Hygge and business are not usually two words that go together. Hygge is all about the cosiness of life, and is often connected with free time, candles and family. Business on the other hand is all about… Well – business.. Its about that professional, distanced approach to it all. You want to be the expert and your clients, or customers, are the ones coming to you for answers in a professional manner.
I am here to shake the boat on this.
I don’t believe that you have to be distanced to be professional. I think that doing business in this day and age, can be done by being personal, actually caring about your people and slowing things down to be more present. I believe that a serious conversation about business development can be done while eating something home baked with a side of tea or coffee. I believe that deep transformative conversations can be had from a couch.
Can you do hygge and Business?
Hygge doesn’t have to be separate from business. In the age of the internet, it is possible for you to create a business and life that is just for you. A business where you make sure that business is done in a way that makes you comfortable, and therefore in turn makes your people comfortable.
I suggest you take intentional steps to move yourself towards creating a business that is more yours and not so much something you create on someone else terms, or something that you create because you think you “should” create it that way.
Hygge isn’t about making massive changes in your life or business. It’s about looking at what’s already going on and thinking, “what small thing can I do to make that better”?
Let me give you an example:
Let’s say the family’s all outside together, kids are playing and we decide to start a campfire. Then I’m thinking, “what could we do to add to the hygge?” So we make some pancakes over the campfire. But even with a campfire, sitting outside on wet seats with cold behinds, is not necessarily that much fun. But bring out some blankets, comfy chairs, pillows… and by the end of it, you have half your house out there but the hygge is back and you’re having a good time.
Can you see where I’m going with this?
It’s all down to mood. Making a small change to enhance the situation and completely shift the vibe and how you feel about it.
It’s exactly the same in your business. Let’s say you have to sit down to do your VAT returns and MAN, you hate doing your VAT returns, (let’s be real here, is there anyone who doesn’t??) What would make that a more pleasant experience for you? Could you do them on the couch in the cosiest corner of your house, in front of the fire with a giant mug of hot chocolate plus added marshmallows? Sounds a lot more bearable now, right?
Now it’s over to you. What one small change can you make in your business this week. How can you add a sprinkle of hygge to make a task you’re dreading a bit easier?
I love the idea of just changing one small thing, a sprinkling of hygge. It sounds dreamy!
Im so glad you like the concept. Yes, its a very different way of doing business, and I really think its the way of the future 🙂 But then, maybe Im bias 🙂