by Elisabet | May 3, 2010 | English Blog
Oh, I know, it’s the classic question! A little tired and a bit of a cliché, you may think. But oh, so relevant.
One of the greatest traits of a good leader is being optimistic, which in my view is even better than being positive, because OPTIMISTIC contains the ingredient of HOPE. With optimism you see possibilities, you recognise what you have, you find solutions. And when you see the glass as half full, you are encouraged to go on, you feel stronger, you know that nothing is impossible (it might just take longer!).
So let that glass be at least half full. Or make a real statement – make it full!
by Elisabet | Apr 29, 2010 | English Blog
What is your definition of success?
There are probably as many definitions as there are people on this earth. Success is often expressed as material things, possessions, promotions, appointments, money etc. But it can also be something completely different…
How about peace of mind, sleeping well at night, having good relationships with other people, having a purpose, achieving something, being appreciated?
Whatever your definition is…..make sure you have one!
How could you be successful otherwise? You may actually cheat yourself out of a lot of success, because if you have never defined what success meant to you – you didn’t see it, even though it was staring you straight in the face!
So go on, choose success by making up your mind about what SUCCESS MEANS TO YOU. Only you can decide, you have that power.
And instantly you increase your chances of success. Because now you all of a sudden have something to work with, towards. Define some goals, decide on actions that will take you to your goals.
And be happy about your success – because it is there if you just choose to see it.
by Elisabet | Apr 27, 2010 | English Blog
My adventure in South East Europe is over. There was a solution – of course.
After five days in Istanbul, we travelled by coach to Vienna, staying in Sofia on the way. And I was lucky to spend time with a great group of people who kept spirits high and made the most of the situation – most inspiring.
And then finally, from Vienna I was able to fly home. I don’t think it’s ever felt so good to get home!
I don’t take things for granted, or at least I try not to. Because “normality” (everything that you have and that happens on a regular basis) we tend to take for granted. It’s human nature, we all do it.
And when you don’t have it for a while, when you don’t know when or how you will get home, you appreciate it all the more.
So I’m making a note of what I am thankful for – my husband, my children, my family and friends, my health, my home, my garden (even though it needs a lot of work!) – yes, all the obvious things. But also little things like my bed, making my Nespresso in the morning, my Birkenstock, my walk to the station to get to work, cooking dinner, reading the morning paper, and much more.
And I am reminded of how much I have to be thankful and happy for. And how it SO outweighs any problems, concerns and worries.
What are you thankful for? And how can reminding yourself of this make you create the kind of day and future you want to have?
We create what we focus on – where are you putting your focus today?
by Elisabet | Mar 1, 2010 | English Blog
Every single person on this earth has their unique lens that they see the world through. It’s like we have our very own glasses that create our reality. And that reality can’t really be fully understood by anyone else. Just like we can’t understand anybody else’s.
Sure, we may think that we are empathetic and able to put ourselves in others’ shoes. But to be honest, we can never really understand – because our glasses are always there in the way.
What creates our lens, our glasses? Well, our upbringing, our culture, our beliefs, our parents and so on. Not even siblings (who may have had a lot in common) see the world the same way as each other. Even they have different glasses.
We are exposed to several million pieces of sensory data per second but only register about 7 of them! How can I know if I’ve registered the “right” 7 – well, I can’t of course. And consider how unlikely it is that someone else has registered the same 7 pieces of data.
Imagine how different everything must look to people based on what sensory input they’ve registered. It’s an absolute miracle that we can communicate with each other at all.
If we are truly going to be able to communicate and lead a relatively harmonious life on this earth – across cultural, national, religious and idealogical boundaries – then we need to realise that there are very few things are “right or wrong”.
If I can keep a flexible mindset, be open to the possibility of being wrong, not having all the answers, that everything changes at such a speed that we can’t take anything for granted…..
Then I think we can be humble enough to say – “you know what, I don’t fully understand your situation, but I accept you just the same, it’s OK, it’s OK to be different”.
by Elisabet | Feb 23, 2010 | English Blog
OK, for all you non-Swedish people out there, please humour me on this one….
I’m a big fan of a comedy act called “After Shave and Galenskaparna”, and years ago they had a sort of hit with this song “Det ska va gött att leva, annars kan det kvitta”. It’s all about how life is supposed to be good and enjoyable. And I love the spirit of this song – of course it should be good, easy, fun to live, to go to work and everything else. Who says it can’t be like that!
I so often hear people say that life is tough, that we should be prepared for that. I SAY NO! If I think life is going to be tough, of course it will be tough. Because what I expect, I will then (mainly subconsciously) start looking for.
I’m not stupid though. I know as well as the next person that things aren’t always easy, that we meet tough challenges, disappointments and sorrows – I’ve had my fair share.
But I’m also more and more aware, on a daily basis, that we can impact our own situation – we can choose to have it good, to have fun, and thereby have it better and have more fun! It’s entirely down to our attitude. And you can choose your attitude.
You can choose to have more fun. Just look at your job. Most of us spend around 7-8 hours a day at work. Sometimes it’s fun, sometimes it’s not. We may get annoyed with people, circumstances and tasks.
BUT YOU ARE NOT AT THE MERCY OF CIRCUMSTANCES.
It is possible to choose to have fun, regardless of the circumstances. It all comes down to what you focus on. Before you go to work, think about how you want to feel while at work, how you want to feel about the people you meet at work – and remind yourself what it’s like to feel those feelings – tap into them. Really feel them.
And then when you get to work, focus on what it feels like when you are having fun – straighten your back, smile, laugh – and you can start to notice how it actually feels better. And how positively others respond when you are happy and constructive.
And if you’re doing something you find boring, tell yourself “I may as well do it with a smile”. Because you always have a choice of doing it the hard way or the easy way – why not make it easy? You’re worth it.
Don’t take things so seriously. We usually do our best work with a clear, easy mind, so try to take setbacks with a pinch of salt. Ask yourself how you can benefit from what’s happened, try to see things from a different perspective.
AND BANISH THE WORDS “FAILURE” AND “MISTAKE” FROM YOUR VOCABULARY. Try this instead – “there are no failures, only results”. Because it all comes down to how you CHOOSE to look at things.
And there may even be something to laugh about. Make sure you find something to laugh about every day! And discover how different everything feels:-)
