Keeping your creativity alive

It's too easy to pick up the phone and check the messages. What happens next is, that I get lost into scrolling a bit of this and that, usually not useful information at all. Wishing I had more time, that little time is spent on reading other people's updates. Still inside me, I know there are ideas, that are just waiting for the magic moment.

Where are the good ideas coming from? Or actually it we should ask ourselves the question, when.Lately I haven't had any good ideas, hardly any ideas at all. The days have been mostly about running the routines, my mind has been too tired to produce any useful thoughts. And some of the routines tend to pile up until I'm forced to do something to them. You can call it laziness, or just bad time scheduling.

The other side of the problem is when usually no ideas and texts get finished. It's very annoying actually. Still trying to find a solution to that problem.

In a perfect world all the texts and ideas are finished in no time, right? If we wait for that moment, it's never going to happen. I've become quite sure, that there is no magic moment. A moment when you just get into the flow of writing (with no effort).

That magic moment is created by you.

You create the time and space. It takes time and effort, and a certain daily time to work on things to get forward. Still it seems like I need MythBusters to prove me, that there is no other way. I know, this has nothing to do with science. Maybe it might be easier for some people though, who knows? Researchers claim to have found a 'happiness' gene. Maybe there is a gene for this matter too.

My every day "get away moment" has been updating a picture to Instagram. Freezing a beautiful moment, maybe adding a thought. Better than nothing, and a nice hobby.

Now after a long break I gave time for my thoughts, and started writing. I had to check if I'm still able to write. I forced myself to concentrate on just one thing. And I did it. Today I have a 'all things can happen' feeling.

Creativity needs space. When the mind is too crowded, the ideas stay away. For some people it might be the mornings, for some it can be evenings.

Take your time.

Peace of mind for five minutes

Do you still remember when life was simple? There were no possibilities to follow all the time what was happening in the world. Phones were used for talking and nothing else. And well, you know how it is now. Distractions here and distractions there. It's hard to concentrate on one thing at a time.

I don't know how simple it was in reality, but it seems like it was easier to control everything with not so much information available 24/7. I'm ready to return to the days before social media and smart phones. They are distracting me way too much. The only problem is, that there is no returning back.

Maybe the problem is, that I'm not able to control my use of time. So, the solution is in my hands.

My problem is, that I could easily go through my day without accomplishing nearly anything. To do a little bit of this and that. Starting many things and not finishing anything. There is always a distraction coming when I'm finally focused on something. It doesn't help that I wake up a lot of times every night (kids, you know.) Anyhow, I usually get things done. Another thing is, how good the outcome is. It would be fun not to only do the minimum to "survive". I'd rather do something that I could be proud of.

It's very easy to spend time on things, that aren't really important. For me it can be for example to take a quick look at the Facebook newsfeed. Suddenly "the quick look" can take at least thirty minutes. And was it useful? Usually not. Every time the useless distractions make my mind wander away from the things that are truly important and uplifting. The ones taking me towards my goals, the things I dream of.

No wonder why there are courses on how to control time more effectively. If it would be easy, everyone could their time with no effort. I know myself, that I have to work on this thing and become the master of timekeeping.

I find it helpful to think, that my day consists of three parts. The first part is when I take the kids to daycare and travel to work and work for certain hours. The next part is when I travel back and pick up the kids and then it's familytime until the go to bed. After that starts the last part of the day (when almost all my energy is used). Then it's time for housework and relaxing.

I don't need five minutes of fame. What I need is five minutes of peace.

What helps in scheduling your day?

1. Not checking your phone too often.
It's useless to do all the time, especially when you know there is nothing, that needs your urgent attention.

2. Taking certain moments in the day to do specific things.
Being organized and concentrating on things. I wish it would be easy.

3. Focusing on one thing at a time
Trying to do many things doesn't make you effective. Usually the result is not too good.

4. Dividing your day in pieces.
Daily routines and concentrating on living in the moment. You can only do the things you have in front of you, not reach to the things ahead.

5. Removing things that create distractions
Sometimes the emails and phonecalls can wait, when you need to concentrate on something.

6. Cleaning the inbox
If you don't clean the inbox regularly and archive emails, it's going to be a great mess. And it's impossible to find the things you are looking for.

Sky is the limit

"The limit is not in the sky. The limit is in the mind."

