Raymond Ahlgren

Raymond Ahlgren graduated in 1986 after 7 years as a boarder. Today he works as a Performance Coach at Nordax Bank in Stockholm. After 18 years as a lecturer and coach within personal development, and as a self-employed entrepreneur, he chose employment and coaching the employees at the bank.

– My job today is to get our approximately 140 employees to live more awake, more consciously and thus also make better decisions in their lives. To consciously choose how they want to look at different situations, how they see their lives and everything they have been through in life until now.

How did you come to choose SSHL?

– My father died when I was six and we fled from Chile. My mother remarried when I was twelve, and the man she married was the CEO of a Swedish company in Peru. I really didn’t want to move with them to Peru, because the last thing I needed was another move. Good friends of the family had their son at SSHL (SHL was the name at the time) and he really enjoyed it. So after hearing him talk about school, all the activities, all the friends, I was completely sold.

What does your time at the school mean to you?

– It was the most important and enjoyable seven years of my life! Without doubt! I would need a whole book to describe my amazing years at the school – but in short; I made friends for life, learned to take responsibility and I got incredible memories that I carry with me to this day – almost 40 years after graduation.

How do you benefit from having attended SSHL?

– Career-wise, the network you create is clearly the single most important benefit. There is always someone who know someone who can help with a job, an interview or help open doors. Having SSHL in your CV is great. I’m sure some recruiters have allowed me to come for an interview thanks to that! At least early in my career.

What do you remember in particular from your time at the school?

– Can I say VP? It’s hard to chose one thing, but we had a band that I enjoyed a lot. I also loved when we competed against other Houses in different sports, the school dances, the talent shows and the generally great atmosphere we had. It was like living with 200 friends basically.

– But what I hold most dear is clearly the cohesion between us students!

Do you keep in touch with your alumni from SSHL?

– Yes, I do – with several of them. We’ve become friends for life.

What would you like to say to the students of today?

– Make the best of every day, take the opportunity to enjoy life. You are young and have your whole life ahead of you. So don’t be in a hurry to grow up, it will come, in time. Life is too short not to have fun!

Raymond is also a mentor at the Mentorship Programme at SSHL.