Interview with the founder

Interviewer: Angie, take us back to the beginning—how did AnchorWell come to life?

Angie: I’ll keep it short as there is an interview coming about about all of this but AnchorWell was born during a time when my whole world shifted. I was leaving a role that had consumed me and my Identity for many years, while navigating a huge personal upheaval that shook me to my core. In rebuilding myself from the ground up, I kept thinking—if I’m struggling this much with all the tools and support I have, what happens to the people who don’t have this? I could not ignore this thought once it popped into my head.

At the same time, I had first-hand experience inside high-pressure, high-stakes environments, and I knew how isolating they could be. I wanted to share everything I had learned—every tool, every lesson—to help others navigate their own chapters with more strength and support.
That became the heart of AnchorWell: real support, real resilience, and the belief that no one should have to face their hardest times alone.

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Interviewer: It sounds like AnchorWell really comes from a personal place for you. Can you elloborate?

Angie: It absolutely does. I feel like any business that is built from passion and your own experience has something special behind it.

The personal side is, I was completely burnt out. I didn’t know who I was, I was operating in this incredibly anxious, frantic space—always firefighting my way through the day, constantly in survival mode, trying to be everything for everyone. I honestly couldn’t tell you what I even enjoyed as a person. Even though I looked high-functioning from the outside, inside I was completely overwhelmed.

That realization became the foundation of AnchorWell. I knew I had to create something bigger than myself—a project, a passion, a legacy—that could support others before they reached their breaking point.

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Interviewer: You’ve worked in some extremely high-pressure environments. How did you manage to get through those periods without completely burning out?

Angie: I didn’t honestly, I burnt out and not gracefully haha, I was carrying so much responsibility and expectation for years, I gave it all I had while trying to be a good partner, friend and everything in between, in doing so abandoning myself, I don't know how I would have made it through without the people I had around me. I was incredibly lucky at the time to have a partner who was a true source of strength and support, along with friends and family who stood by me when I could barely stand myself.

This is where Anchorwell’s core pillars come into play and each and every one of them propelled me forward. you’ll hear it in the interview but movement and my running saved me.

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Interviewer: And you’re not doing it alone I hear you’ve built quite a team around you.

Angie: Yes, I really cannot believe how much support I have had come around me, and that’s been one of the most rewarding parts of the journey. AnchorWell isn’t just about me. It’s about the incredible people behind the scenes the specialists, the advisors, the passionate advocates who are integrated into every part of what we’re building. I’ve been so intentional about teaming up with some of the best in the industry people who aren’t just highly skilled, but who genuinely care about human wellbeing.

I’m not the superstar or expert here they are. AnchorWell’s growth comes from the collective heart of everyone involved. We’re all here because we believe people deserve better support. Especially in industries like yachting, where the mental toll can be so high, there needs to be a safety net. And we’re committed to being that.

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Interviewer: How did you go about choosing the people who are now part of AnchorWell’s support network?

Angie: This is some what connected to the last question in a way but It was all about alignment. Skill sets are important, of course but more than that, I was looking for people who genuinely believe in human-first leadership, who understand the emotional layers of industries like yachting, and who care enough to show up fully. Every person who’s part of AnchorWell is not just expertise. That’s a non-negotiable for us.

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Interviewer: In those early days, what helped you move from survival mode into creation mode?

Angie: Honestly it’s still very early days, however it was the vision that pulled me through. I saw friends and family struggle in this industry and I was personally affected by it in a round about way.

Even when I was still healing, there was this deeper knowing that something meaningful could come from what I was experiencing. I didn’t have a perfect plan. But I had the willingness to take one step, then another, and trust that it would come together. And every small piece of momentum built into something bigger. AnchorWell was created through resilience, not certainty and that’s why it feels so real and alive but there was a lot of times when I questioned everything doubted myself but I chose to move forward anyway through adversity. still there are days that I doubt but I keep coming back to that vision of why.

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Interviewer: What has the journey of building AnchorWell taught you about yourself?

Angie: It’s taught me that healing and building can happen at the same time. You don’t have to be perfectly healed or fully “ready” to start. It’s also shown me that the environments we create around ourselves matter. When you surround yourself with people who share your values who have common goals and are genuinely good people it makes a huge difference in life, when you stay grounded to your ‘why,’ the energy shifts completely. And you realise you’re capable of so much more than you thought, and listen I am not some special person, I am just a normal everyday person that’s gone through a challenging time and chose to learn and grow and try to make a positive out of it, anyone can do what I have done and am doing :)

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Interviewer: What would you say to someone who feels stuck in that anxious, burnt-out space right now?

Angie: Ill try and keep this short haha, firstly I am not an expert, second, you are not broken. You’re not failing because you’re struggling—you’re human. Hard seasons are part of life, and it’s not about avoiding them; it’s about who you become through them.

It’s not the struggle that defines you—it’s how you respond. It’s staying connected when you want to shut down, reaching out for support, and learning to be okay within yourself, even when it’s hard. It’s not easy, again this is exactly why I want AW to be there for people.

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Interviewer: What is your ultimate vision for the future of AnchorWell?

Angie: The ultimate vision is to change the culture around mental health in high-pressure industries like yachting. I want AnchorWell to be the name people trust—not just when they’re in crisis, but long before that point. We’re here to make prevention a priority over reaction and early support the norm, not the exception. To create a space where seeking help is seen as a strength, not a weakness. And to show that when you put humans first, everything—performance, happiness, retention—gets better. That’s the future we’re building.