How I make a living in the remote north of Finland?— VIDEO

For a long time, I’ve been getting questions almost every day. Some are asked kindly and with genuine curiosity, others a little more bluntly, about what on earth I actually do for work. How can anyone make a living while living here in Northern Finland, far from cities and far from everything?

Until now, I haven’t really answered that question. It has always felt too personal, too close. It’s strange when you think about it, how much people around the world know about my life, as if they know me, while I don’t know them at all. It’s one of the curiosities of our modern world — both unsettling and somehow beautifully fascinating.

At the same time, I understand the curiosity. I often find myself wondering the same thing when scrolling through social media. What do people actually do for work? How do they afford their homes, their cars, their travels? It often seems as if they simply wander, explore, and live a life that looks effortlessly internet cool.

I’ve been thinking that if I can, in my own small way, help break the shiny “internet cool” image, I want to do it. Too often in social media, we forget about everything that happens when the camera isn’t rolling. There’s laundry to do, cleaning, changing tires, washing the dogs—and then there’s the actual work. Even when your work is based on social media, most of it is long hours at the computer, planning, wrestling with different programs, and endless scrolling through emails and comments.

I especially want to emphasize that social media itself—YouTube and Instagram in my case—doesn’t automatically bring in money, even if the views look astronomical. Neither platform pays for the content you upload. Income only comes from brand collaborations and advertising, and those are often much smaller amounts than people might imagine. Most of the time, it’s driven by passion, skill-building, and, with a bit of luck, covering some costs. It’s a time-consuming hobby dressed up as work.

In this video, I open up about what I actually do for work and what my income consists of. I hope it might inspire someone to start building a life that feels true to themselves, one small piece and one step at a time.