Robert Birming

I was recently listening to a thoughtful interview with the wonderful Finnish singer Arja Saijonmaa. The conversation touched on something we can all relate to — life’s inevitable setbacks. She said something that really stayed with me. That every difficulty, no matter how overwhelming it might feel in the moment, often turns out to have a hidden purpose when we look back. What seems like a dead end can, with time, reveal itself to be a necessary detour — something that led us somewhere we never would have gone otherwise.

This day started out with a bit of a challenge… The first client I visited had a (false) preconception about why I was there. I tried to explain, but she wouldn’t have it. Luckily, I’ve learned the value of a firm no. So I told her — it’s either my way or no way at all. I wouldn’t say we got into an argument, but we came pretty close. Anyway, I eventually got the chance to do what I was actually there to do.

Right now, I’m sitting at The International Bar. It’s just around the corner from where I live. Every now and then, I drop by for a beer or two. I like the atmosphere. The staff is super friendly, and I often bump into some regulars. Like one guy — an aspiring author from Germany. We usually chat a bit about reading, writing, and whatever’s going on in the world. Always a good vibe!

I just finished reading Creativity, Inc. by Ed Catmull. I loved it! So interesting and inspiring. One thing Ed said that really stuck with me (among many others) was when he talked about sharing your work with others. He said: Don’t wait for things to be perfect before you share them with others. Show early and show often. It’ll be pretty when we get there, but it won’t be pretty along the way — and that’s as it should be.

There’s one challenge most bloggers face: discovering their unique voice. And honestly, the only real way to find it is to just keep blogging. With a bit of luck (and a lot of writing), we’ll get there eventually. But keeping that voice alive? That can be just as tricky. It’s easy to get distracted by the glow of upvote buttons and traffic stats. That’s one of the reasons I really like the no likes, no stats approach.

I really appreciate the new features available on this fresh little blog home of mine. I like how easy it is to create photo albums and track books. And I love that I can publish blog posts straight from my favorite text editor (iA Writer). I also appreciate not having some of the usual features. For instance, there’s no built-in analytics by default. Sure, you can use a third-party tool if you want to, but I’ve chosen not to.

I just read the post Thank you for being you by Ruben Verweij. He writes that his blog has just celebrated its one-year anniversary. Happy blogbirthday! 🥳 I think many bloggers can relate to that kind of joy. I know I can. A blog isn’t just a digital platform. It’s more like an entity — a close friend, a family member, even our better half. A blog is a buddy.

I heard on the Swedish news that our dear neighbors in Norway had a bit of a bummer the other day. About 40,000 Norwegians received an official message from Eurojackpot (a big lottery game across Europe) saying they were millionaires. Turns out, there was a sliiight miscalculation. The winnings had been calculated 10,000 times too high. Some people posted their million-dollar smiles on social media, only to be told later that they’d actually won just $11.