Category: Sweden

Routine leads to habits, and habits can lead to overall increased health and well being. The habits I have formed certainly lead me to live a more fulfilling and purposeful life. The habits of training hard, individually and with the team, of waking up early and being grateful for a new day, of feeding my body the appropriate nutrition, these habits allow me to live a better life for myself. Creating these habits are a choice that I make.

Your life is made up of choices. You make choices for yourself, how you behave and act, how you impact society, how you impact the world, how you simply live. Whether visible or not, not only do your choices impact yourself, but they also have an impact on others, it is your choice what type of impact that may be. The most important thing to remember is that you and only you are in control of your choices, and therefore your life. No one else can make choices for you, no one else can live your life for you.

“Control what you can control” – Andre Agassi

You are given the opportunity to control your life, you can take control of your life by making choices. Every choice leads to another, and some choices can change everything. I have made many choices in my life that have led me to where I am, and I will continue to make choices for where I will go. Take control of your life, take control of your choices, and make this world a better place because of it.

My Swedish experience was improved this week because of two different people I worked for. Firstly, I am continually impressed by their ability to speak English, thankfully, or else conversations would be pretty rough. Because of this, the conversations I had with the people I worked for were enriching. I learned a lot from these people about their history, about the region, and about Swedish culture. I keep getting told about the great things to do here in winter, unfortunately my visa will not allow for me to stay that long, but maybe one day in the future. I was also very thankful for the interest they took in me and my journey, my story. I love sharing my story to those who are interested and hope that they can take something away from it.

Now, back to choices. On Saturday, as a team we had many choices to make. Anyone that has ever played sports knows how many choices are made during competition. We chose to fight back after going a goal down, we chose to fight after half time to take the lead, however as I said, some choices can change everything. And that is exactly what happened. We were less than 60 seconds away from securing our place in Division 2 for next season before we made a choice to lose focus, to make the wrong decision with the ball, which ultimately led to the opposition scoring a late equalizer. It felt more like a loss than a draw. Now, I have a choice to make, to dwell on it and be frustrated, or pick myself up and move on to next week and prepare for the next game. I think you can guess which choice I made.

Now its your turn to go make some choices.

My routine flipped this week as I began to implement my new plan for myself. Beginning every morning with a dip in the freezing river, before enjoying a good breakfast and then going to the gym. The week consisted of two weight sessions, 2 speed and power sessions, and 4 sessions of mobility, foam rolling, stretching. I also did some focused ball sessions on a few specific areas of my game that I am often in. Lots of repetitions to continue to build and develop skills that will always continue to be developed. No area of my game will ever be perfect, so I can never do enough specific repetitions whenever I have the chance.

Early in the week I received a text from a very good friend of mine from University. They just began a clinical rotation at a hospital and the words that stood out to me in their message was “Happy to be healthy.” After speaking about well being last week and the importance of it on many levels, this message reaffirmed another very important aspect of well being, gratitude. In my studies at Quinnipiac University, I studied the two topics and the relation they have on one another. Both experiencing and expressing gratitude lead to positive outcomes, especially ones well being. Gratitude allows for an individual to feel as though they have meaning in life, which is a positive effect on their individual well being. The type of gratitude I want to share about and have been experiencing more of is from within myself. Being grateful to wake up each day, healthy and able, playing a sport I love while in a beautiful country with natures natural beauty all around me. Recognizing and acknowledging all the little things around, allow me to be more present in the moment, appreciating each moment for what it is, and not taking it for granted. Often times, people get so caught up in life that they really cannot stop to smell the roses, but it doesn’t even have to be that. Recognizing a fresh breeze across your face, seeing someone smile, being able to walk and breathe comfortably, are just a few little things that many people take for granted and these should be some of the things that so many people should express gratitude for. Being grateful can lead to one expressing more gratitude, to yourself, to your friends, to your surroundings, and that can truly have a big impact on ones well being. Try it some day, reach out to a friend and express your gratitude for them, or just stop one day and take a deep breath of fresh air and let a smile run across your face. Slowly but surely, gratitude can become part of your character if you experience and express it enough. It all starts with one grateful thought or action!

I was very grateful this week that on our bus trip to our game, the driver stopped for our break in a lovely spot along Vänern, the largest lake in Sweden. It was a great place to relax and eat our pre match meal while enjoying beautiful views of the water and its surroundings. This allowed me to head into our game with a clear and focused mind. I was able to control my emotions throughout the game, although things certainly weren’t going our teams way. There were many challenges including a very wet and muddy pitch, however I was pleased with how I played, and more importantly how I controlled my emotions throughout. IK Gauthiod won 3-1 to keep themselves right in the title hunt and for the promotion, and they certainly played like it. A great level of competition, but unfortunately our team wasn’t up for the challenge. Sunday dawned a new day, and our reserve team was playing their second to last game of the season. A comfortable 4-0 win allowed them to be crowned league champions leading to promotion to division 5. A great achievement for the team and club. I was able to get a good long ice bath in, as well as foam roll and mobility while watching a convincing Manchester United victory. Sunday well spent.

