Bye bye 2015!

Publicerad den 31 december, 2015 av Helena Roth

Sit down to write a few lines on the highlights of the year… and discover my mind is blank. Open my calendar and start to scroll, month by month, and wow. What a year. Again, Because aren’t they all like that really – amazing, jam-packed with experience and memorable? 2015en

2015 has a lot to offer. Considering how much I travelled in 2014 I never thought 2015 would be yet another year filled with travels. All in all I actually think I travelled even more times than 2014, even though the duration was mostly shorter.

Creating the impossible
I started off the year with 90 days online-course with and by Michael Neill. Creating the impossible really made an impression on me, and the project I chose really gave me a lot of room for expansion.

#cleanse4expansion
This was my project for Creating the impossible. 90 + 90 days of daily cleanse, aiming to go through both my physical and digital home. Each thing in its place, and a place for each thing. You would not believe the amount of cleansing I did. I managed to work through almost every little bit of my house, I donated a lot of stuff, and it feels so good. It’s as nice to have done a significant inroads on my digital vistas, most notably my Evernote-account and my Dropbox.

#afkUmeå, Sweden
What would a year be without an #afkSkolvåren (i.e. School-spring)? Luckily, I didn’t have to discover this in 2015 either, and for that I am very happy. Do you know what it feels like to be a part of such an incredible movement that #skolvåren is?

Innate Health conference, England
What an experience. The realization that I won’t be attending more conferences like this, where the main part (or all?) is about intake, and very little is about taking active part and cocreating, was a large one. And yet. Listening to Dicken Bettinger, made the entire journey worth it. I was deeply touched, and reinforced in my hope for the future at that.

Mainland support Almedalen
After three years at Almedalen I chose to stay at home to be the mainland support for the #skolvåren gang on site. This was both very rewarding and tough. Not to be right smack in the middle of it all, very curious as to what’s happening, whom are they meeting, what possible connections and future collaborations are being born and so on. A lot of thought, and without a doubt it’s very less taxing for body and psyche to act as mainland support rather than being there on site. But the number of tweets certainly dwindled!

Center for Sustainable Change
Board member and chair of the Programming Committee is also something new for 2015. The Center for Sustainable Change, with strong roots in the US, is an organization in the midst of a transformation, and I’ve been given an opportunity to contribute with my thoughts, energy and wisdom. Let me tell you, there is a lot of learning opportunities here for me!

Human Potential Realization summit, The Netherlands
As a total opposite to the Innate Health conference, this was a fully co-creative experience. 2,5 days of intense energy and connection, connective harmonies and exploration. What a magnificent experience, and there is more to come!

Choir tour with a royal twist, England
The day after coming home forn the Human Potential Realization summit it was takeoff time to head off to England with the rest of my choir and our smashing choir master Jens. 4 days of fun and singing in an England on it’s best behavior (weather wise!). What a treat!

#theconf
A little over a year ago I bought two get-two-pay-for-one-tickets to #theconf, an odd sort of conference organized by Media Evolution i Malmö since quite a few years back. I gave away my extra ticket to Michael Sillion, who did a great job at summarizing Derek Sivers small gigs. DThese short snippets of mindbendingly well spoken thoughts were really great, and along with Suleiman Bakhit they were my main take-aways from #theconf, which is a conference I strongly recommend you attend.

#SethinLondon, England
This was high-impact. Talk about being wowed! A 5 hour Q&A-session with Seth Godin, in front of an audience of 400 people, including me and (yet again!) Michael Sillion. He was the best travel companion I could have to ensure that this very powerful experience won’t stay an experience as such, but will actually grow into something more permanent. The experience in itself was the inspiration for my advent calendar here on the blog this year.

