When I was young I wanted to sing constantly. It gave me love and attention in life and people loved when I sang. Singing has always been easy for me, as I have received so much positive feedback. Therefore, over the years I have realized why I chose the job that I did.
But I think that sometimes you choose your jobs and the things you do because you want to compensate for something else. That's how Talent came into the picture. My participation in Talang 2023 created a bubble of attention. But while it was the best experience I've had, it was also the most unsustainable. The talent project helped me believe that there was a chance to restart my singing career. I have always been happy, but in the end it was no longer possible to keep my face up.
I have been entertaining people for twelve years full time. But can you build a sustainable business and a private life on waiting for other people to hire you? I sang for five years at the Royal Opera and was on a world tour with The Ten Tenors. But the question is, what am I really? Then I realized what I mentioned at the beginning, that maybe I just want some kind of attention.
The bursting talent bubble
Throughout the Talent Bubble, I invested a lot of money in marketing, including building this website with the help of the marketing agency I hired. I also invested in productions and released songs together with a producer.
But somehow I felt that the quality of my education, my experience as an opera singer and overall professionalism was not really heard in Sweden anymore. It was more popular to sing as a semi-professional as well as untrained musical artist without stamina, than to be experienced and have a certain quality in the voice as well. I realized that it was not obvious to put an equal sign between what is popular and quality.
I have always had good singing students through Konsertbutiken. But people no longer wanted to pay as much for a singing lesson. After the year 2023, I also received less requests for singing performances. That led to me at the beginning of 2024 having to start thinking about my future. Should I jump out of this bubble I've created and only think about me, my own health and only do things that make me happy?
Flight attendant at Swiss International Airlines and extra job at NOW Fitness
After six months of semi-unemployment, where I didn't take a salary and only put in private money to be able to save the company, I made the decision to look for other jobs. But it was far from an easy job search and in the end I didn't know what to do. It all ended in me applying for flight attendant training at Swiss International Airlines. They evaluated me over three days, where I had to go through medical tests, team-building exercises, role-plays, psychological tests and tests in several different languages. In July, all my private money ran out and that made me accept the offer of flight attendant training in order to support myself.
When I was in my 20s, I worked as a flight attendant for Lufthansa, so I knew about the conditions. That you will travel a lot, that there are high demands on you and that you can develop and get other career opportunities within the company.
Since July I live in Switzerland. And it is no exaggeration to call it a second chapter of my life. Here I think a lot about landing in myself and my own health from several aspects. I have a job where I enjoy myself and am appreciated for my skills and talents. I receive regular positive feedback and my future career opportunities with Swiss International Airlines in Zurich are great.
About four weeks ago, I also found a place called NOW Fitness in Zurich, which offers high-intensity training (HIIT workouts) in a really cool training room. I have always had a passion for exercise and now I have received training as a Run & Lift Coach while working extra at the gym. It's a "perfect match" as I get to combine my passion for exercise with my passion for a healthy lifestyle, while flying around the world as a flight attendant.
Insights and life after Konsertbutiken
About a month ago, Konsertbutiken Sverige AB went bankrupt. I tried to save my life's work for eight months, but finally I had to let go. Many people cling to things that have no lasting meaning. There I have come to a rewarding insight, that you should not hold on to something that is not sustainable. It doesn't mean I'm a completely different person now. I'm still Florian, I can still sing just as well, I can still coach people if I had the opportunity and I'm still just as happy.
The reason I'm writing this "life update" to post is that I know you have several loyal followers out there who want to know how I'm doing. Hopefully, I can also inspire some of you and make you happy with what I have told you here. Maybe you want to take the step and change something in your life or understand that happiness is not about having money or having a certain status. Rather, it is about how much social connection you have, how good friends you have, whether you have a job where you are valued and receive confirmation for what you are capable of and whether you have a healthy lifestyle. That's what happiness is all about, I've learned.
In the last six months, I have found more friends than in 13 years in Sweden. I have many good friends left in Sweden, it must be said, but new people here in Switzerland are more open and interested in me. I feel happy in my 13 square meter apartment.
Now I am stronger than ever and the decision I made in July to say goodbye to my company was probably the best decision I made in my entire life. "Goodbye" to the old and "Wow, hello there!" to the new.
//Florian
English 
Swedish 
Italian 
German