-Unknown

It’s really hard to change the way we are thinking. We all have our own limits. Many times we limit ourselves more than we should. That results in "playing it safe." Not taking unnecessary risks and only doing things we are comfortable with. Sometimes also spending all your time with people you know well and avoiding to get to know new people. It's easy and nice. You could also call it boring. 

In reality there are many possibilities in life to learn new things and jump outside the comfort zone. Making your dreams come true usually needs some bold steps to be taken. And nobody else can take them instead of you.

Can we really achieve things we dream about? People dream about extraordinary lives and many times end up living ordinary lives. Maybe it's the lack of confidence and fear of taking risks, that stops us from going after our passion. Life should be an adventure, right? 

Sometimes I wish there were more people who would say: "Go after your heart" than those try to make you understand how impossible your ideas are. The voice of doubt is always there. It seems like we are usually encouraged to "play it safe." Every now and then I have to tell myself: "I think it's possible". Every dream come through starts somewhere. Without taking risks you will never find out. If you have a new idea or something you want to achieve, it's always worth trying.

"We can not become what we want to be by remaining what we are"

-Max DePree

I believe, that you can do more than you think. It's true, that every person has special gifts and can do some things better than others. Still also practicing  is needed. Nobody becomes a skilled musician without practice. Also writing needs practice. How much do you want to learn something new?

When we started renovating our old house together with my husband we had no idea what we were getting into. There were lots of new things to learn and sometimes you learn only by making mistakes. That way of learning takes a lot of time. Always the result is not as good as it could be, which may lead into doing the same thing one more time. While learning wallpapering the walls did not look as they should. Some years later it bothered so much, that we did the walls one more time. Another thing was grinding the walls. Learning to do that took time and patience. The machines are not that hard to use. But getting a smooth wall is challenging. And if you don't take the time needed, the wall will look very bad when it has paint or wallpaper on it.

What do you want to do?

This is my own list for taking steps outside the comfort zone

1. Learn new things
Life is about learning. Be curious and practice new skills. The lifelong practice of learning is what makes us humans and our lives worthwhile.

2. Be ready to make mistakes
Turning thoughts into deeds requires confidence.I guess nobody really wants to make mistakes. Still it's impossible to avoid them if you want to do something new. There is a saying that "Mistakes are the steppingstones to learning."

3. Seize the opportunity
Keep your eyes open. When the opportunity comes, be ready!

My first half marathon

Always try something new. Never understood those crazy running people? Me neither.

There I was, among hundreds of people, ready to start running 21 kilometres. Load music coming from the speakers, inspiring runners to get ready and going. People stretching and starting to move towards the starting line. My first half marathon was about to begin. Ready or not, now it was showtime. Some weeks ago I had doubted my ability to run such a long distance for many times. And for a good reason. Well, you know how some people practice like crazy for certain events (which I also should have done) and usually get good results too. I had been able to run 9,43 kilometres once, which was the longest distance I had been running ever. Meanwhile others were running 15-18 kilometres, just like that. Touché. I had done what I could. You can't practice while having flu, or when kids are keeping you busy.

Running has never been something I enjoy. If someone had told me two years ago, that I would be running a halfmarathon, I wouldn't have believed it. When I started practicing, even five kilometres felt like a long distance.

This morning I had taken the train to Helsinki. It seems like everyone was coming to the Stadium with some friends, or they were a part of a team. I realized, that I was going to go there alone. Not a good idea, should have thought of this before. It's much more fun to go with a friend. Well, couldn't do anything about it now. My husband had already started his run one hour before mine. I went to take my stuff to storage and it started raining. Great. At that moment I wished this not fun experience would be over as soon as possible.

Ready, steady, go! Here I was running around Helsinki with lots of people. Wow. I would never have thought, that time went so fast. The painful part started at 15 kilometres. If my legs would have agreed, now it could have been the right time to add speed. I guess the hardest thing is to know what speed you should run. I knew, that if I would tun too fast my energy would be used long before the finish line. If I would ever get there.

There across this run I actually started to understand life deeper. I ran past some people, who ran past me after a while again. There was a limping man, who kept up his speed persistently and finished his run just a bit after me. Some little girls where encouraging runners on the way, wishing energy and power. That was sweet. Sweet were also the power gels I ate during the run, wouldn't have survived without them. And finally the finish line was there, I had done it.

And what did I learn? Running is not only about your legs working, it's between your ears. It's a decision to keep running, no matter how you feel. It's about going outside your comfort zone and not giving up until you pass the finish line. Some people who encourage you on the way will be helpful.

