How to Create Your Dream Career in Your Favorite Place (Åre) by Hanna Nordenö
The world of work is changing, which I’m grateful for. Otherwise, I could never have made my dream come true. Working from the mountains (Åre) without compromising on what work I could have. Nowadays you can make money on your own terms, when and where you want. If you've been itching to move out of the city and/or convert your passion into a career or redesigning your job layout this is some inspiration.
First some notes on how it is to work in a mountain village and to be more exact, Åre. It’s a big city in a small village. If you like contrasts this is a good place for you. So slow during low season and busy during peak season. You have better restaurants here than in medium sized cities in Sweden and an innovative co-working community. It’s easy to get to know new people here since most have moved here and are also looking for new friends. I moved here because I love to ski and to nudge myself to a healthier lifestyle.
Fun fact: I followed an influencer on Instagram and was so inspired of her skiing and way of living, now we share an office. Small village.
Working from the mountains has several advantages:
Scenic beauty and inspiring landscapes
Peaceful and tranquil environment
Fresh air and clean surroundings
Opportunity for outdoor activities
Reduced stress and improved work-life balance
Increased focus and productivity
Inspires creativity and innovation
Positive impact on physical and mental health
My job layout at the moment (I did not move to Åre to work less, just with better opportunity for recovery).
Employed at RISE research institutes of Sweden as a UX- & service designer focusing on circular economy and digitalization.
Consulting through my own company. I help companies with design and art direction. I been helping KÄLLA from the start.
Co-founder at Femillo. We gather services, products, and digital tools within women health in one platform to make it easier for women navigating the support system.
I’m passionate about ideas and communicating them by visualizing them. I have a bachelor’s in graphic design & communications which led me to a job as a Digital layout artist at the international cosmetic company Oriflame. I then took a master’s in design and that led me to my current employment at RISE. It’s a very entrepreneurial environment, you have a lot of freedom to decide what projects you want to work on depending on what research areas you are interested in. I have always had my own company for freelancing since I was 18 so I never wanted to work full-time at RISE. I was lucky to be asked to join the startup KÄLLA as designer & art director that my former manager at Oriflame started. I’ve worked for them over 2 years now as a consultant which also gives me freedom but stability. As if that was not enough, I always wanted to have a startup of my own. At an incubator I ran into a person that wanted me to join her startup with the mission to improve women’s health by building a digital solution, I said yes!
With this layout I can always can earn more money, but I always have a foundation with the employment. And with the start-up where I am a co-founder, I’m investing time to build something of my own together with my co-founders. You could argue that I perhaps should choose one of these commitments and really put 100% into that, though I believe If I only did one thing, I would have been bored and not have done as good work. For me, currently this works great. In a year it could look different and that is what I love. The combination of opportunity/risk and stability.
My advice: You don’t have to choose all or nothing. You can start something on the side to test and see if you like it. You can move somewhere and rent something to test and see if you like it. It’s all about testing and iterating your job and life layout.
Thank you so much for reading my article! I would love to connect with you if you have any thoughts about the article.
/Hanna
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