Greetings from Alumni: Kerstin Westman

In the latest part of our Greetings from Alumni series, we interviewed Kerstin Westman, who worked at Hannes Snellman as an assistant for 15 years and retired in 2011.

Hi Kerstin, how are you?

I’m fine, thank you. Retirement has meant more flexibility and time for my hobbies, friends, and family. To create some routine in my days, I attend language courses and gymnastics classes. I attend English and French conversation groups and have taken up Spanish.

You retired from Hannes in 2011. What did it initially feel like leaving the hectic working life behind you and starting a new phase in life?

To be quite frank, I felt relieved not having to get up early and having to make my 30-minute sprint to the office. I was in a lucky position not having to try to catch a tram or a bus, just walking briskly to the office. Nowadays I enjoy the slow mornings with coffee and the daily paper — yes, the tabloid format, not an electronic one.

You were always a lively and active person during your time at Hannes. Has retirement changed you, or have you kept yourself active and busy in ways other than working?

Exercise in various forms has always been a part of my life. Also, when working, I tried to squeeze in my keep-fit gymnastics and programme rehearsals.

When I moved to Helsinki at the end of the 1970s, I joined the gymnastic club GFH (Gymnastikföreningen I Helsingfors), and I have been active in the club since then. The retirement did not change that. I have continued with my keep-fit gymnastics several times a week, in addition to which we have programme rehearsals. For some forty years I have been part of Still Going Strong, a mixed group where men and women do gymnastics together. We are not elite but happy amateurs. We take part in various gymnastics festivals, both national and international. The latest festival we attended was the 9^th Golden Age Gym Festival held in Burgas, Bulgaria, in September 2024. Between our two performances, salsa and zumba workshops, we enjoyed the sunshine and lovely Black Sea beaches.

Right from the start of my retirement, I was asked to join the board of GFH, where I acted as a secretary until March 2023. Working on the board is voluntary but interesting. The most demanding tasks during my time as a secretary were updating the club’s home page and compiling information for the club’s 140-year history as GFH was founded in 1876.

I have always loved travelling. My latest trip was called Sailing in the West Indies on board a four-masted clipper. It was great fun with new isles and ports every morning, swimming and snorkelling, good food, and a most enjoyable environment.

As I do not, unlike most Finns, have a summer cottage, I’m often joking that the golf club is my summer cottage. During the summer, I bike to the golf course some tree times a week. I truly enjoy walking the 18 holes in beautiful surroundings and good company. Please do not ask what my handicap is as I am a happy club player not participating in any competitions.

To those still very much involved in the working life, what advice would you give to them? Is there something in particular that you miss from working in the office?

Try not to let the working days swallow all your time. That is easier said than done, I know. Despite a hectic working environment, it is important to take care of oneself and to find time for oneself, friends, and family. I was in a lucky position to have my gymnastics classes five minutes away from the office, and sometimes when typing endless due diligence reports or agreements I popped out to my keep-fit class or rehearsals and was back at my desk one hour later and continued with new energy. When I began at Hannes, some lawyers dictated the due diligence material — in various languages, and one of my tasks was to translate them into English. Today, the lawyers probably type their reports themselves.

Even if English seems to be the lingua franca, it is important to know other languages and cultures. Keep up your language skills, not only English but also Swedish, French, German, Spanish, Russian, etc. From my work prior to Hannes, I know that also other languages are important. Also learn other cultures. I remember working one very late night and had to order something to eat to the persons in the conference room. Without thinking, I quickly ordered what was the easiest, i.e. pizza, not realizing that one of the participants could not have meat. I learned the hard way that even in a stressful situation you must think twice or check beforehand what to order instead of ordering what first comes to your mind.

From my working life I do not miss anything, not the stress, not the late hours. I prefer the flexibility and more relaxed way of life where you can pop into an art exhibition with a short notice or meet friends for cinema or a glass of wine. If I feel stressed at times, it is because of me and not because of work.

You have been a Hannes alumna for more than 10 years. What is your favourite memory from your time at Hannes?

The lawyers I worked with and my colleagues, in particular Maria Q with whom we had a “cooperation agreement”. She checked my Finnish, and I glanced through her Swedish texts. The lawyers were all personalities, and you had to adapt to their ways of working. But they all were nice persons, whom I remember with warmth.