Sweden: a New Perspective, by Robyn Logan
Instead of spending our traditional Christmas in Australia this year, my family and I spent XMAS in Sweden. It was great to be so close to Santa and the North Pole, particularly for my 5 yr old and 3 yr old!! And, it was such a delightful change to be munching on a Swedish Smorgasbord instead of the hot roast lamb that many Australians still eat in 40 degree heat.
But, the most amazing thing, for me, was the totally different perspective I experienced from being in Sweden where it is freezing cold and, unlike Australia, can be dark by 4pm. Actually the sun starts its way down the horizon at 3.30!
I was completely amazed to see that the family I was staying with allowed their children to go outside and play in those conditions.
As an Australian (where it is warm most of the time) there is no way I would let my children out in the dark or, worse still, out in the dark in sub zero temperatures. They sometimes ask and the of course, the answer is always “No, it’s too cold” or “You are not going out in this weather, forget it! Well, after all, isn’t that part of being a ‘responsible mother’?
So when my friends’ son went outside to play, and wanted my children to join him, I felt culturally challenged. They where way too young and, what if they caught a cold? But, at the same time, how could I keep them inside while all the other children (their new friends) where outside. So, although my impulse was to say ÔnoÕ, I trusted my friend and decided to
let them go. She assured me with the following saying, and I thought it was such a great analogy for the concept of ‘perspective’.
“Det finns inget dŒligt vŠder, det finns bara dŒliga klŠder!”
Translation: It’s no bad weather, just bad clothes!
So, in the spirit of ‘when in Rome’ (Sweden in this case), I rugged my kids up with hats , gloves , scarves and anything else I could find, and hesitantly sent them out into the dark. Of course, as you can guess, they had a fantastic and memorable time and, better still, neither caught a cold!
Perspective is one of the key concepts in our coach training program. The idea is that events and incidents have no “meaning” in and of themselves, rather it is our interpretation, or “reading” of them that givens them meaning. And of course central to this idea is the fact that any 2 people can have 2 completely different perspectives or “readings’ of
the same situation at any given time.
In this instance, my perspective of being a ‘responsible mother’ was limiting both myself and my childen’s opportunity to embrace life and explore new worlds. Next time you are thinking about what might happen and shouldnÕt happen, try to shift your perspective to what you need to “put on” to not only make it happen, but make it happen with a level of
risk you are comfortable with. Challenge your perspective and enjoy the rewards.