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Blog

Life Is Here and Now so Wear Your Fancy Dress on a Monday

December 3, 2017 Veronika Lindberg
Winter flowers

It's the first Sunday of Advent and I can't help but going into old lady mode and getting all nostalgic and reflective about the year that has passed. Time is such a weird thing right? It's so easy to get caught up in all these mundane little things that suddenly another year has passed and you're left wondering what you've done all year.

There are a few pieces of advice that I've been given over the years that I often think about when I'm feeling philosophical and pondering about the important stuff in life. I'll share them with you so that you too can enjoy some profound moments of self reflection in these times of hot chocolate and cosy blankets.

Listen to your inner whispers

A year and a half ago I graduated from the Theateracademy in Helsinki and was asked to hold the students speech, an exciting but also terrifying task. Of course as I was writing the speech I hit writers block almost immediately.

The pressure of saying something wise and profound stifled all my creativity, and so I ended up watching quite a few more graduation speeches on youtube than I'd care to admit... (It's a highly addictive youtube video genre, I warmly recommend it if you're ever feeling betrayed by life or just needing an inspirational pep talk.)

Among all the advice of experienced brilliant minds I stumbled upon a speech by Steven Spielberg, the man behind the movie that made me fear that sharks would bite my feet off whenever I entered any pool of water well into my teens.

Anyways, he said something that has stuck with me (and something that I ended up using in my own speech too). He urged the students to listen to the quiet soft spoken whispers in their minds.

We all have those loud voices in our heads screaming at us what we should be doing. Those loud voices are all the expectations that are put upon us by ourselves and by others, and the guilty feelings and preconceived ideas and norms of how we should live our lives.

But behind all that noise lies the hidden desires and true inner callings that are just waiting to be heard. Of course those are the ones you should be listening to!

Don't let them drown in the orchestra of arrogant shoulds and bossy expectations. Listen to what your inner whispers are telling you, they have the secret ingredients to your perfect sauce.

Always be a bit nicer than necessary

This is a thing my Dad taught me from as early as I can remember. He always told me and my sister that no matter who you meet you will always get further in life by treating them with a bit more kindness than necessary.Like anyone else my Dad has a lot of quirks, but he's absolutely the kindest person to strangers that I've ever met.

Often when we leave a restaurant he says goodbye to the staff in a way that makes you think that they've just saved his entire house and family and belongings from drowning under a horrible flood.

Yup, that is how many times he says thank you and nods in a polite and warm manner when we leave the place. It gets to a place where my down-to-earth Mom almost feels embarassed by his overly thankful gestures.

Parents are just the funniest creatures.

You never know what one thing might lead to

This is a saying my Mom always whips out when I feel like nothing is happening in my life or that something I wished for didn't happen. She is always quick to remind me that you never know what lies behind the next corner. I try to remind myself of that every time I feel like I'm stuck, you never know what tomorrow will bring.

Don't overthink it, just do it

This is something my old ballet teacher used to say. You can try to analyze and think your way through that pirouette or jump, but in the end you just have to go for it. Same goes for life in general I think. It's all just one big process and taking the next step, or leap, is really the only way to get further.

Wear your fancy dress on a weekday

I read an article a few years ago where very old people were asked what things they most regretted in life. One lady said she regretted not having worn her fancy dresses more often.

She said life is too short to keep all those pretty dresses in the closet waiting for the right moment to bring them out. Life is here and now so enjoy it today instead of always saving your favorite clothes for a special day. Make this day special.

I sometimes put on a really nice dress on a weekday and I can feel how it affects my energy level and outlook on life. It's kinda silly but wearing something that makes me feel pretty instantly makes me happier. And come to think of, that isn't so silly at all.

A pretty white dress and pink flowers

Do you have some pieces of advice that you've been given that you find yourself returning to over and over again?

I would genuinely like to hear them, I'm always interested in filling up my head with more pearls of wisdom.

