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:-)
by Elisabet | Feb 12, 2010 | English Blog
Are you among the people who feel affected by uncertain times? The bad news about company results and jobs disappearing? Well, join the club! I’m sure there’s a lot of people in that category.
But don’t become a victim!
There are ways of handling your situation, regardless of what happens in the world. You have the power to decide over your own life. Not the circumstances around you. Unless you let them have power over you……So take control of your life.
So what can you control in this world?
Very little actually. All you can control is yourself – your thoughts, your attitude, your actions etc. So when things happen around you, focus on how you react and respond to that. Because what you focus on becomes reality.
So what will you focus on today? The fact that another company has gone bankrupt, or what you want to happen (something good, something inspiring, something world-changing). Your thoughts create new thoughts and possibilties, and starts to channel your energy towards new, more positive, constructive events.
And everything that we first view as “bad” or “negative” can end up being good. Change is needed, sometimes we need a shake-up, things need to change. And from that change, new ideas can be born, better solutions, greater insights.
So when things feel uncertain around you, decide how you will look at it – and ask yourself what the positive aspect may be of what’s happening. You’ll like the results.
I wish you all happiness and success – in certain and uncertain times. You decide.
by Elisabet | Feb 10, 2010 | English Blog
Last spring I enjoyed following “Britain’s got talent” on British TV. A fascinating TV-show where thousands of people are parading through with their varying degree of talent:-). I’m sure that some of the people that have chosen to audition just do it as a joke, as there were at times absolutely no talent what so ever, unless absurdity is a talent…..
Most people have read and heard about Susan Boyle, who the world took to their hearts. And who came second in the final.
Less known (at least outside Britain) is Stavros Flatley – a wonderful “father and son” act who do a sort of parody on Irish dancing. Absolutely wonderful!
Every time I watch them I am overcome by such a feeling of joy.
They made it all the way to the final and at times I was really wondering if they really belonged in the final, as they weren’t necessarily the best dancers.
But then finally I got it……their talent is to entertain, to make people happy. There can hardly be a worthier or more valuable talent!
Here they are in the final. Hope they make you happy:-)