#ULab
Sara Modig asked a handful of people if we wanted to join her for #ULab, a MOOC with and of Otto Scharmer, the father of Theory U. JI was all game, along with five others, and we set up our own coaching circle. Now what an experience that turned out to be. And such an amazing set up of people to experience this with. And it won’t end either, my coaching circle will run through the entire #ULab course once more, in slightly slower tempo, starting January. Read the summary in Huffington Post, written by Otto Scharmer, and definitely keep an eye out for future MOOCs!

KASAM – a feeling of connection
Thanks. My deepest thanks to you all, who surround me. Connections that Näve contributed to, a co-creation that enrich my life. For real. It’s not just something I state here, because it sounds a bit fancy. I truly mean it. These past few years have meant that I now am surrounded by a supporting circle of friends and family who play a large part in my personal development. No matter the life-force of a seed, if the soil isn’t just right for it, nothing good will come out of it anyway. And the soil I thread in is extremely life-affirming, let me tell you! It consists, amongst other things, of my MasterMind-gang, my life line, and the #skolvåren mobile office. Ledarlyftet, everyone at Being at full potential and many others. Newfound friends, such as Tess. Relationships that have grown deeper, such as with Dominic. And not to forget, Carla, my coach, mirroring me, and giving me wisdom and loving nudges along the way. My deepest heartfelt tanks to you all, both those specifically singled out here, and everyone else!

My family
In think and thin, in rain as well as sunshine, in the ordinaryness of life as well as on vacation and on travels – this year to London, Franska Rivieran and Madrid, to name three. Love and care, irritation and quarrels. We encompass it all, together, and I love you! Add to that the joy of having gotten another two bonus-grandchildren during 2015, and you can understand what a rewarding life it’s been on a strictly private level as well.

HEROs very own day
Mmm. That’s what the calendar says, weekly, a full day, and have done, since the end of August. It doesn’t always turn into a full day. And I move it around when needs be. But it’s a significant change. I have started to put Myself as my top priority, and truly stand for it. To say No is an art Iäve been practicing a lot since I posted HEROs very own day as a regular activity in my calendar, and it’s been very instructive and worthwhile. I don’t know exactly what 2016 will bring for me, but HEROs very own day will most definitely be a piece of the puzzle that I will bring with me in to the upcoming year!

And what a year. Again. Because aren’t they all like that really – amazing, jam-packed with experience and totally memorable – all the years that pass?

Hej då 2015!

Publicerad den 31 december, 2015 av Helena Roth

Sätter mig för att skriva några rader om årets höjdpunkter…. när hjärnan känns helt blank. Öppnar kalendern och börjar bläddra, månad för månad, och oj. Vilket år. Igen. För är de inte alla sådana egentligen – fantastiska, händelserika och minnesvärda – åren som går? 2015sv 2015 bjöd på mycket. Med tanke på hur mycket jag reste 2014 trodde jag aldrig att 2015 skulle bli ett år fyllt av resor. Det blev nog tom ännu fler resor än 2014, om än inte fullt så långa.

Creating the impossible
Året inleddes med 90 dagar online-kurs av och med Michael Neill. Creating the impossible gjorde verkligen ett avtryck på mig, och projektet jag valde gav utrymme för oerhört mycket expansion.

#cleanse4expansion
Detta var mitt creating the impossible-projekt. 90 + 90 dagar av dagligt röjande, i syfte att gå igenom både mitt fysiska såväl som mitt digitala hem. Var sak på sin plats och en plats för varje sak. Oj vad jag röjde. Nästan varenda liten bit av huset blev genomgången, mycket prylar bortskänkta och det känns oerhört skönt. Lika skönt att ha gjort stora insatser i mina digitala visten, mest anmärkningsvärt Evernote och Dropbox.

#afkUmeå, Sverige
Vad vore ett år utan en #afkSkolvåren? Som tur är behövde jag inte uppleva det under 2015 och det är jag glad för. Vet du hur det känns att vara en del av en så fantastisk företeelse som ansvarsrörelsen #skolvåren är?