After the run my legs started to hurt so much, that I had big challenges to get home. Every step was painful, so I was limping to the train station very slowly. When I made it home, I felt like a real winner.

Next morning the pain wasn't totally gone. It had just turned into sweet and bearable. Almost nice. I have to be crazy. Who enjoys aching feet really?

Pregnancy hormones and ice cream

Oh, the joys of pregnancy. Being pregnant the first time was unique. I remember how I was lifting and carrying heavy things, renovating house feeling energetic and things like that. All the time on my feet. There was no backache, running to the toilet, baby kicking in belly at night-time...No wait. I'm sure I have forgotten a part of it. The last two months were not that fun. Anyhow I enjoyed it mostly.

Now I'm over halfway through my pregnancy. And wondering why was it easier the first time? I guess everything was so new. There was time to sleep long nights and lazy mornings. Time to take naps (did I?), think about how to eat healthy, write a diary, feel how the baby was moving in belly and what stuff to buy.

And now? No time to rest, early mornings and late evenings. Energy coming and going (mostly going). And those stupid forms to fill in about this and that. Playing with 3-year-old. Crawling into a Pippi Longstocking tent (because it's my home), finding differences from two pictures, shopping food in snowstorm, travelling to work. Feeling snappy. The pregnancy hormones! There has to be more of them now.

Those beautiful kicks in the belly have changed to someone training for the Olympics inside you. Turning and rolling. Can you stop that now? And healthy eating, yeah right.

I've been looking forward to this and am happy about it, yes. But it's different this time. It's not about expecting less the baby. There is just not that much time to concentrate on being pregnant.

Maybe closer to the due date I will wonder is it going to happen now for real?

Everyone has a story

While studying scriptwriting, one teacher gave feedback about my texts. She said: "You are trying to teach people (what to do), they should find out theirselves." There was a good point in that. So, there are no ready answers. Let me tell you a story.

One day I was walking home from work. There was lying a man on the pavement, unconcious. I saw him from a distance. A lot of people were just walking past him, no one did stop or even pay any attention to him. Maybe he had just passed out because of drinking too much. Or used drugs. Who knows. But there he was. Someone's son, father, husband, boyfriend or ex.

I was walking closer. A man on a bike had stopped. He had his phone in his hand, still hesitating. Another man turned around with his bike and stopped too. They started to discuss with each other, who of them shoud call 911. The other said " I have to go to the lecture, can you handle this?" Silence. Luckily (for the man lying on the ground) some passenger stopped to feel his pulse. And a women stopped with her car and asked: "Has somebody called?". This all happened while I was approaching the place. If someone else hadn't called, I would have done it.

How much time did pass before someone stopped, or someone called? To act in situations like this is not easy, unless you have the training for it. Of course, anyone knows how to call 911. Just the thought, that you would be lying there on the ground and not getting help fast enough is scary.

And the thought, that everyone has a story, a past and a future.

Bragging about Finland

Now I will do something unusual. In other countries this would be called normal. I'm going to tell you why Finland is the best country in the world (and I'm feeling a bit ashamed about it already).
You see, Business Insider thinks, that Finland has a shyness problem. And is so right about that.

Why not brag a little bit? Here we go. Everything works here. The appartments are warm (also in wintertime) and public transport is working. The length of maternity leave is 105 days, and for 75 years, Finland's expectant mothers have been given a box by the state (the maternity package). The baby can sleep in the box in the beginning. How cool is that?

There is a lot of availabe space here. You can go hiking in Lapland and may not meet anyone on your hike. The education system is great. Finnish students are frequently ranked amongst the top three in the world. We have an advanced technology infrastructure.

How about this? Finland is the most wired nation in the world with sophisticated digital and fiber optic voice and data processing networks. Finland and Denmark have the least corruption in the world. We have a lot of capable people here, free education and school lunch.

These are just a few great things about Finland. I love the nature here, it's easy to find woods to walk in or go to the lake for ice skating or skiing. There are plenty of places to pick berries and mushrooms. And in summertime there are so many beautiful places to visit and lakes to swim in.

I could continue. The point is here: Finland has done a very bad job in marketing itself. When I visited Australia someone was always telling how Australia is the best country in the world. Well, in Finland it just doesn't happen. More often someone complains about the lousy weather and the train that's late again.

Of course there are unsatisfactory things in every country. If one of them is that the train is late, we're lucky.

Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/finland-has-a-shyness-problem-2014-2#ixzz2tZfsA95m

photo from: http://gloholiday.com/category/finland/