Obsession Attempt: Dexplora

Started a new company - let's see how it evolves - Dexplora (www.dexplora.com).

Period: 2012-08 to TBD

Obsession #6: Inspiring the innovators of tomorrow

I happened to end up at a meeting with the swedish minster of IT in March and when asked I spoke my mind - all children ought to learn programming - just like any other second language or creative subject taught in school. Programming is a way of thinking. Programming is a way to learn how others understand things (computers are the dumbest pupils). Programming is a way to create things. The response I got was meek. So I felt that I had to try for myself. So - I gathered a bunch of entrepreneurs in Malmö and we created Mixtra (Facebook, "internal" Tumblr, Youtube) and went to six schools and talked about programming and entrepreneurship and let kids aged 4 to 15 try programming. We got wonderful responses and had a great time.

For a kindergarten class of four year olds - no programming but tinkering (more info on clay here):

For 100+ seven and eight graders (14 and 15 years old):

Most pupils said they liked it (no input from last school of 110 students or kindergarten class of 10 children):

Period: 2012-04 to 2012-08

Twins = sleep craving

We got twins October 2011 so the main obsession was to get sleep... :)

Period: October 2011 - March 2012 (when things got a bit better)

Obsession #5: Donations by speaking

I did a lot of speaking at conferences and started to get a lot of interest to come and talk at companies and events. I felt I needed some kind of "threshold" to make sure they really were serious, but I didn't feel that I wanted money. So - I realized that I could require of them to donate money for a good cause instead. It wasn't all smiles as it was not trivial for them to set-up (and all asked me to invoice and that I could donate), but eventually all accepted it. So far I have done 15 speeches, averaging close to 11000 SEK (+ four columns at about 1000 a piece).

Period: 2010-06 to 2012-05 (not saying it is over, but it felt like the "obsession" is)

Obsession attempt: Modal focus

To not spend too much time by my computer I started subscribing to three serious and rather wordy magazines - Monocle, Fast Company, and (swedish) Filter. The rule was - when it lands in the mail I can read articles online (I can do mail) - until I had enjoyfully finished the magazine. It worked for less than two months. I did read Filter, most of Monocle (but paused to read news online) and didn't even have time to open Fast Co... Fail.

Obsession attempt: Bikram Yoga

Tried Bikram Yoga four times. Loved the "we survived"-feeling of shared experience, but didn't feel too good to sweat liters and just fill up with new water... So - no obsession.

Obsession #4: Barefoot running

I hurt my knee at an earlier (undocumented) obsession attempt of just running. And since that day I felt that even though I though I would hate running (as there was no stimuli) I actually liked it. And I tried again and again, and even if I used to run 20+ km I wasn't able to do 3 km before it started to hurt... And one day I started to read a book - Born to Run. The book started with a story that sounded like mine - that the author hurt himself and wanted to get out in the track again. And he found barefoot running. I felt: Obsession Time!

So I went and bought a pair of Vibram Five Fingers - and started running. 

Excruciating pain in my calves told me that I wasn't use to run that way - BUT - I had no pain in my knees and the pain in my calves (even if it was burning and intense) passed after a day or two - and felt more "natural". (And yes, I started a bit too intense.) Then I read & watched everything I could find - some good video clips (Nature Magazine,  Terra Plana, TED) and an OK book (The Barefoot Running Book - main takeaway: run with a big necklace or key strap and run so that it does not bounce).

Of course I tracked my progress and I can happily say that I ran 10-20% faster and was without injuries. And realised that you can run barefoot in any weather and climate - I did -15C Canada, -2 slushy snow covered Sweden, -10 two meters of snow Sweden, +25 spanish beach - and any surface - snow, beach, grass, and my old enemy concrete too. No injuries.

I kept running and I think I will for as long as I enjoy it. Even when the obsession resides.