It's Sunday again and the last business week spent in Mexico!

Today we came home after the world's most wonderful holiday and also this week the company has rolled on without any problems, although me and Miska have been more or less completely absent :)

Now I have just woken up after a powernap with my beloved, missing cats and lit the heat in the house! We landed at 7 this morning which in our Mexico time was at. 1 at night and neither of us could sleep on the plane. So we are completely the opposite-time now, bedtime when the rest of Sweden has just woken up haha.

To rest in the present
In the business world, there is a lot of talk about "my dream is worth more than my sleep" "wake up before the competition" etc. All those things are very inspiring but to develop and grow you also need to rest which is more important as an ambitious entrepreneur to remember! When you are already in this turn as I am, you already work much much more full time and if we need more hours a day, we take it from sleep without anyone needing to inspire us to do so.

I listened to Framsgångspodden with Mårten Nylén (who gets up at 04.45 every day) who said that it is not just about the number of hours of sleep but that you should have quality sleep. I really had that in the back of my mind after that, so heavenly sense!

I immediately apply that tip to his rest too! I advocate living in the present and wrote about the latest in the business week post last week, that you should build a weekday you do not need a vacation from.

But in addition to living in the present, I also want to advocate REST in the present! When you rest, do not lie and scroll on social media and watch when others are alive, but then you should rest in the present and do what you feel for right then.

I just got home from a vacation for 2 weeks and I feel really brand new! As a new person. I have turned off all the musts and taken the days just as they come and it has given me more inspiration and motivation than all the business meetings in the world it feels like right now!

I could have lain on the beach and thought about the bookings at the salon, checked how the webshop orders were checked off, kept a constant eye on the email and worried about the future. But I have not done that because then I would just as well have been able to save the holiday money, shit on the trip and work instead.

Live in the present, rest in the present and enjoy your everyday life both when you work and when you are free - this is my philosophical tip like this this Sunday when I have just returned from holiday, jet lagged and enjoying my own bed, Swedish coffee and to meet the family and my cats again! :)

This picture was sent by Miska on Snapchat and I thought it was so cute that I took a print screen :) Here you see two life enjoyers resting in the present, believe me!

Inspirational conversations with entrepreneurs from the USA
In Mexico, Miska and I started hanging out with a couple from Wisconsin, of whom the man ran a successful company for a long time with many employees. Apart from the fact that it was a lot of fun to hang out with them, it was also very inspiring to talk to companies! How often do you sit on a warm holiday evening with all the time in the world talking to an experienced business owner? So fun! And also great fun to hear how everything works in the US, they were shocked that we in Sweden have as many as 25 paid vacation days per year and then even higher salary than when you are at work haha.

One of the things I take with me from the conversations was when we talked about how much work it takes to be successful. There is no one who creates a really successful company from scratch by working the usual 40 hours a week. I'm not a special person, I'm not born with any super talent or genius brain, but what makes me successful is the job I put in and that I think differently and outside the box. I do not see problems everywhere I see solutions and opportunities.

And what was most useful for me to reflect on during these discussions was that it is exactly the same for everyone else. There are so many who believe that just because you own a company, you are rich, they do not see that we start working before everyone else and stop working after everyone else. They do not see all the months you have not been paid (which for me is about years, not months). If you spend money on things that are visible, such as a trip to Mexico;) you get the comment "money is there, I see!" but they do not see that you never shop, do not smoke, party every month and reduce all other living costs such as TV channels, expensive car, hairdresser visits, etc.

Many people think that it is nicer to win money on the lottery than if you have earned the money yourself and e.g. runs a business, is a senior manager or similar. But to all those who in the future will think that you went on a prawn sandwich and "got" everything, I can answer - you can too if you want! There is nothing special about me, everyone can if you really want it you just have to work hard! :)

I do not want to publish pictures of people without asking first, so instead you get a picture from one of our dinners! :)

Get started quickly after the holidays!
I hate the feeling when you sometimes need a holiday after the holiday, you know when you have been free and should be alert but are still so tired (eg jet lagged or just done lots of activities / had guests, etc.). So I have decided that this holiday will not be like that!

1. So when on a power nap for an hour, we will now stay awake until tonight (will be so hard after being awake for 24 hours) to turn the clock around as quickly as possible. Even though it is difficult, it is easier to stay awake and then go to bed early than to try to fall asleep when you are not tired.

2. We decided before the trip that we will work from home on Monday. Then you can adapt a little to your own times and get into the time rhythm faster. It's probably easy to be stupid and work the first full day you are at home, but rather take a day off and turn around the clock quickly - in the end it will be much more effective than being jet lagged and tough in the head for a whole week.

3. Human Charger! As I have mentioned several times before, my business partner Annika is a real nerd at biohacking and various quirky things. Now I have borrowed a light gadget called Human Charger that will make you less jet lagged. It all involves getting alerted by sunlight, which helps the brain to adjust and there is research that the brain not only perceives light through the eyes but also through the ear canals. So - these are kind of headphones with light and then you type in an app where to go, when, etc., the app tells you when it's time to do this light therapy, so cool!

If it worked? I have never been jet lagged before so difficult to compare, regardless of this "light therapy" or not, you are still tired if you have not slept haha. We'll see how I feel next week!

Rested and peppered?
All in all, how do I feel now after being more or less completely free for two weeks and being completely rested both physically and mentally? At the time of writing, I really want to sleep haha but the last days of the holiday I really felt how the motivation came creeping! The first week was full focus on getting down to business and the last week was just filled with sun, swimming, great conversation and good food and that was exactly what I needed.

I feel that I can see the company a little more clearly now and I have gained greater insight into what to focus on. When you are in the whirlwind and just running on, everything can easily become a mess, but now I really feel that I will be much more efficient and focused when I kickstart the job again, and it will be so much fun! :)

A lively and happy Helena in the sun! :)

So it has gone super well for us to take a 2-week vacation! It takes a lot of planning and work before and then you are never completely free, but the salon seems to have worked brilliantly and we come back crammed with energy, focus and joy of life! :)

Will miss my Mexico office though, in bed with AC and views of thriving plants, chirping birds and various animals running on the ground :) ♥

No, now I'm going home to my sister's so she can help keep us awake haha.

Hugs are !!