Innate Health conference, England
Omtumlande upplevelse. Insikten att jag inte ska åka på fler konferenser av detta slag, där huvuddelen (eller allt) består av intryck, och väldigt lite delaktighet och samskapande, var väldigt stor. Men ändå, att få lyssna till Dicken Bettinger, det var värt allt. Blev så oerhört berörd, och stärkt i mitt hopp om framtiden.

Fastlandssupport Almedalen
Efter tre år i Almedalen valde jag att stanna hemma och agera fastlandssupport till #skolvåren:s gäng istället. Något som var både oerhört givande och väldigt tufft. Att inte befinna sig mitt i smeten, nyfiket undrande hur det går, vad händer, vem träffar dem, vilka kontakter och blivande samarbeten föds osv osv osv. Många tankar blev det och onekligen tär det mindre på kropp och psyke att vara fastlandssupport kontra att befinna sig på plats. Men väsentligt mycket färre tweets blir det dessutom.

Center for Sustainable Change
Styrelsemedlem och ordförande i Programming Committee har jag också blivit under 2015. En organisation med rötter i USA som är mitt uppe i en transformation, där jag har fått chansen att bidra med mina tankar, min energi och min visdom. Snacka om lärorikt!

Human Potential Realization summit, Nederländerna
Som en total motsats till Innate Health conference, så var detta en fullkomligt samskapad upplevelse. 2,5 dagar av intensiv energy och samhörighet, sammanflätade harmonier och utforskande. Vilken fantastisk upplevelse, och det kommer mera!

Körturné med kunglig glans, England
Dagen efter hemkomst från Human Potential Realization summit var det avfärd till England tillsammans med resten av min kör och vår underbare körledare Jens. 4 dagar av hygge och sång i ett ljuvligt höstvarmt England. Vilken ynnest!

#theconf
För ett drygt år sedan köpte jag gå-två-betala-för-en-biljett till #theconf, en annorlunda konferens anordnad av Media Evolution i Malmö sedan ett antal år tillbaka. Gav bort min extrabiljett till Michael Sillion, som summerat Derek Sivers små uppträden. Dessa korta tankespjärn var enormt berikande, och tillsammans med Suleiman Bakhit var de min största behållning från #theconf, som jag definitivt rekommenderar att du går på.

#SethinLondon, England
Detta var high-impact. Snacka om wowad! En 5 timmars Q&A-session med Seth Godin, för en publik om 400 personer, inklusive mig och (även här!) Michael Sillion. Bästa ressällskapet för att säkra att denna oerhört starka upplevelse inte heller stannar vid en upplevelse, utan faktiskt blir något som gör bestående intryck. Upplevelsen i sig inspirerade mig till årets julkalender.

#ULab
Sara Modig kastade ut en fråga till en handfull människor om vi ville haka på henne på #ULab, en MOOC med och av Otto Scharmer, fadern till Theory U. Jag hakade på, tillsammans med totalt sex andra, och vi utgör en egen liten coaching-cirkel. Vilken upplevelse. Och vilket fantastiskt gäng att uppleva detta tillsammans med. Och inte tar det slut här heller, vår coachingcirkel ska gå igenom hela #ULab-kursen tillsammans en gång till, i lite långsammare tempo, med start i januari. Läs summeringen i Huffington Post, skriven av Otto Scharmer, och håll definitivt koll på kommande MOOC:ar!

KASAM
Tack. Mitt djupaste tack till er alla, som finns i min omgivning. Sammanhang jag bidragit till att skapa, ett samskapande som berikar mitt liv. På riktigt. Inte bara något jag säger, för att det låter tjusigt. Jag menar det verkligen. De senaste åren har medfört att jag nu har en stödjande omgivning som är en stor del i min egen utveckling. Ett frö kan vara nog så livskraftigt, om jordmånen är undermålig blir det inget bra av det ändå, och min jordmån är helt fantastiskt livgivande ska du veta! Jordmånen består bland annat av MasterMind-gänget, min livlina, och #skolvårens mobile office. Ledarlyftet, Being at full potential-gänget och många fler. Nyvunna vänner, som Tess. Fördjupade relationer, som Dominic. Och inte minst Carla, min coach, som speglar mig, och ger mig vishet och kärleksfull pepp och puff på vägen. Ett hjärtinnerligt tack till er alla, nämnda som onämnda!

