Beauty matters

Last summer, we moved to a house in the countryside in the north of Sweden. The house is located literally next to the sea, surrounded by dense forest and no neighbours in sight. Before, we lived in the middle of the city with walking distance to everything. The contrast is huge. I grew up in the countryside and so did my wife, so I suspect that is why we consider this to be our dream. I actually visited this place many years ago and the very first thought that entered my head when I saw the place was “I want to live here”. It was true love at first sight.

PhilosophyRikard ÖqvistFebruary 1, 2020beautyComment

My past self

In a discussion some years ago with a friend of mine, we came to the conclusion that “if a problem seems difficult, maybe it’s because you haven’t made it difficult enough”. A simple problem will have several solutions whereas a difficult problem will have fewer solutions. Crank up the difficulty level, and you might find that an extremely difficult problem only has one single solution. This makes the problem well defined and a well-defined problem is something you can work with. It doesn’t mean that the work required will be easy, but at least you will know where you need to direct your energy to solve it. And then it becomes a matter of time and persistence.

HabitsRikard ÖqvistJanuary 25, 2020productivityComment

A creative outlet

This is my first post on my new blog at the site creativeacoustician.com. I have a very good feeling about this. Here, I have found a creative outlet, where I can express my thoughts completely unfiltered and authentic. When I started vlogging and blogging little over two months ago, I had no idea that I would find so much joy in it. It has become like therapy for me now. The blog is a useful tool to put your thoughts on paper and when you write them down, you are forced to take a stand. It is like having a public debate with yourself, similar to the scene with Gollum in Lord of the rings when he is talking with himself as Smeagol. You move forward as a consequence.

PhilosophyRikard ÖqvistJanuary 18, 2020creativityComment

The importance of writing

The last two months have been a wild ride. I have attended the London Real Business Accelerator, an 8-week intensive course in business development and online marketing. The course has pushed me to my limits and beyond them and expanded my comfort zone. As an engineer who has a tendency towards analysis paralysis, it is a healthy exercise to attend a program like the Business Accelerator.

Habits, PhilosophyRikard ÖqvistJanuary 11, 2020Comment

Love

In my last blog I wrote about Opportunity cost and how every decision you say Yes to will take you down a new timeline and closing more doors than you open. In this blog I will present my thoughts on the most important Opportunity cost of all – love. Your choice of life partner is without a doubt the decision that will affect your life outcome to the highest degree. When you choose a timeline with a life partner, you also close the doors on the timelines with all the other potential mates.

PhilosophyRikard ÖqvistJanuary 4, 2020loveComment

Opportunity cost

The word “yes” should be used with great care. We are constantly bombarded with options and opportunities. Every time you say “yes” to something, you are saying “no” to everything else at the same time. For example, when I decided to learn French as my new year’s resolution one year ago, I also decided not to learn any other language. I like to look at this as if I am comparing timelines. I chose a timeline where French will forever be a part of my identity.

HabitsRikard ÖqvistDecember 28, 2019Comment

Focus

These last two months have been really intense. Maybe it’s the same thing for many of us when approaching Christmas. A ton of stuff that needs to get done before the holidays. Anyway, yesterday I started to consider a different approach to my “hard work”. I know I haven’t been using my full potential. Here’s what I did.

HabitsRikard ÖqvistDecember 21, 2019deepworkComment

Consistency matters

The most important aspect of going anywhere in life to keep showing up. This is true for yourself, for your family, your business, your society, your country and all of humankind. I learned this a couple of years ago when we had a band at my old workplace. We put a backline with drums, PA, guitar and bass amps in an unused room in the basement and started to play 15-30 minutes every day instead of taking coffee breaks.

HabitsRikard ÖqvistDecember 13, 2019musicComment

The best idea I have ever had

Earlier this year, I met a new friend with an interesting background. He was an architect and guitar luthier. And now he had decided to become an acoustician. This might sound like a strange combination, but it turns out interdisciplinary knowledge might be precisely what we need to crack the code on how to build the optimal wooden building with regards to sound insulation.

AcousticsRikard ÖqvistDecember 6, 2019music, woodComment