On Freedom, Curiosity & Happiness
I have been recently contemplating the intricate relationship between my personal life and the work I do, particularly how these domains inevitably get intertwined and influence one another. It’s not always easy to keep these separate, especially when one’s vocation transcends mere occupation to become a genuine passion and source of fulfillment.
A job, much like a relationship, often starts with great enthusiasm, but may eventually evolve to reveal fundamental incompatibilities. Having made this observation about my own job lately, I decided it was time to step back and think about what’s next. After some consideration, I have made the decision to resign from my full time position at Nordhealth to follow my passion and focus on building my own business instead.
This post was also sparked by a question that my therapist recently asked me — “Can you explain what are your personal values?” — because realizing that I couldn’t answer this immediately, gave me a pause.
There’s a saying that you have probably heard about a dozen times if not more, “the shoemakers children always go barefoot.” I am quoting this because in hindsight it seems almost predictable that when someone works defining design principles for their clients all day, they don’t necessarily stop and think: Oh, maybe I should apply these same methods to my own life as well.
But here we are, and I am finally doing this for myself. The following set of fundamental principles are something that I strongly believe in and which I think will guide me forward and help me do better decisions in the future.
1. Freedom
The first one is the strongest principle on my list. Freedom for me means the ability to follow whatever path I take. I don’t want to spend my life living someone else’s dream.
I recently read an interview from Linda Liukas where she said:
“Coming from this background of Silicon Valley and Stanford, I put a lot of pressure on myself. What does success look like? What do the next steps look like? Should I open a school? Should this be a big company that employs a lot of people?”
And later expanded it with:
“One of the choices I’m most proud of is that early on, I realized that what success looks like for me is freedom and curiosity and the ability to follow whatever path I take.”
This was something that deeply resonated with me, especially since I have a Silicon Valley background as well. I remember freedom having such an important role in my life previously, but somewhere along the path, I somehow got lost. And I want to course correct now, years later.
2. Curiosity
The second principle, curiosity, maintains an intrinsic connection to the first. From my earliest years, I have possessed a fascination with the world surrounding me, coupled with a strong desire to understand how everything works. And I think it’s imperative that we deliberately cultivate this curiosity throughout our adult lives, or else risk losing this part of ourselves.
If you want something that you have never had, you must be willing to do something you have never done. And I can accept that I will fail on the way there, perhaps repeatedly, but what I can’t accept is if I don’t even try.
Maintaining and nurturing curiosity serves as a foundation to transcend my present limitations and go after new opportunities with confidence.
3. Happiness
I’ll be honest, I have been feeling miserable for more than a year. Lots of things resulted in me feeling this way; going through a rough divorce, the difficulties I faced from some folks in the tech community because of my gender, going through and trying to survive from a sexual assault, continuously working on things that were on a fundamental level against my own values, inappropriate and offensive behaviour that I have witnessed on many occasions outside of work, a surgery that went sideways, and finally also experiencing a burnout caused by these things, and more…
I remember years ago, the young version of me telling myself that happiness is the single most important thing in life worth pursuing for. It’s what matters in the end. Living a life that makes you happy. Doing things that make you happy. And if something makes you feel miserable, stop doing it, cut it out of your life. And this is why the third principle on my list is happiness.
The only limit to our realization of tomorrow will be our doubts of today. Don't let that yesterday take up too much space.
4. Authenticity
The fourth principle, authenticity, is somewhat contradictory. I chose it because I have lived a big part of my life being a people pleaser. And I want to live by fundamental principles that support a positive change. Not just something that already represent me, but things that I strongly believe in. Things that I should be doing more.
I wrote previously about being tired of pretending and living my life for other people. And during the past four years I have started to understand that I don’t have to either. I have the freedom to be my authentic self, whatever form or shape that takes.
It’s never too late to be what you might have been.
5. Love
The best things in life cannot be seen or heard, they must be felt with heart. And I chose love to be the last principle on my list, because fundamentally, I believe it is something one chooses to pursue. This ties together with my other principles, such as freedom, because I believe the best way to do great work is to do what you love.
But love, for me, is by no means tied to work. Of course, I want to work on things that I love doing, but ultimately, even with all its risks and contradictions, love is also something that can make our lives so much more.
Recently, I read something that Cyhaaam wrote which felt like listening to my own inner thoughts:
“I want love that is more than longing. Love that stays even when I am difficult, even when I am scared, even when I don’t know how to ask for it. Love that reminds me that fear and love are not opposites and that love is choosing to stay despite the fear.I write about love not because I understand it, but because I don’t. Because it undoes me. Because I still believe in it, even when I don’t know how to hold it.”
Cyhaaam then continues:
“Because love, for all its risks, for all its contradictions, is the only thing that has ever made life feel like more.”
And I want to live a life filled with love that nurtures, strengthens and comes when you least expect it. It’s a terrifying leap of faith, but I’ve neglegted that side of me for far too long in an effort to protect myself.
What’s Next?
Since running my own business and doing consulting have always been things I find fulfilling, I have decided to try them again. What makes me happy isn’t necessarily working less, but rather the opportunity to focus on meaningful work that aligns with my passions.
That said, I’m not dismissing full-time opportunities entirely. I recognize there are organizations that value passion and provide the kind of autonomy where I could flourish. However, for the time being, I believe establishing my own business offers the most direct path to creating this environment.
I’m particularly happy to share that this week I have secured a significant new contract for my business: developing an entirely new design systems function for a major client that employs tens of thousands of people around the Nordics (who shall remain unnamed for now, though I’m confident you’ll hear more about this collaboration later).
In parallel, I’m also taking on some smaller design systems consulting work starting at the beginning of January, 2026. So if you’re wrestling with challenges and would like my help, please get in touch. ✌🏻
With love,