Min familj
I ur och skur, i vardag såväl som på semester och under resor – i år bland annat London, Franska Rivieran och Madrid. Kärlek och omsorg, irritation och bråk. Allt omfamnar vi, tillsammans, och jag älskar er! Lägg till det ynnesten att ha berikats med ytterligare två bonus-barnbarn under året, så förstår ni vilket underbart år det varit på det privata planet.

HEROs very own day
Mmm. Så står det i kalendern, varje vecka, en hel dag, och har så gjort sedan slutet av augusti. Det blir inte alltid en full dag. Och dagen kan flyttas vid behov. Men det är en signifikant förändring. Jag har börjat prioritera Mig, och verkligen stå för det. Att säga Nej är en konst jag har fått chans att öva tack vare HEROs very own day, och det har varit oerhört lärorikt. Vet inte exakt vad 2016 kommer att medföra, men detta är en av sakerna jag definitivt ska ta med mig in i det kommande året!

Som sagt. Vilket år. Igen. För är de inte alla sådana egentligen – fantastiska, händelserika och minnesvärda – alla dessa år som går?

New minimalistic record

Publicerad den 2 november, 2015 av Helena Roth

I’m flying to London, for a day of Seth Godin live in London, and am a bit astounded at the new record I’ve achieved packing for this trip. Granted, it’s only two nights, but still. I have set a new record for minimalistic packing, and I’m proud of it. In my small backpack I have toiletries (and I probably don’t have to tell you it’s not a lot, and what there is is in travel sizes), a nighty, underwear, a spare top, a pair of wrist warmers, a pair of earings and a hair clip, my IPad, charger and two powerpacks, a small notebook, a pencil and a pen, as well as my Pencil from fiftythree. A small bag of nuts and an empty plastic water bottle that I filled up at the airport. I also stuffed my shawls in there (one small, one larger) since it was so warm at the airport.

I also bring the clothes on my body (and no, I haven’t piled up just to avoid carrying it, I’m wearing jeans, a linen, top, wool sweater, underwear and a pair of trainers), my IPhone and ear phones, my small waist bag (with cash, credit cards and my passport) and a coat. I also stuffed a marble in my jeans pocket. It’s accompanied me on a lot of trainings and seminars since 2,5 years back. It’s getting loaded with great energy, let me tell you!

I did forget to bring my electric plug adaptor, but my friend Michael brought two, so I’m good to go anyway! I’m hoping I won’t regret forgetting to bring my Moon Cup, and I checked the weather and decided against rain clothes.

This is actually less that what I would likely have brought had I gone to my mom’s house for two days….

So, what am I ”forsaking” in order to travel this lightly?

Well. Nothing in my view, but possibly in yours. I will be wearing the same clothes for three days, except for underwear and my top. I only have one pair of shoes, so I chose comfort over beauty. Hm. I can honestly not think of anything else. But if you’ve seen me, you know I use no make up, so the one litre plastic bag with liquids and stuff is far from filled up (and serves as my toilet bag). And besides, if I need something I didn’t bring, I have money and there are plenty of shops in London. But, perhaps that’s another thing someone might think I am forsaking: shopping. Only thing is, I really don’t like shopping, and there’s not a whole lot I need actually. SO no shopping for me (except perhaps a book at the airport… but there’s room in my bag for that, I swear!).

