About me
Hi, I'm Heidi.
I’ve never been very good at pretending to have it all figured out. That’s why this page is honest too: I’ll tell you who I am, what I do and what I’ve learned along the way.
I live in Vaasa with my two daughters and my partner.
Right now, our home has a bit of everything. There's a baby who decides the rhythm of the day. There's a ten-year-old who asks questions I can't always answer. And there's a man who is the calmest person I know. I'm in the middle of it all, sometimes tired, sometimes excited, and most of the time a bit of both.
For work, I do two things that don't seem to belong together on paper. I drive a taxi and I build websites for small businesses. But both come down to the same thing: listening to people. In the taxi, I hear what people carry with them. When I build a website, I hear what the business owner really wants to say, and I help them say it.
I'm currently on maternity leave, so both are moving a little slower than usual.
My background
In marketing since 2009.
I graduated as a media assistant in 2009. Since then, I’ve been doing marketing, more or less. And to be honest, often a lot more with a lot less.
There just weren’t any marketing jobs available. So I studied hospitality management and spent eight years working in places like restaurants, bars, and the city’s schools and care homes.
Eight years ago, I started my own advertising agency. First came Pieni Idea, which grew into Luovien Agenttien Toimisto. Not everything has gone the way I planned, but I’ve had the chance to work with so many wonderful creative people.
These days, I mostly work on my own, doing marketing for small business owners. I can do a bit too much, if anything, and I can turn my hand to many things, from brand marketing to animation and layout design. But above all, I focus on clear, simple websites.
Behind the wheel of Taxi 8
Taxi 8 and Vaasa nights.
When I’m not doing marketing, I’m behind the wheel of Taxi 8 in Vaasa. The car is Tomi Enlund’s Volvo, and I’ve been driving for Tomppa for almost three years now.
Driving a taxi has taught me more about people than any school ever did. In the back seat, people share things they don't always tell even their friends. The joys of the day, the sorrows, and sometimes both on the same ride.
I drive and I listen. And no two days are ever the same.
What keeps me going
Small things and good people.
Life hasn't always gone according to plan. I had cancer when I was 18, and I've been through a difficult divorce, after which I became a single parent to my 10-year-old daughter.
I've learned what kind of people I want to work with, and that's exactly why I appreciate good people even more.
It’s rarely just a passenger who gets into the back seat
I've had people in Taxi 8 who laugh the whole way, and people who don't say a single word. I've learned that neither tells you how they're really doing.
I never know what someone else is carrying. That's why I try to remember that this person might be going through the hardest chapter of their life right now.
I'm writing a book
Keskeneräisyydestä kauneuteen (“From Imperfection to Beauty”)
I'm writing a book about failure, love, and how to stay kind even when the world so often tells you to do the opposite.
The book is still a work in progress.
Coming soon
My own podcast.
I'm also dreaming of starting my own podcast. The same honest talk as on the blog, just out loud. When it's ready, you'll hear about it here first.
A few things worth knowing about me
Open heart, clear boundaries.
I’ve been called an old soul a few times. For a long time, I didn’t really know what that meant. When I finally looked it up, I learned there’s no single explanation. Some people believe an old soul has lived before. For others, it simply means someone who had to grow up a little earlier than most.
I don't promise perfect. I make mistakes, and sometimes I'm tired. But I promise to tell it like it is and to do what we agree on.
And if you ever ride with me, tell me about your day. I'll listen.
You can also follow my everyday life on TikTok @taxiheidi and on Instagram @taxi.heidi.