Do what you LOVE what you do!

Day 121.

A weekend break became a somewhat longer break, a loud and messy break, but also a silent and peaceful break. Two weeks ago, my writing started to feel forced and unnatural. If anywhere, forced and unnatural are really not islands I want to live on, so I took a break. It ended yesterday, with a long walk in the forrest. Alone. 

In my weary head, I often believe everything need to change. That whatever is needed for whatever to be OK is big and extensive and needs years. Some things do take time, and time can be a beautiful friend to those who wait. But other times, the only thing needed is a glimpse of silence. A minute, even only a second. Silence is after all not measured in time. 

Yesterday, in the forrest, I became silent. And out of that silence came a book. I decided to write a book, and with the help of my friend, the iPhone, I started writing it right there, amidst the trees and the birds and the wet moss.

I started writing what I hope will be the most inspiring book I know! It will be a book on changemakers and on making change happen — in my life, in your life and out there, in the world. Lots of action, and lots of silence, too.

Scary, but incredibly exciting, I can’t wait to share more of the book writing process here on asmundseip.com and on facebook.com/changeattention! As you might know, I’m also a big fan of crowdsourcing, and I’ll definitely be needing your help in finding awesome stories and people we can learn from. Inspiration is a powerful tool when shared! 

And then there’s this blog. The break felt good, and I’ll have more of them. But it also made me realize how much I love writing. I missed writing every day, and that’s what I’ll do. I’ll write every day. Unless I don’t. That’s when I have another break. It’s not so complicated, really.

And now: More life. More love. More do what you LOVE what you do!

(Thanks to the awesome @MariasMetode for the awesome wall-stickers waiting on my desk this morning!)

Leave it undone

Day 53. 

I’m back from vacation and it’s early and I’m trying to write and I find it so excruciatingly hard. I’ve imagined the first post after the break to be sparkling and sunbeamy, lighting up the Internet like a white beach lights up a soul. Instead I feel heavy and sad, reflecting the grey clouds passing by outside. 

Two weeks of digital detox, two weeks of nature and playing and fighting and crying and laughing. Leaving technology behind felt so easy! It was just me, and us. Challenging enough with two small boys, sure, but naturally free of distractions. Whatever was there, was there. 

I feel sad and heavy because I’ve let myself be distracted so easily. Because I’ve believed there’s something to find, out there, something essential and important. Something I don’t have, something I need and should get. 

Besides the noble art of getting things done, there is a nobler art of leaving things undone. The wisdom of life consists in the elimination of nonessentials.
Lin Yutang

The good thing is, and that’s what breaks are for, now I see more clearly what I’ve really missed. And it was there all along. 

Two weeks of breathing in

Day 52. 

A good sign of summer in Norway is that I haven’t worn my long underwear for quite a while. Although positive psychology isn’t exactly my cup of tea, it sometimes does help. And to be totally wild while we’re at it, I’m taking my beautiful family with me to Denmark tomorrow. We have rented a small summer house by the sea and will have us two weeks of as much of nothing as possible. 

With other words, I will take a break. I will go on writing, but I want to be offline from every kind of online world for two weeks. A digital detox, as they say. 

The first 52 days of writing have been magnificent. I love writing, I love this form of writing, and this still feels like it’s merely a beginning. I’m so grateful for all the supportive and inspiring feedback, and can’t wait to continue the exploration in a couple of weeks!

I wish you a blossoming and relaxing summer!