Stories for the future

Finally, Stories for the future is back! And today I will be introducing season 4 along with a new friend: the famous elephant in the room. When it comes to sustainability and how to create a better future, we often talk about what businesses can do and what we can do as individuals on our "home territory". A part I often feel we forget is what we can do as individuals when it comes to the choices we make in our careers. And this is what I want to address in season 4. You will still meet people with stories to inspire you and get you thinking outside the box. But I will also bring on people with an expert view of this subject, alongside the people who have made a transition already. As I mention at the end: You can find my brand new guide to more impactful work on my website storiesforthefuture.no/guideFor all resources and everything mentioned in the episode, go to Storiesforthefuture.noThere you can also sign up to receive my newsletter and to get noticed every time I release another episode.InstagramLinkedInFacebook

It's been quiet here for a while. In more than one way. Today I share with you a short status update and the reason behind the silence. Having temporarily lost the ability to hear, and as a consequence, also to communicate, I have learned the hard way how important our hearing is for all areas of life.  Alongside my quick update, I share a lovely voice note I got from my dear friend and podcasting mentor, Regina Larko. This friendship and her support is a result of connecting over a common passion for the medium of podcasting.  You can find links and resources related to this episode at storiesforthefuture.noFor all resources and everything mentioned in the episode, go to Storiesforthefuture.noThere you can also sign up to receive my newsletter and to get noticed every time I release another episode.InstagramLinkedInFacebook

Did you know that in addition to stage fright and the fear of public speaking, the fear of dealing with authority figures is one of the most common social phobias? Why does it suddenly feel so scary to approach people when you know them to be some kind of authority or celebrity? And how can not knowing them, because you are new to the area they are known for, lead to the most interesting and fascinating experiences?Being a beginner and the new kid in the playground can have its' perks, and the lack of any reason to feel starstruck, is one of them. In this episode I share a couple of examples, one of them involving royalty. Link to original blog post (in Norwegian): Coconut MomentsMy home on the web: StoriesforthefutureFor all resources and everything mentioned in the episode, go to Storiesforthefuture.noThere you can also sign up to receive my newsletter and to get noticed every time I release another episode.InstagramLinkedInFacebook

Today I talk about necessity and how I use it to move forward. It's a great tool to use to nudge yourself into action - I highly recommend it! You know this saying, Necessity is the mother of invention. I think we can elaborate on that and say that Necessity is the mother of action. Necessity is the father of collaboration. It might also be the brother of self discipline. And the sister of moving out of your comfort zone. This episode is partly to keep you a bit in the loop about what I am working on at the moment and how I use necessity related to that, but also to give you some tools to use for yourself. Is there a part in your life or in your career that could use some change? Is there room for considering to use necessity as a small nudge to get you to act, to invent, to collaborate or to move out of your comfort zone?Check out storiesforthefuture.no for more resources.  For all resources and everything mentioned in the episode, go to Storiesforthefuture.noThere you can also sign up to receive my newsletter and to get noticed every time I release another episode.InstagramLinkedInFacebook

A keyword for this episode and today's guest is collaboration. I think we can all agree that the times we are in call for more and better collaborations and better ways to leverage all the different skills we all have. How do we match the right skills with the right challenges? And how do you find the right people to collaborate with? These are things we will definitely talk about today. Mark Hooley is a marketing and communications specialist, a founder of CollabMaker and a Climate Reality Leader. He is a soon to be dad, who enjoys running marathons, cycling across countries, hiking in the mountains and from last year thanks to the snow in Sweden, cross-country skiing, he is also a life-long Nottingham Forest fan, loves traveling and culture. His workdays are powered by an eclectic music selection and a passion for making a positive difference to the world.Check out CollabMaker here. And don't just look. Sign up and start collaborating!CollabMaker on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and Instagram.The CollabMaker PodcastFor all resources and everything mentioned in the episode, go to Storiesforthefuture.noThere you can also sign up to receive my newsletter and to get noticed every time I release another episode.InstagramLinkedInFacebook

