Helping organizations create new value and new forms of competitive advantage
designer
Life is a daring adventure
Leisure is a lifestyle. It's an attitude. And, it's also a business to me.
My dad was my hero. I know, it's a cliché but that's what he was to me. He was curious and courageous explorer, avid for experiences, a pioneer walking on his own paths and passionate in whatever he did. That attitude has driven my life as well. Leisure gives us the opportunity to learn to be present in the moment, and what better environment for that than a Finnish sauna or a Japanese bath, ofuro?!
Exploring the world and people out there is one of the most exciting gift given to us. The time spent with people thinking differently in unfamiliar cultures accumulates our own personal ability to provide unpredujiced ideas and solution in our own living environment. I have worked for three decades in a leisure industry to put in practice all I've learned on my journeys and life experiences.
HAPPINESS AMBASSADOR OF FINLAND
For five years straight, starting in 2018, the World Happiness Report has singled out Finland as the happiest country on the planet. Visit Finland started international marketing campaign of Finland called Rent A Finn in 2019 and chose group of Finns to host international guests in the middle of beautiful Finnish nature. I was one of them. The campaign was represented in numerous international media channels and ended up being the most successful marketing campaign of Finland ever with 2.46 billion potential impressions.
PUBLIC RELATIONS & HOSTING
Public speaking has been part of my passion since high school and student years. The requests expanded soon to host and MC various celebrations for an ever-growing group of friends and after entering the business I started to get the invitations to speak about Japanese culture and business as well. As I rolled into the television productions in various roles in Japan and Finland, more serious MC and hosting assignments started to roll in as well like hosting the Japanese celebrities in Finland. I operate in Finnish, Japanese (関西弁) and English.
TOUR GUIDING & INTERPRETING
Trecking, backpacking and exploring the world are a big part of my story, as you can see below in the collection of the best adventures of my life. Sometimes it's better to do it alone to get better connection with locals and co-travellers. Some other times it's more fun to experience everything together. That made me to create a tour program in Japan and to start running tours for outdoor oriented travelers and special groups like architects and design professionals, with the flavour of my 20 years background in Japan.
1994
"You will never know if you will never go"
ADVENTURES
The collection of the best adventures of my life
A journey around the world to find own limits, the beauty of courage and richness of strange people in diverse cultures
Duration | 246 days
Length | 59 000 km
Countries | 14
In one crisp fall day in 1990 my friend asked me to join his journey around the globe. I was excited but not ready yet to take a chance. However that was a moment when a dream for the trip around the world was born. Four years later in 1994 I started the journey I've been dreming about. I hitchiked from Helsinki to Moscow with my brother, met Queen Elisabeth II there and spent next eight months on the road.
The journey was making a big dream come true. It fascinated and frightened same time. The leading priciple was to travel by land and sea among local people as much as possible. That would be the best way to meet local people, get a good grip about their cultures and also save money. We would travel as far as our purse would let us go. No bookings, no tight plans, just our intuition and stories we heard from other co-travellers and locals that would guide us.
1997
”Learn to listen to you heart, get connected with intuition”
Workation trip that turn to be a daring adventure around the globe with a strong touch of intuition
Duration | 194 days
Length | 59 000 km
Countries | 10
I quit my job in a leading new media company in Finland in 1997. For what?! I wanted to see my startup concept about online TV production company come true and Washington D.C. was calling me. The possibilities of internet were just opening for the businesses.
A major mass media conference was held there and I had three months time to get there. Why not try to get there by land and sea like I did my last globe trip?! I didn’t know personally anyone who have done that from Europe to the US so way to go! The success of privious adventure round the world encouraged to try something new again!
I managed to get onboard to the yacht that was heading from Canary Islands, Spain to Saint Martinique at Caribbean Sea. The yacht accident at Cabo Verde forced me to change plans but I did my way to Washington D.C. Next move was unclear until I got a business meeting invitation to Hollywood. My parents were living in Japan and a month later in Los Angeles I knew where I was heading to. Over the Pacific Ocean!
2005
”Get to know yourself and walk the talk”
Journey of rebooting life and letting thoughts run together with a long ride through the United States
Duration | 25 days
Length | 6620 km
Countries | 2
The year 2004 was a disaster. I lost everything. My divorce took also effect that year and I chose to leave everything behind and move from Finland to the US to look for a new opportunities. I was free like a bird. We had sold our renovated wooden house with my ex-wife, I was unemployed and basically back in the entrepreneur mode. The cancer was also gone. United States was easy choise since I had many friends there and the cultural habits were familiar to me.
Getting in touch with lot of people and different views was the most important task for the longest car ride in my life so far. It took me to the geographical center and two corners of the US I hadn’t been visited yet. On the way I had 6620 km length of time to analyze my choises in past, think & talk about my future and decide where in the world I would live for the next years to come.
2008
”It's more important what happens in you than what happens through you”
Pilgrimage and television documentary about the physical, mental and spiritual walk of six Finnish pilgrims through northern Spain
Duration | 7 days (2006), 30 days (2008)
Length | 350 km (2006), 790 km (2008)
Countries | 1
In 2006 I was ready to deal the death I had faced two years earlier in a cancer surgery. My good friend’s mother had walked a pilgrimige route called Camino de Santiago in Northern Spain a year earlier. The route fitted perfectly to my needs. Quality time alone in the middle of nature, monasteries to stay, churches to pray, good local wine and dozens of pilgrims from all around the world with their own stories.
My first pilgrimage started alone in 2006. On the way in the midst of fabulous Spanish countryside I got and idea for the mind wellbeing related startup that I would set up in five years. I got to face the challenges with my left foot as well and I had to suspend the walk in half way to Santiago de Compostela in Sahagun. Little I knew at that discouraging moment what an unusual opportunity was waiting for me two years later.
In 2008 I was chosen to be part of the documentary Finnish National Broadcasting Company YLE was making about Camino de Santiago pilgrim route. The filming of Löytöretki, a 30 days long walk of six Finns, took place in September 2008 and the eight series documentary was broadcasted in spring 2009 in YLE and rebroadcasted 11 times in next three years. The documentary was broadcasted also in the Swedish national public state-controlled television broadcaster SVT in 2012.
2025
”Don't die before you're dying”
A journey to challenge our middle-aged selves, find our limits and push beyond them, learn to love each other on the next level, become more sensitive to listening to God's voice and face people with an even more listening heart.
Duration | 210 days
Length | 75 000 km
Countries | About 40
Aging is a strange think. Life experiences make people often more cautious and look for comfortable options. I realize the same happening with me! However, life is short and there are tons of uncovered experiences waiting for me out there in the world.
There is a saying ”don’t die before you’re dying”. One way to keep that agile attitude is to have crazy dreams and lunatic plans for the future. To me the third journey round the globe is one of them and this time it would be great to do that with my wife. It needs some work and sacrifices to get on the road. The future is obviously uncertain but when keeping the eyes open and own mind alert, anything is possible, anything!