 

In What I learned Tags dress, life, Inspiration
← Is a Creative Slump the Result of Setting the Bar Higher?Why I'm Allowing Myself to Get Bummed Out by Failure in Order to Succeed →
 
Kutova Kika Blog- mirror selfie surrounded by plants

Hi! I'm Veronika but you can call me Kika.

I'm based in London and draw inspiration from the big city life combined with my Scandinavian roots and the connection to the outdoors, clean compositions and a bit of Northern oddity.

I inspire to find the magic in the mundane and share (almost) daily pictures on Instagram .

I'm also a passionate knitter and can make a sweater in less than a week. Just saying.

Welcome to my blog :)

Xx Kika


(#ad) I couldn’t find a smaller pan so these pancakes became quite huge, and when you’re a pancake fairy that means gigantic!  Caring for animals is one thing I care very strongly about and I was so thrilled when @rspcaassured_official reached out about this campaign that is about spreading the awareness of their logo and what it stands for. Eggs with this logo (swipe to see) means that the chickens have lots of space to flap around their wings and natural light. It means they have a better life and get to do the stuff chickens do best 😌 #makeitrspcaassured @rspcaassured_official
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#bandofun #pancakes #pursuewhatislovely  #distractionsandinspirations #make_more_magic #theslowdowncollective #littlebitsof_life  #livemoremagic #livefullyalive #littlestoriesofmylife #creativefolk
Even the fruits have gone all heart shaped for Valentine’s 😂 I’m not hugely attached to the whole Valentine’s Day thing, but still nice to get an excuse to spend a nice evening with some good food. How about you, is it something you celebrate or do you keep it more low key?
No props, no fancy composition, no photoshop, just me in our closet taking a photo, as one does, when you find a nice bit of light in an unexpected place 😂 I show my face in my photos all the time, yet posting a pic with literally nothing else than my face still feels a bit scary and sort of vulnerable. How do you feel about posting self portraits?
Captions, do you enjoy writing them or are they a struggle for you? I usually find that either the words come really effortlessly, or it’s a exruciatingly difficult process. It’s usually either or and nothing in between 😅😂
No milky way, now I’ll have to drink my coffee black! 😂 For me, coffee has to be with milk, what about you? ☕️+🥛=👌🏼
Do you know that sort of awkward moment after you’ve had a small interaction with a stranger on a train or on the bus, and then you’re not sure if you should continue in silence or keep the conversation going? 😅 This happened to me today on the tube when a woman complimented my umbrella that is in this photo (it is a pretty awesome ’brella I must say 🤣). I politely thanked her and for just moment there was this opportunity hanging in the air where we could’ve started a conversation from there. But, neither of us said anything and I spent the rest of the train ride thinking I should’ve said something. Maybe next time I’ll be quicker and not so shy! 😌
It snowed for about 5 min in London so I hurried out to capture it.Hurried out, only to find that it had melted away at most places already 😂Have you had any snow where you live yet? ❄️ Ps. Yes, I did knit this sweater myself haha 🥳
Dot dot dot-When I was 15 years old I applied for visual art school but didn’t get in. It was one of my first real experiences with being rejected based on skill or talent, and I think it hit me pretty hard because I almost entirely stopped painting for a long time after that. It can be quite rough to get ”judged” like that on your creative expression, especially when you’re young or still only starting out. But, at the same time I guess it’s those experiences that make you stronger and sometimes even motivate you to try harder. Do you have any similar experiences? Do you think it made you come out stronger in the end? Photo and concept by the wonderful @dashapears.art
You know that feeling when you’re starting something new and it’s really exciting but also a little bit terrifying? Well that is how I’m feeling tonight because I just uploaded my first ever Youtube video! After weeks of practicing getting better in front of the camera and learning to not start every sentence with ”so”, I’m finally ready to reveal my video to the world. It’s not yet on the level of Wes Anderson but you know, practice makes better. What new projects or things do you want to start? .
Watch my vid through link my stories and bio 🤗

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