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‘Creating community is key to my business’

Beate McLatchie is originally from Innsbruck, Austria but moved to Bali in 1992 and spent over 20 years there, raising a family, running a yoga and wellness company and building villas. She has now returned to Vienna to set up a yoga studio and spoke to The Local about feeling like an expat in her own country.

Published: 2 December 2014 09:30 CET
'Creating community is key to my business'
Beate McLatchie. Photo: Bali Yoga Wien

How did you end up living in Asia?

After graduating from high school in Innsbruck I moved to Florida, where I studied on a full athletic tennis scholarship. And then I did an international management degree in New York and worked at the New York Plaza hotel as a VIP manager – taking care of Hollywood stars and royalty. It was a very exciting time but ultimately quite a shallow lifestyle.

Then a friend invited me to go to Bali and spontaneously I decided to go – it really did feel like fate. I immediately felt a very strong connection to Asia, I was very attracted to the lifestyle and the nature. I married a New Zealander and had two daughters

How did you get into yoga and wellness?

My children suffered from asthma, so I started getting into nutrition, alternative medicines and yoga. I was born with scoliosis, and playing tennis made it worse. After having my daughters I was in such pain – back and hip pain – that I couldn’t sit or stand comfortably. A friend invited me to go on a week’s yoga retreat and I realised this was the answer for me – I needed to reform my body. It was a long and painful journey but I also discovered the spiritual practise, meditation and chanting.

What’s it been like returning to Austria after so many years away?

It is very, very different to Bali – yet on the human level it’s the same. I did have mixed feelings coming to Vienna and I felt like some difficult experiences were being thrown at me as an initiation. My business partner still runs our yoga and wellness agency in Bali – which coordinates yoga teachers and alternative therapists.

Starting a business in Vienna has been relatively straightforward, the Economic Chambers (Wirtschaftskammer) has been very supportive. They even run courses on how to start a business – the Gründer Service. Now I just have to have faith that it will work. The costs of renting the space and paying the teachers are high but our team is exceptionally wonderful and I feel so blessed to work with them. I envision Bali Yoga Wien to be like a beehive, very busy, with people flowing in and out, providing the nectar that nourishes them.

What do you want to achieve with your business?

Creating a community is a really important aspect of it. We live in a world of isolation, addiction, loneliness and stress. It’s the connections with each other, it’s through helping each other and looking for less selfish ways to live that we will survive.

This is something I learnt in Bali, which is a less individualistic culture. There is no word in Balinese for privacy, people don’t close doors, and they are never alone. I want to be able to teach yoga in a way that goes beyond the asana, the physical postures. I also teach meditation programmes for people struggling with addiction, and long term I’d love to have a yoga cafe with in-house therapists.

What do you enjoy about being back in Vienna?

I like the climate here. I really enjoy experiencing the four seasons, and I don’t mind the cold. I also love how clean Vienna, and Austria is. The water from the tap is amazing, and the crime rate is very low. People take care of the environment here, and there isn’t a lot of poverty or homelessness. Also, there really isn’t a lot of traffic in Vienna – not compared to Bangkok or Bali.

 

The Bali Yoga Wien studio. 

 

Bali Yoga Wien is at Gußhausstraße 2, 1040 Vienna.

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WORKING IN AUSTRIA

First steps: What to do when searching for a new job in Austria

Whether you have just arrived in Austria or have worked here before but are now unemployed, this is how you should start your job search.

Published: 17 January 2024 16:05 CET
Updated: 4 April 2024 14:11 CEST
First steps: What to do when searching for a new job in Austria

Austria is known for its welfare or social system, and even people who do not have a job can receive assistance – but the full entitlement depends on factors such as previous work in the country, for example. 

If you are moving to Austria or have lost your job, there are tools you can use to help you get into the labour market again – especially with the help of the Austrian Public Employment Service (AMS). Here’s what you need to know.

Registering as unemployed

The first step is registering as an unemployed job seeker with the AMS. It’s not a mandatory step, but the AMS can give you professional counselling from a personal advisor. You can also be recommended courses and get job adverts that fit your profile. 

A person can register as an unemployed job seeker with the AMS regardless of any entitlement to a benefit from the unemployment insurance scheme, so even if you have just arrived in Austria. Here’s a list of the regional offices of the AMS.

READ ALSO: Unemployment benefits in Austria: Who is eligible and how much can you get?

If you are entitled to unemployment benefits (for that, you need to have contributed to the social system in Austria), then you must register with the AMS by the first day of unemployment. If you register online before the start of unemployment, you have ten days after the start of unemployment to confirm the registration at an AMS office in person. 

Even if you are not at first entitled to benefits from the unemployment insurance scheme, some circumstances may entitle you to several forms of help from the agency. 

This is why it is recommended that you reach out to the AMS regardless of your situation.

AMS’s chatbot

Austria’s AMS also recently launched a new AI bot that usesChatGPT technology – and information from AMS – to help people looking for jobs and training in Austria, as The Local reported.

The bot uses ChatGTP knowledge and AMS’s sources to help users. It can also ask further questions to get specifics on each case, creating a dialogue and exchange of information.

The bot can give answers on training, salary, careers, visas, and more to anyone asking questions. It also provides links to the pages with the source information – all in whichever language you choose to interact with it. 

READ ALSO: How useful is Austria’s new AI tool for foreign job-seekers?

Looking for jobs

Besides the assistance of your advisor at the AMS, you can also use the agency’s job search tool to find employment. Several positions are advertised there, especially for service and trade jobs. It’s possible to narrow down the search based on work hours, place of work and state, among others.

READ ALSO: Six official websites to know if you’re planning to work in Austria

Besides the official site, people in Austria also use other ways of finding jobs online, including websites like LinkedIn and even posts on FB Groups (though be careful with false advertisements if you are in doubt when it comes to employment and work contracts, you can always reach out to your local Chamber of Labour).

In Austria, two sites are also popular among job seekers: Karriere.at and Xing.com. You can also use sites with classified ads such as Der Standard or Willhaben, for example. The Local has a page with English-language jobs in Austria as well.

It’s often common to find jobs through personal contacts in Austria, where the “friendship culture” is prevalent. 

READ ALSO: What is the ‘friendship economy’ in Austria and how does it work?

Even the official government website says, “Personal contacts should also not be ignored when it comes to successful job placement. It can be very helpful to ask around among family, friends and acquaintances for vacancies.

“The more people who know about the job search, the greater the chance of success”, it added.

You will also need to prepare a CV and, depending on the job, even a motivational letter – your AMS advisor can typically help adapt and write both documents. 

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