Interview with Lars Olov Sönnerlid. November2001 What do you do? I work at Microsoft EMEA (Europe, Middle-East, Africa) as a Senior Consultant. My main responsibility is to evangelize Microsoft technology and help my customers succeed in order to make Microsoft successful, hrm well, sometimes I just surf the web all day. My focus is in the mobility space, PocketPC applications, Messaging, Mobile Portals etc. If you weren't in your current profession, what would you be doing? Starving probably, since I would like to do something artistic but I have no such talent whatsoever. What has been your worst job experience? Before university I held two jobs at the same time. I started at five in the morning at a company that produces ATM machines. There I had the most monotonous job you could imagine, mounting small parts of this machine with a thousand nuts and bolts. I started my work day at 5am, worked until 3pm then I hurried to my next job as a fork-lift driver at another company where I worked until midnight. In comparison, I LOVE MY CURRENT JOB! Where do you live now? With my girlfriend in a 2 room rental apartment in Stockholm, Sweden. Saving to buy a lakeside house. Which country do you want to visit and why? Kenya, to see the national parks with wild animals before they are all gone. Where is your favorite place? Any Irish pub, me, myself and a Guinness. Also Mount Rainier in Washington State is also a beautiful place worth mentioning. What is the most important thing in your life? My extended family (girlfriend, family, and friends). What was your childhood dream? That I would become a famous inventor or that I would become some multi-talented guy such as Leonardo Da Vinci. I am still hoping. When you have personal time, what do you do with it? I spend it carelessly as if I had too much of it. I am sure I will regret it later. Right now I am putting together a collection of equipment for outdoor activities such as mountain biking and hiking so if you ask me a year from now I hope my answer will be different. What have been some of your best achievements to date? I once cut up four old bicycles and welded them together into one quad-bike for four persons. That's one of the few things I have done that exists in the 3-D world. Also I once lost all my eyebrows and eye lashes after a failed attempt to make a face mask out of plaster. They must still be talking about that one at the hospital emergency room. Five words to describe yourself? Ambivalent maybe, not really sure. What single thing would improve the quality of your life? Four-day weekends all year long. If you could eliminate one thing from your life, what would it be? The need for sleep. What's the worst thing anybody's said to you? "You are going to end up lonely and fat." To be honest it was like this; I said it to a girl I knew and then she said "You too". What are your primary sources for inspiration? Temporary loneliness, driving my car, and conversations. Five people that inspire you? Roald Dahl, his short stories are amazing but his biographies are almost just as bizarre, "Going Solo". Paul Auster, for the book "Mr.Vertigo". Paul McCartney, for the song "Eleonor Rigby" What do you find is the most valuable about the internet? It is a supreme media in support of freedom of speech. What kind of music, tv, film, fashion have you been into lately? Music:the Strokes, Ben Folds (Five), Kent, Built To Spill Tv: CNN, Spin City, Seinfeld Film: Traffic, Billy Elliott, O Brother Where Art Thou Fashion: I wear clothes every day but I can't remember buying any... What do you see in your future? The Swedish dream: Volvo, Villa & Vovve (Swedish slang for doggy). Thank you. Lars Olov Sönnerlid. Back to top. . / . Back to Interviews.