Years ago I threw the antidepressants and said, I won’t be your puppet. I am strong. I am Angela. I don’t need you I need myself.
Where did my journey really begin?
After facing many life challenges, I realized something important, resilience is not something psychologists can simply teach. We can only help people become aware of the power they already have inside.
We can guide them to see their resilient side, and to use it as their advantage, not their victim story.
That’s how my journey began.
I often mention my anxiety and depression openly. Why?
“That pen became the first tool of my business“.
Because that’s part of my truth.
I was diagnosed with anxiety disorder and depression. During therapy, while dealing with panic attacks after a catastrophic trauma, my psychiatrist once told me:
“You are a very resilient person. I can see the light inside you, the one that still wants to live, laugh, and move forward. That’s called strength and resilience.”
He didn’t just give me awareness , he gave me a pen.
He said, “Write your story.”
That pen became the first tool of my business.
I didn’t just study psychology and specialize in positive psychology, I lived it.
If you see my determination and success today, the root is simple: my approach, Positive Psychology. It’s not a theory for me. It’s how I rebuilt myself.
And that’s why I wanted to build something that carries this same magic, something tailored around this powerful approach.
The story of Nordaurai started there, not after earning my master’s degree, but after believing in my own power and experiencing this science fully.
Graduating from the University of Helsinki with a full merit scholarship was a big milestone. It proved my academic and scientific success, and it could have easily opened doors to well-paid full-time jobs, not only in Finland but around the world.
But I made a different choice.
After completing my master’s, I applied for only four jobs, and in one of them, I wrote in the cover letter:
“This is my personal website. If you’re interested, I can tell you more.”
It wasn’t ego. It was confidence.
I was already preparing for entrepreneurship during my studies.
During my studies, I was already getting ready for my entrepreneurial journey. I collected data from organizations about occupational well-being. I still remember knocking on many company doors under the snow, asking them to participate in my research.
I joined several incubator programs to understand the startup ecosystem.
In the mornings, I was a master’s student.
During the day, I was attending startup events.
In the evenings, I worked part-time.
At night, I was writing my thesis.
That rhythm, the mix of passion, motivation, challenges, and determination became the power that shaped the birth of my success story.
I often say, “confidence is my power.”
There’s a quote I love:
“Build your business and work part-time until your business starts paying your bills.”
Jim Rohn
All my friends told me to get a stable job, but I was stubborn with the idea of entrepreneurship. I kept my part-time student job and invested every euro of my salary into Nordaurai and my vision.
I received my salary / and I paid my team members
I received my salary / and I paid the game manufacturer.
During day I validated my gamified mental health idea, I interviewed many companies both in the Finland and United Arab Emirates, I developed games.
In the evening I continued my part-time job.
That’s what I call confidence in action.
Trust your vision.
Because when you do, your vision starts trusting you back.
I believe in my own power and energy, but I’m also part of this universe.
I’ve learned that every person who enters our life has a purpose.
My psychiatrist helped me discover my inner strength and the science of positive psychology.
My employers, some taught me how not to lead, and others showed me how to lead.
I’ve always supported women, and I want women to keep growing.
The universe has a beautiful way of sending me strong women who empower me, women like Satu Nevalainen, and Berna Bulgurcu
My message is simple:
“Surround yourself with women who talk about values, growth, and self-development, not jealousy”.
Angela Boyajian Adjounian
Here is an experience that truly shaped my view on leadership
Let me tell you something unexpected.
During my job interview as a master’s student, both my employer and I cried.
Most interviews are formal, right? You walk in fast, nervous, thinking, “I have to get this job.”
But this time, she started by making me an iced latte with vanilla in Espoo/Finland
Halfway through our talk, we were both in tears.
That moment changed how I saw business forever.
I realized that emotions have space in business.
We are humans first, our feelings come before our titles.
What did I learn from that experience?
Instead of focusing on performing for the job, I started observing her.
How did she communicate with her team?
How did she treat her clients?
What kind of strength was she bringing to a business worth millions?
That was true leadership, being open to talk about leadership with her employees, being willing to learn from them, and never assuming “I am always right.”
Most importantly, it was about supporting another woman at the early stage of her entrepreneurial journey.
Once, she told me:
“Work on your thing, and use this job as a stair.” Sini Salminen
My deepest respect to her, Sini Salminen.
With ten years of experience in both school and corporate sectors, Sini was my first woman employer. The leadership lessons and observations I gained from her are something I’ll carry with me wherever I go, even overseas.
I often say this to organizations:
Your people are the ones who work for you and make revenue.
Your company can’t survive without them.
And your people are the ones who will train and use the AI.
“Investing in your people is the best investment you can ever make, it always returns as growth and revenue.” Angela Boyajian Adjounian
How did I stay strong while working part-time and building Nordaurai?
I didn’t complain about exhaustion.
Yes, I was tired. But instead of complaining, I focused on observing, learning, and staying grateful.
Every step
Every person
Every emotion, became part of my growth story.
“Nordaurai was born from alignment, resilience, and a story that needed to be told.”
Nordaurai wasn’t created out of comfort, it was born from resilience, from my personal story, and from the real need I saw in our communities.
Today, whether we accept it or ignore it, every individual needs personalized mental health support.
Imagine, if my own mental health journey brought me here, where could yours take you if you start listening to yourself and take that first step?
How did Finland shape the idea?
After experiencing Finland’s well-being culture, I realized that Finnish well-being is deeply rooted in the same principles as positive psychology, balance, authenticity, compassion, and simplicity.
Through my interviews, research, and validation, I found a way to break the stigma around mental health and make it accessible for all generations, cultures, and genders.
And that way was through GAMIFICATION
Nordaurai offers scientifically proven feeling to the world – HAPPINESS FROM FINLAND
Through Nordaurai, global organizations can now experience the happiness approach of the world’s happiest country, in a fun, interactive, and deeply reflective way.
Our first global launch will be in the United Arab Emirates, in 2026 a country that represents innovation, diversity, and bold ideas.
A foreign woman came to Finland, lived, experienced, and worked hard to make Finnish well-being travel overseas.
That’s vision.
From desert to innovation.
From trauma to transformation.
Nordaurai wasn’t born despite difficulties, it was born because of them.
Because I chose to see my challenges as strengths.
Today, I have an amazing team, a strong scientific foundation, and a mission we all believe in:
To bring the Finnish well-being approach to the world, through the power of gamification.
So, let’s roll the dice.
The game of well-being has just begun. 🎲
With positivity,
Angela Boyajian Adjounian
Psychologist and Founder of Nordaurai Oy