I see two major benefits to travelling this light:

It’s light! I don’t have to drag along a heavy suitcase. and the backpack is not heavy on my shoulders, which means I can carry my entire luggare around without any physical discomfort or hassle.
The less luggage I bring, the less fuel the plane has to use to carry me to and from London. (And yes. I am fully aware flying at all is a major environmental set-back, but still, by travelling light, I am making a difference. Minute, but better than nothing.)

Are you a fellow light traveller?

Podcast 39/52 – Chickensoup for the soul

Publicerad den 27 september, 2015 av Helena Roth

Thursday to Sunday have been a long enjoyable chickensoup for the soul-moment for me, as I’ve been travelling in England with my choir. England have greeted us with the most magnificent fall weather, and we’ve taken in the sights, sounds and smells of Oxford and its surroundings. On Saturday we sang in Enstone parish church of St Kenelm’s, and it was a joy. Good accoustics and an attentive audience, including both a touch of royalty (as the Swedish princess Margareta attended, being a resident of Enstone) as well as one sweet soul who let out the most appreciative ahhh at the end of each song. (And no, it wasn’t someone in pain, trust me, I know the difference!)On Sunday (today that is) we will sing in the service at 11 am in St Paul’s chuch in Covent Garden, also known as the actor’s church, as well as give a repeat concert at 1 pm.On account of all this music, as podcast tip 39/52, I wanted to share a special episode of On Being with you, the one featuring Yo-Yo Ma, world-reknown cellist. And, as it turned out, an extremely interesting human being, with such a great knowing of why he does what he does.

I’ve listened to this episode, both the edited as well as the uncut version, many times, and each time I am left with the most lovely sensation of deep inner calm coupled with a great appreciation for the wisdom available to us all. Yo-Yo Ma personifies this for me, and I hope you will take the time to listen. And don’t be fooled by all this talk of music, it’s definitely a conversation spanning a wide array of life, including music, but really centering on Yo-Yo Ma’s love and interest of humanity.

Music is what happens in between the notes, Yo-Yo Ma says, and I can only agree. In between the notes, my soul is restored, my mind can take leaps of joy as well as sorrow, and it is truly chickensoup for the soul. For me, listen to, or creating, music is definitely one of my favorite pastimes to sooth as well as vigorate my soul. What’s the best chickensoup for your soul?

London – photo book creation

Publicerad den 10 juli, 2015 av Helena Roth

We spent the last weekend on June in London, the Roth family.
I opted not to take my ”good camera” and make do with the various IPhones of the family. Turned out to be a good decision. I am now sitting here creating a photo book from the weekend trip, and there’s some great shots. I started on the photo book last night, in part due to the end of one of my challenges and the start of another. Go figure.

You see, yesterday was the end of my journey with #cleanse4expansion. Not for good. But the project as such is done for now. So there’s no longer any need for the ”Oops, I haven’t done my daily cleanse, I’d better zero my inboxes and blog about it”-moments which have been a part of my life at least this past month or so.

And at the same time, earlier this week I started a social media challenge where I promised only to check my social media feeds once daily. So the ”Spending all my evening sitting in the sofa with my laptop chatting away with friends on Facebook and Twitter”-moments are also a thing of the past.

Hence, last night I started to create this London-book, and tonight I’ve kept at it. Probably have another third to go before all the pic’s are in place, and this time I’m writing the captions as I create, so it will soon be ready!

As the reason for going to London was the Taylor Swift concert in Hyde Park on the 27th of June,there’s a Swiftie at home who’ll be very pleased when it’s done! And it was a really good concert, I was impressed with the quality of her show!

This time I’m doing the photo book on a Swedish site called Öskefoto, downloaded their program, but am not totally happy with the functionality of it. And the new Blurb software that I used for the birthday book I created a few weeks ago also wasn’t as good as I would have liked it to be. I’ve been an online photo book creator basically from the beginning of the service being available, so I’ve seen a lot of various functionality. And unfortunately some of my favorite features seem to be disappearing right now. Bothersome. So now I’m stuck in that awkward place of being not altogether happy with the two sites I usually use for ordering photo books while at the same time not really knowing where to go next.So what’s your best option for photo book creation?

