Saturday, December 12, 2009

The Colour of my Parachute

Pink Lady finds herself in the grips of a nasty head cold, yet is still somehow inspired to blog. Can't complain...



Pink Lady recently attended an innovation seminar, where the keynote speaker was Sarah Miller Caldicott, great-grand niece of Thomas Edison. She (together with co-author Michael Gelb) has written a book called Innovate Like Edison, which Pink Lady was immediatly inspired to purchase. She is now in the process of reading her copy (signed by the author). Pink Lady truly does not recall being so inspired by any book - perhaps ever!



Edison was a genuinely brilliant man. Most people know that he was a great inventor, but may not know that he was such a brilliant - and innovative - business man as well. He not only invented things, he also productized, manufactured, marketed and delivered them right to people's homes! He had thousands of employees. He also understood the importance of both leadership and of networking - he realized that we can achieve nothing witout other people. So he was anything but the prototypical "lone inventor" locked up in his ivory tower. He did lock himself up in his room to think, but he also collaborated with other brilliant minds.


As Pink Lady was listening the Sarah Miller Caldicott speak, she was actually listening on two levels: she was listening to, and fascinated by, the subject matter, yet she was also looking at the proceedings on another level: she was imagining herself as the author of a non-fiction book, up there on the stage speaking about it and then signing autographs. The dream has been identified and now it's just a question of making it a reality.


Nothing in life happens before we can first see it happening in our minds. So day-dreaming is far from being a waste of time: it's "mind creation". Athletes know the power of seeing themselves winning or beating a record in their minds; they need to see themselves as winners before they can become winners in the real world. Athletes say that it's about 90% mental.


Yet the same applies to everything in our lives, not matter what field we are in. You can't get what you want 'til you know what you want. We first need to see - and feel - our goal clearly in our minds and then start taking the concrete steps needed to make it a reality. Pink Lady has seen the light (pun intended) - what colour is your parachute?


Pink Lady, signing out - and wishing everyone a happy holiday season!



P.S. Pink Lady took the attached photo on a hot air ballooning trip.

Monday, October 19, 2009

Back to Nature

No, in spite of rumours to the contrary, Pink Lady is not dead...just tired. She yearns to write yet has trouble "finding the time".

There is a saying "There will never be enough time to do everything that is important but there will always be enough time to do the most important things" (or along those lines). But why is it that this does not seem to be true in our lives?

Why do we spend so much time watching TV when we could be doing something much more creative? Why do we lie on the couch instead of taking a walk? Why are we so tired?

It is my belief that it is not the amount of work that makes one tired. What makes one tired is doing something that one does not really want to do. You only need to be in a boring, useless meeting for 20 minutes and already you are completely exhausted! Compare that to the feeling you get when watching a really, really good movie or when spending time with really good friends. Or doing something that you truly love to do - whatever that may be. It is passion that gives us energy - and the lack of passion that makes us tired.

It is up to each one of us to find that one thing which we are "born to do", our "calling". If we are able to do that, then work is no longer work but something much more. The old mind trick is to think what you would do if you did not have to worry about money and knew you could not fail.

Here is Pink Lady's list:
  • write best-selling books
  • some of those books would also have my photos in them
  • exhibit my photography in galleries
  • publish stories in magazines and on-line
  • sing jazz at night clubs
  • perform as a flamenco dancer
  • lovingly restore houses and even whole villages in e.g. Italy

Those items are listed in the order of their importance. So writing really is "my thing". I know that now. Now I just need to find the time to do it somehow. But fear not, Pink Lady has a plan... ;-)

Watch this space...


Friday, January 30, 2009

Respected Reptile

As mentioned in the previous post, Pink Lady had a birthday yesterday. And, as is customary, she has bought a present for herself. It is really the only way to guarantee getting exactly what one wants.
Pink Lady was naughty....she had a half hour to kill while waiting for her hairdresser's appointment and, alas, her hairdresser's is located right next to a really super vintage store (Ruuturouva): clearly a recipe for disaster! ;-) Pink Lady seems to have some kind of radar that instantly draws her to all luxury items: whenever she is in a vintage store - or even at a flea market - she seems instantly and mysteriously drawn only to the most expensive materials....cashmere...angora...silk...suede...leather... and yes, now even genuine crocodile! The purse pictured is the real thing: croc!!! Pink Lady's first (well it's about time!)
The vintage store owner said that croc is normally not even sold in Finland because it is so prohibitively expensive. In other countries (she mentioned England), it can cost thousands if not tens of thousands. Oh yes, Pink Lady is an investor!! This purse "only" cost 130 euros (buy low, sell high - you know the drill...)
However, a word of warning to all croc-owners or future croc-owners: it is to be worn only in the daytime, it is not an evening accessory. Here is a quote from Genevieve Antoine Dariaux (former Directice at Nina Ricci) from the book: Elegance - for every woman who wants to be well and properly dressed on all occasions.

