‘Lagom’ is a Swedish word – difficult to translate – which means roughly ‘just right’, ‘nothing extreme’, ‘perfect balance.’ Some Swedish people will maintain that this word cannot be translated into another language, but the truth is that all words can be translated; some words require a little more effort...

Lagom Sisu' in Finland

'As a kid I loved the stories of Moomintroll, the little creature that lives in forests of Finland. Years later I discovered the original language of Tove Jansson's marvellous books, was not Finnish (Tove Jansson was from Finland), nor Swedish, but Finland-Swedish. Finland Swedish is an old and musical dialect still spoken by about 6% of Finland's population.

Subordinates and Colleagues

In Finland (as well the USA and the UK) the boss refers to 'subordinates'; in Sweden the word does not exist. The boss discusses plans with their 'medarbetare' - 'fellow workers.'