommend Anine for anybody seeking to realign themselves with their authentic self or requires a personal coach for guiding them in the right direction during turbulent times and needs a healthy boost!

Ingrid, 21 years old, Norway, Student

What I bring with me from this course is a more positive attitude, gratitude and that I am good enough as I am. And that I have a wonderful personality. Also, the fact that one should not live in the past or the future. I have more hope, and  I understand the importance of forgiveness and honesty.

What I bring with me from this course is a more positive attitude, gratitude and that I am good enough as I am. And that I have a wonderful personality. Also, the fact that one should not live in the past or the future. I have more hope, and  I understand the importance of forgiveness and honesty.

 

After this course, I realize the power of appreciating ALL the good things I have in life, which is a lot and of writing things down that I am grateful for. By writing these lists, I have become more positive, and I have gained a more open mindset. I get more energy from it, I feel good and I am more positive and generally happier.

 

After this course, I realize the power of appreciating ALL the good things I have in life, which is a lot and of writing things down that I am grateful for. By writing these lists, I have become more positive, and I have gained a more open mindset. I get more energy from it, I feel good and I am more positive and generally happier.

Veronica, 44 years old, Sweden, Controller

Earlier this summer, I went to the beach with my family. My son, who is 11 years old, has almost been a bigger coward than I am when it comes to getting into the water; it used to take him forever to get down the ladder. This time he said “If mom jumps, so will I”, figuring there would be no chance he would actually have to do it. I never used to like the cold and immediate surprise when hitting the surface, so he’d never seen me jump into any water. But to his great surprise, this time I actually jumped, and so did he! Throughout the summer, he has had so much fun jumping and diving into the water. I am so grateful I did not let my own default feelings of discomfort stand in his way. Thank you, Anine, for having taught me to appreciate and be curious about the unknown instead of fearing it, and also to trust my abilities to handle it. Hey, I know how to swim, so why not jump right to it!?

 

 

Dare to Be Real

Empowering Women Who Have Put Their Talents, Dreams, and Ambitions on the Back Burner

Stop Living in Other People’s Dreams. Connect With Your Authentic Self So You Feel Empowered to Assert Your Own Needs and Desires Without Self-doubt or Guilt