Well, positivity sheds positivity. After last weeks post, I got some great feedback and it led to some great conversations with friends, looking for advice and guidance. That is why I went into the field of psychology, to continue to help people on a personal level to allow them to perform at their potential. Having these types of conversations with people allows you to connect on a deeper level than what is just on the surface, and that is something that isn’t too often achieved in many friendships.

I have also begun to do more for myself, because that is one side that is very important for ones well being. After studying well being for my Senior Psychology thesis, I have a greater understanding of two types of well being, eudemonic and hedonistic. There is a distinct difference between these two types of well being, eudemonic is psychological, where as hedonistic is subjective. Simply put, eudemonic well being is an individual acting in a certain way that leads to growth and developing the best version of themself. Each individual has their own ideal of the best version of themselves, and for me, my best version of myself is a happy and healthy man, physically, spiritually, emotionally, and mentally.

As the time ticks down on my time here in Sysslebäck, Sweden, my focus continues to shift. I have increased my self focus for the next 5 weeks to strive to be the best I can be. I have lessened the hours I work and will be spending more time training my body and mind to chase my goals. An improved mental preparation allowed me to really prepare for training and our game this week. After a 4.5hr bus trip on Sunday morning, we arrived in Skoftebyn with enough time to relax a little bit before preparing for our game. I was focused and ready, however I was tested with various challenges after things didn’t go the way I had envisioned. But that is football and you adapt and overcome. We struggled in the attacking third and lacked a bit of concentration and communication in the defensive end and found ourselves down 2-0 with 88 minutes on the clock. Somehow we came back to draw 2-2. I still can’t quite believe it. And not being too pleased with my performance I went straight to watching the film on the bus on the way home. After watching the film within a couple hours of playing, my opinion changed of my performance as I had just been very critical and hard on myself, and was fairly pleased with my performance. Of course there were little things here and there to improve, and I will review those and process them to make sure I make the appropriate adjustments. The focus on myself will continue this week as I prepare for the next game this weekend and truly prepare my body and mind!

This week has been such a positive week for me. From the conversations I had with mentors and friends, to the challenges I faced and overcame to better myself, and it was all topped off with a win that has been a long time coming.

As always, there were hedges to trim, lawns to mow, and other various manual labour jobs that filled the days during my week. These work hours are great for thinking and processing. Spending so much time alone with lots to think about, the mind wanders, and I have been able to use this time to focus my mind a little more when important thoughts filter through and allow myself to problem solve or at least process them. The whole journey over the last 18 months has been as much of a mental journey as it has been about the actual experience. I am pleased where it has led me, and embracing the opportunities and experiences it has given me, and I still continue to strive for better. This mentality has been with me on the football pitch for most of my time here in Sweden, every pass, every tackle, every movement, I aim to be better, and develop those skills to a higher level. It is these high standards that often frustrate me, as I fight with the voices in my head about my performance, what I did was right or wrong, however I continue to learn that this cannot be the focus. After every action; pass, tackle, no matter the outcome, it has happened and you must move on. The amount of mental processing every training and every game I go through is incredible, and it is all in an effort to perform with clarity and composure.

When Saturday rolled around, I was ready and prepared for what felt like a moment we had all been waiting. And it certainly was a performance that has been a long time coming. We were hot out of the box and capitalized early with 2 goals within 10 minutes. We knocked one in just before half time also and less than 10min into the second half we essentially put the game to bed. We weren’t done, scoring two more to win 6-0. A resounding win, after many sub par performances and results. As a defender most people will know which part pleases me most, seeing that zero for the opposition. This was the first official win for the team since I have been here and so along with it came a few traditions; a celebration with the fans and a chant in the changing rooms. We might need a few more wins before I know exactly what we are saying in these moments, but what I do know is that it is these moments that will become the memories of my time at Nordvärmlands. Results will become statistics, however these celebrations, these emotions, these moments will be what stays with me long after I depart. And more memories were made that evening as we chilled by the fire at our apartments with many of the lads and a couple girlfriends. It sure is amazing what a win can do for spirits!

Sunday was as always relaxing. I went for the coldest ice bath since I have been here. Not sure but it felt like the Norwegian glaciers had just melted a few hundred meters up the river because boy was it cold. I spent much of the afternoon enjoying myself in the kitchen with a bit of baking (banana bread) and cooking. Long may this positivity continue within the team and individually!