Kristin Lagerqvist, better known as Krickelin, is one of Sweden's most exciting digital entrepreneurs. Recently, she visited the Future Retail Lab accelerator programme and shared insights that have helped her balance work and life over the years. We snapped up some of them.
For many of us, the job centre has had to move home and with it a series of challenges. Dirty laundry on the desk, partners talking too loudly in the next room and an exhausted brain as a result of hours of digital meetings.
We can see that the transition has been costly. Many of us are feeling tired and are groping for ways to best mix the work office with everyday life - where is that sense of freedom that has so often come up when we talk about "working at home"?
Kristin Lagerqvist is one of many experts on working at home. She represents those who were early to develop strong digital muscles and who built their business from the couch - a place she dedicated to work. In addition to making mental boundaries at home, it's been important to empower herself to work in a disciplined way and constantly listen to her body.
It's important to find new tools to make it work at home - to think away the distractions. After all, there's always laundry to hang or a dog that needs to pee. Little things that can be incredibly distracting. One simple way has been to use headsets that block out noise and at the same time signal to the outside world that I'm working," says Kristin.
For Kristin, it has been a privilege to shape her own days and be her own boss. One example is that she starts early, as early as 5:30, when she usually keeps watch.
I make coffee and use the time in the morning when the rest of the family is asleep. It gives me a head start. Then I take a break when the family is getting started and needs help with morning routines. By the time others start work at eight, I've sent most of my work balls off and take the opportunity to take a break instead, maybe go for a walk.
It is clear that the 8 to 17 norm does not exist for the contractor who has been working from home for the past decade. Instead, she takes care of the most efficient hours and works in shifts with many breaks.
It is very rare that I work several hours in a row. I need to create my conditions to find focus and deliver what I need to deliver. This can include going for a walk and listening to music while I continue writing in my head - then I write when I get home. I work with notes on my phone that I always have with me and make a list of to-dos that I tick off. Then I put completed things up visibly to show myself that I've done the right thing.
For those of us who are new to this home office thing, it can be a good thing to be inspired by those who have gone before and allow ourselves to do things quite differently. Dare to defy the norm, as Krickelin would have said.