I have a big plan, and I am now using a strategic move to get myself to follow through: I tell you about it! I did this in order to get myself to launch this podcast and I have done it before by sharing plans in my blog Coconut Moments through the years. I haven't succeeded every time, but I am absolutely sure it improves the odds. Back in 2016 I watched this TED talk by a man called Scott Dinsmore. The name of the talk was "How to find work you love" and it completely changed the course of everything I was doing. It made me sign up to every course that Scott and his network and movement Live Your Legend, provided, and I am forever grateful for everything I learned from those courses.In this episode I am sharing with you an idea I have had for almost five years and why I think this is the time to do something about it. You can find the link to relevant resources mentioned in episode at storiesforthefuture.noFor all resources and everything mentioned in the episode, go to Storiesforthefuture.noThere you can also sign up to receive my newsletter and to get noticed every time I release another episode.InstagramLinkedInFacebook

How can we solve the biggest problems facing humanity and the planet by leveraging the power of businesses to create positive change?My guest this week has dedicated his time, skills and resources to address this question in the most impactful way possible. Anders H. Lier  is an international impact investor and a leader in the field of innovation and technology. He has been pioneering early stage impact investing, he is Co-founder of Katapult Group and he is an active angel investor. We talk about how he has experienced a number of pivotal moments (Coconut moments, as I call them) through his life and career, and how these moments have lead him down new paths. One result being his long involvement with girls' education in India.We also discuss the power of exponential thinking and how this brings hope to solving some of our biggest problems, especially related to the climate crisis.  This conversation left me with a great deal of hope and a huge boost of inspiration and I hope you will have the same experience! You can find all details and links related to this episode at storiesforthefuture.noFor all resources and everything mentioned in the episode, go to Storiesforthefuture.noThere you can also sign up to receive my newsletter and to get noticed every time I release another episode.InstagramLinkedInFacebook

Have you heard about serendipity? And do you know the magic this beautiful word can bring to your life?Listen and learn!This word was elected elected Britains most favorite word in 2000, ahead of love, peace AND football! It's also on the list of the 10 most difficult words to translate into Norwegian.... Merriam-Webster defines it like this Serendipity — the faculty or phenomenon of finding valuable or agreeable things not sought for. If you google serendipity + entrepreneurship you get 6,860,000 hits.  And that is not surprising at all, if you look at history. Penicillin, X-ray and the microwave are all results of something starting as something completely different than what it ended up as - all because of coincidences and to some degree failures along the way. I rediscovered my old blog a few weeks ago, and in one of the posts I write about serendipity and how I my path to a large degree has been affected by this phenomenon. I am sure you can see the same in your life if you look for it.I learned something from this old blog post, and in this week's Behind the scenes, I am sharing this learning with you! For Norwegian listeners, you can read my blogpost here: https://www.coconutmoments.com/serendipity/For all resources and everything mentioned in the episode, go to Storiesforthefuture.noThere you can also sign up to receive my newsletter and to get noticed every time I release another episode.InstagramLinkedInFacebook

What are the metrics that really matter for a podcaster? For many, me included, the download numbers often determine the mood of the day. Or at least my feeling of success or lack of it.But is this the right metric for me and for my vision for Stories for the future? Thanks to one of my new favorite podcasts called Mastering the Podcaster Mindset, it dawned on me, how frustrating and dissatisfying these numbers are. Even if they improve and give me a sense of accomplishment in the moment, I will only set my bar higher and in that way I am never satisfied. So instead of counting downloads I will now set my own personal metrics and keep reminding myself of why I started the podcast in the first place and what I want people to get from it. You can get the links to all resources mentioned in this episode on my brand new website - check it out here! For all resources and everything mentioned in the episode, go to Storiesforthefuture.noThere you can also sign up to receive my newsletter and to get noticed every time I release another episode.InstagramLinkedInFacebook

My guest this week has been right in front of me for a while, and suddenly I realized that what she is talking about and working on is highly relevant to the topics of this podcast.Efwa Hagström helps sustainability leaders to get buy-in and speed up the action needed to progress positive change. Efwa is passionate about upskilling leaders with simple communication methods that fast track collaboration, innovation and implementation. She is the founder of Lederhjelpen.no and author of ‘Working Smart in the AI-era’ (Fremtidsrettet Ledelse). Born in Sweden, she has lived in Germany and Belgium for 10 years, in Norway for 21 years, and is dedicated to help leaders fast-track sustainability - no time to lose! You will find all links and relevant information to this episode on storiesforthefuture.noFor all resources and everything mentioned in the episode, go to Storiesforthefuture.noThere you can also sign up to receive my newsletter and to get noticed every time I release another episode.InstagramLinkedInFacebook