Oj, du verkar arg!

Publicerad den 26 juni, 2015 av Helena Roth

Svara

Satt på flyget till London med ett styck surmulen tioåring, som surade för att wifi inte funkade ombord. Lyckades låta honom komma genom sin frustration och besvikelse utan att jag blandade mig något särskilt, vilket för mig är en stor bedrift. Sen lockades han in i Wordbrain och det goda humöret återvände efter hand. När han var klar fick jag fånen åter och började wordbraina lite själv, men fick lite frispel då skärmen var alldeles nedkladdad. Så jag vände skärmen mot jeansknät och gnuggade friskt i syfte att få skärmen ren igen. Vände på luren för att kolla status på dess renhet och möttes då av följande besked:

Och allt jag gjorde var att försöka gnugga skärmen ren från avtrycket av barnafingrar….

Jag föll i omedelbart asgarv, vilket måhända var Wordbrains syfte – misstänker det skulle bli dyrt för dem om frustrerade Wordbrainare slängt sina fånar i väggen när orden helt enkelt inte dyker upp. Är det månne anledningen till dessa små budskap, tror du?

Light travelling – undervalued!

Publicerad den 16 maj, 2015 av Helena Roth

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I flew to London this morning, to attend the 3P conference on Innate Health. I will be away for four nights, and I must say I am very pleased with the size of my luggage. Travelling light is really undervalued, I must say. I have yet, even though I get better at better at light travelling, to come home without something that could have stayed at home because it simply didn’t get used during the trip. Maybe this trip will be a first for that? There’s one thing I forgot though, my travel adaptor stayed at home. Luckily my Airbnb-host had one I could borrow. I immediately put travel adaptor in the template packing list I just created in Trello the other day.

I did a post in Swedish with a few of the things I’ve started to pay more attention to before/during/after travels, but I am sure there are tips and tricks I’ve yet to learn, so please share yours, if you have any?

Det gåtfulla vykortet

Publicerad den 11 juni, 2014 av Helena Roth

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Taggad av att Mr B kom hem och frågade om det var jag som skickat vykort från New York, så körde jag en repeat även när jag var i London härförleden.

Jag fann dessa vykort i en krimskrams-butik och föll som en fura, så jag körde samma vykort till alla (och det insåg jag lite för sent var lite oslugt av mig, för då ser ju Mr B det hemma och slutledningsförmågan är god på den lille gossen…). Dock har jag inte hört något från Mr B än, så jag får väl lite försynt ställa frågan. Eller så mailar jag läraren – ja, det gör jag! Så, sagt och gjort, nu har jag mailat. (Tyvärr verkar just detta vykort försvunnit på vägen – desto bättre att jag då faktiskt har det kvar i elektronisk form!) Och jag har dessutom bestämt mig för att fortsätta skicka vykort till hans klass, som till hösten blir en ny klass, på en ny skola.

Känner du till berättelsen bakom Keep calm and carry on?

Creation weekend of SCA2014

Publicerad den 15 maj, 2014 av Helena Roth

Svara

So, third out of a total of four weekends with Supercoach Academy 2014 has just begun, first day today. I stay with an Airbnb-host off Kensington Gardens, woke up this mornibng to sunshine, chirping birds and absolutely no traffic noice. Magnificent. Walked through Kensington Gardens and Hyde Park to get to the Washington Mayfair Hotel on Curzon Street which is our venue for the weekend, and got into a hugging frenzie. Really nice actually!

I am very pleased with the day, especially with a few choice moments, so I want to give an extra thanks to Kirsty, Peter and Patrik – you helped me zoom out and jump a few levels in conciousness today. For that I am very grateful.

And I mean, look at this, how can life be anything but lovely when this is the way London greet us all:

Kate and Wills palace