"...I cannot restrain myself from expressing the dismay I feel when I see a woman carry an alligator handbag with a dressy ensemble merely because she has paid an enormous sum of money for it. Alligator is strictly for sports or travel, shoes as well as bags, and this respected reptile should be permitted to retire every evening at 5 P.M."
Pink Lady is a bit unsure if the same etiquette applies to alligator and to crocodile....hmmmm....after a quick bout of googling, she is none the wiser...there does not seem to be a huge difference. They are different animals, but it is not clear what is the difference between alligator and crocodile accessories.
What is the point of this scribbling? Do we need one? Well, if we must find one, here's a thought: a luxury accessory lasts a lifetime, is timeless and therefore always in fashion: a luxury vintage accessory is the ultimate green purchase. Pink Lady's conscience feels clearer already! ;-)
Have a good weekend dearies!
TTFN!
Pink Alligator





The Birth of Pink

Pink Lady is thinking a lot about birth right now. It was Pink Lady's own birthday yesterday - hence the beautiful (pink!) flowers (pictured) that Hubby brought to her (a day late...). There was the usual dining, bubbly-drinking, gift-giving extravaganza on the day, however.
But the other reason that Pink Lady ponders birth is that she is awaiting news any minute/hour/day now from a friend....she is late...i.e. she is in a blessed state and her due date is already past...so exciting. She is a collegue and all of us are bombarding her with SMS's, phonecalls and Facebook entries asking: Are you STILL waiting?
So any minute now....and we don't even know yet which one it's going to be....could it be any more exciting? Well, she was always one to make an entrance and to make everyone pay attention to her...it seems her offspring is no different! ;-)
Good luck - hang in there ma chérie (yes, she is French), won't be long now. One thing we can be sure of is that no baby ever stayed inside for ever....they all come out sooner or later. ;-)

The world is awaiting with breath that is baited!

Pink Lady - awaiting news of a pink baby... :-)

Friday, January 16, 2009

I resolve, I resolve, I reserve, I HAVE a reservation!*


It was inevitable: Pink Lady is writing down her new year's resolutions for 2009. 

*The title is  from the Madonna song Act of Contrition

The photo shows Pink Lady mountain biking near Rovaniemi, Lapland - near the Arctic Circle. 

In 2009: 
  • I choose health
  • I choose energy
  • I choose well-being
  • I choose happiness
  • I choose joy
  • I choose beauty
  • I choose wealth
  • I choose freedom
  • I choose courage
  • I choose strength
  • I choose determination
  • I choose growth
  • I choose progress
  • I choose flexibility
  • I choose gratitude
  • I choose appreciation
  • I choose peace of mind
  • I choose calm
  • I choose passion
  • I choose love
What does all this actually mean? It means that since life is about choices every second of every day, I wish to conciously make choices that lead to the results I wish to have. E.g. I want to make choices in my eating, resting, working and exercize habits that lead to long-term health, energy and well-being. I wish to make life choices that lead to my peace of mind. I wish to make financial decisions that lead to my long-term financial well-being, i.e. wealth. You get the point. 

Aristotle has written "We are what we frequently do. Excellence, therefore, is not an action but a habit."

Someone has also said: "The secret of our success is found in our daily agenda."

The average person watches several hours of TV per day. What else could we do with a couple of hours a day?
  • learn a foreign language
  • learn to play a musical instrument
  • get fit
  • get an education
  • cook (from scratch - instead of "food that goes PING")
  • practice a creative hobby - that could potentially turn into a new profession
  • start a home-based business - that could turn into a second (or first) income
  • spend time with our kids, spouse, family, friends
  • Clean the house (it's therapeutic - and good exercize!)
  • Organize our closets
  • Do volunteer work
We say that we "are busy" and that we "don't have time", but the fact is that we have lots of time - it's all a question of how we choose to spend that time. 

So let's spend less time in front of the TV and more time doing the things that we actually enjoy the most - or the ones that will give us what we truly want in the long-term. 

And in order to have the energy to do the things above, we need to take good care of ourselves. The older we get, the more important this is. It's easy to have tons of energy at 20, not so easy at 30, 40 - and beyond. The older we get, the more we need to work at being healthy and fit. But it's worth it since this one body is all we got. 

All the Best in 2009!

Luv,
    Pink Lady