Anna Olitskaya: “I dream of interviewing Oprah Winfrey.
An exclusive interview for Woman Magazine was given by Anna Olitskaya – journalist, creator of the YouTube project “No complexes” and blogger. Anna told how she came to journalism, about her career singer, professional difficulties and achievements, and also shared her understanding of happiness.
Anna, were you a creative child from childhood? What did you dream of becoming?
Oh, yes! I was a very creative kid. Since I was six years old, I really wanted to sing. It was a singing career that was my goal, which I pursued until I was about 22 years old. I’ve probably gone through every casting call there is. I come from the city of Dneprodzerzhinsk (now Kamenskoye). There I performed at all the city days, graduations, including my own. I won a lot of competitions, was on “Karaoke on Maidan”, performed as a solo singer (worked with producer Olga Polyakova), was in an American band “UNVASION”, we recorded an English-language album and even went to fly to Hollywood, but they did not open visas for us.
However, in Kiev, she enrolled at the Institute of International Relations, deciding that a career as a singer – it’s not so serious. I gave up on my dream without realizing it. I tried a lot of things in order to build a career as a singer, I knocked on various doors, but they did not open to me.
When did you decide to tie your life to blogging and TV?
At a certain point I realized that I still had to do something else: for a while I was PR manager for many artists, including Potap and Nastya, and I found myself, so to speak, on the other side of the barricades. Then I heard about the casting for the program “Lift” on the New Channel, and went to him. I did not pass the casting – another girl was chosen, but knowing that I work with artists and have good connections in show business, I was invited to another program.
So I, despite my lack of journalistic experience, got into the “Piranha” program as a journalist-host. And so, when I started working as a journalist, all kinds of doors started opening for me. Although I hadn’t planned it and never wanted to, it turned out to be even better than my old dream. And I started my program “No complexes” on the YouTube channel “OLITSKAYA” a year ago.
What is the hardest and most enjoyable thing about your profession?
If we talk about my television journey as a journalist, it has not been easy. In order to record a quality interview, you need to put a lot of effort and be somewhat of a psychologist. Even before the political events, I worked in Moscow for two years – I took comments from stars. I had to record dozens of such comments in one evening and bring them to Kiev as an exclusive; I had to mount and broadcast them all myself in no time. Besides, you always had to look great because I was working in the frame: in heels, in a dress, with a beautiful makeup and styling – an orchestra man . That was the hardest thing before.
Now in the program “No complexes” the most difficult thing – to make a hero. When people trust you and share information they’ve never shared publicly before, it’s worth a lot, it’s very valuable and pleasant. Also – girls came to me with their difficult life situations and problems (family violence, beating, cheating on a man, psychological abuse), and then I dreamt about them for a long time. Each story I passed through myself, as if a close friend was telling it to me. Now I’ve learned to abstract it and take it simply as a new interview.
Who was the most difficult and who was the most interesting interview for you?
The most difficult interview was with Dmitry Karpachev, because the man, in principle, did not want to talk about anything personal. I wanted to find out some interesting facts about his personal life, concerning his career, his path in life. After all, he had achieved so much, and I wanted to know more about how he did it. But all my questions on these topics were met with hostility. Moreover, Karpachev is a psychotherapist himself and, of course, he is much stronger than I am psychologically. Nevertheless, the interview happened, the result was. It’s all an experience.
And the most interesting thing for me is with Dmitry Gordon. It was like I was in an interview with a coach who was training me. Very cool! He’s also a man who doesn’t reveal himself easily. But I tried, and I think in many ways I got a different side to him.
Is there someone you really want to invite to “No complexes,” but haven’t been able to yet?
Of course there is. I’ve only been doing this program for a year, and there are already a lot of people like that: businessmen and artists, both local and foreign. I think all of this I will gradually implement. My dream is to be interviewed by Oprah Winfee. I just admire her!
How did you come up with the idea for this project in the first place? And why did you choose that name?
Before I started my YouTube channel, I had been preparing for several years. For a long time, due to traveling for work (for 3 years I was the host of the travel show “Zarobitchani” and “In Whom More” on Novy Channel) and the workload, I just did not have enough time. I had a lot of options for the format of the YouTube channel. I even shot a material in the format of an investigative journalism. For which I specifically flew to New York – no one has seen him yet.
But my heart told me that I should record the interview. So, I prepared the first one for “No Complexes.” It was an interview with Lena Filonova (my buddy and colleague at the New Channel), which was very cool. That’s how I decided to do the issues in this format.
And the title came to my mind at night. It is known that complexes (especially childhood complexes) greatly affect our whole life and our formation. I’m still trying to get rid of some myself, and the concept of “No Complexes” is probably what I’m striving for (smiles).
How do you see your further professional development? Are you planning any new projects?
I will further develop my YouTube channel, make new formats of shows. Besides interviews, I also want to do investigations, documentaries in a new format. Lots of characters I want to record and reveal, primarily women’s themes – big plans! I also really want my project “No complexes” to be on television. I’m currently negotiating about it.
Anna, I would also like to talk about your vision of a woman. What do you think a modern woman should be?
I often ask myself this question (smiling). I believe that a woman should be happy, regardless of whether she is in a relationship, whether she has children, or whether she is at her ideal weight. All of this should have no effect on her inner state. This is very difficult to achieve, but it is possible with constant work on yourself. The modern woman should not stop to develop, improve and improve herself.
Do you spend a lot of time taking care of yourself? What do you prefer – salon or home treatments?
Actually, not much. I don’t like to wait – to sit for a manicure, pedicure. Of course, I do it every two weeks, but I try to get it done as quickly as possible. Instead of the beauty salon, if possible, I’d rather exercise, go for a walk, and, of course, spend time with my son.
Although, I understand that every year you need to spend more and more time on self-care and, of course, do not ignore all these procedures. Now I do mostly chiro facial massage (which I devote the most time to) and regular workouts. I don’t have any home treatments, per se.
Do you devote time to spiritual development?
I do yoga in the morning – I do pranayamas, some asanas and meditate. I try to read professional literature in order to develop in my direction. Now I’m studying classical psychology.
What is your definition of happiness, and can you call yourself a happy person?
Yes, I could call myself a perfectly happy person. I have a beautiful son, Timofey, who is my greatest pride. I feel fulfilled in what I love, but there is always something to strive for.
I believe that happiness is everyone’s responsibility, and you don’t have to pass it on to others: for example, being an appendage of a man to feel happy. Happiness in my understanding is harmony with myself, inner satisfaction, awareness and confidence.
Author: Tatyana Zaitseva
Photo: personal archive