Hi. I'm Mikko, and this is my website. Every now and then, I post notes on ideas I've found meaningful. Who knows, maybe you'll find them meaningful t...
The typical way to practice Memento Mori is on ourselves: To remind ourselves of our own mortality — our uncontrollably yet certainly approaching death. What if I knew I only had [insert time] to live? What if I would suddenly die tomorrow? Would knowing that change my actions or priorities? (How?) Being aware of our own mortality can be incredibly useful for keeping us grounded and our priorities…
If you find yourself going through difficult times and your mind getting stuck in a bad place, you can try to ask yourself two simple yet powerful questions. It helped me. Maybe it could help you, too. OK, let's start. What exactly is wrong in this very moment? Really stop to think it through, as objectively as you can. Answer it properly. Take your time. Don't rush. Then, the second question: Are…
Who doesn't want to be brave and honest? If you want to live a life according to these values, there is always a price you have to pay — and keep paying. A subscription fee, if you will. The currency? Pain, and the high probability, if not inevitability, of getting hurt or hurting others. And when it's time to pay, it's not fun. It hurts. It sucks. It's what makes living this way so hard. It's why…
"You didn't really come up with the idea, did you?" "But someone's already done it better." I know I'm not the only one with these thoughts. You may call it imposter syndrome, or Resistance, or whatever, but it's the thoughts that tend to surface when you're thinking of creating or publishing something — putting something out there . (To me it tends to be writing.) These thoughts make a lot of…
There is a saying which is usually said jokingly. You can believe in yourself and still suck. Bad news: It's true. Good news: The reverse is also true. You can have no self-belief and still succeed. Sure, action likes to follow self-belief, but it doesn't need to. You can go for it right now and try your best. You don't have to feel confident. You don't have to feel you deserve it. Yet, you can…
When life gets tough and you have a lot going on, your brain needs time and space to process things. It will do so given a moment of quiet and inactivity — a moment of stillness. (You don't even have to be an overthinker like me.) You can postpone it for quite a while, if you want to, by having a constant stream of activity, noise, and distractions. But you can't stop it. Because eventually that…
People like to label needing others as a weakness, a character flaw. I reject that idea. Sure, I'm able to exist and not be miserable without a constant presence of others. I'm able to have a good time alone, without others. I have boundaries on what I'm willing to sacrifice for others. I think all of that is healthy. People (myself included) may sometimes prefer using the word want because it…
As stated in my previous note, to live true to your values, you need to prove them through your actions. But here's what's hard to remember — or accept: It's only possible in times when that value is required. And those are not good times. Nope. In fact, those are the most difficult times. To be brave, you need to feel fear. To be resilient, you need to feel pain. To be committed, you need to have…
They are not something you can declare. Your values are revealed and proven through your actions, not words. Until they are, they're nothing more than ideals that you may aspire to. Or worse, something you want others to think you aspire to. There is nothing wrong with aspiring. Just don't confuse it with being. You are brave when you do the right thing despite fear. You are resilient when you…
I was asked at a job interview yesterday to describe the bravest thing I've ever done. I'm not going to lie, it caught me a bit off guard. Not surprisingly, my first thoughts were hilariously bad, especially compared to better answers that came to me later — while driving back home. Anyway. My initial answer and following discussion eventually led me to highlight some simple, seemingly boring…