If people ask me what my politics are, I usually say nothing, but if they insist, I will say that I am an anarchist. I have to admit that I don’t know enough about political anarchism, but I do know that no one knows what it means. For me, trying to explain how your specific flavor of politics works is like explaining how something feels; every explanation needs an interpretation. Behind every slogan hides countless books, personalities, and an endless history. None of the ideologies has ever worked in their purest forms, and Anarchy is no exception.

The reason why I say that I am an anarchist is that it should be the natural outcome if you have a few premises.

1. There is no predetermined purpose in the world, no maker, and no rules but those of nature.
2. We can think, reason, and create our own rules.
3. From these two points, it follows that there is no natural hierarchy among people—only the ones we invent.
4. If we are all the same, we should share all the available resources equally.
5. We are all the same intrinsically, but also different in our capabilities, like our appearance.

If there ever will be a society based on Anarchism, then the biggest hurdle that has been overcome is education. In an anarchist society, as I see it, it is important that everyone knows their place in the community to prevent the need for authority to step in and assign roles. What I mean by “their place” is simply what a good test at school can already do that determines if you are good at math or with your hands, if you are an organizer or a leader. These are traits that should come naturally as you grow up and can change over time. For many anarchists, it is important that there be no authority, but there is always authority in knowledge, experience, and talent. The project manager might tell you what to do during the day, but in the evening, you tell them how to play the piano.

Underneath, I collected some of my notes about anarchy.

For me, freedom isn’t the absence of rules. It’s what happens when everything has its place. My toolbox is organized so precisely that I never waste time searching for a tool. My colleagues call this rigid, but their ‘freedom’ to toss everything into a box costs them hours of frustration. Their chaos devours their real freedom. This is how I see work and how I see society: Organization isn’t the enemy of freedom; it’s the foundation of it.

§

Experience brings authority, but it shouldn’t lead to domination. In my workshop, I make the final call on technical decisions because I have 25 years of experience. But my authority is earned, not imposed. It’s there to serve the project, not to control people.

§

We’re all different; some are better at organizing, others at woodworking, and others at numbers. But these differences don’t make us more or less valuable. For me, anarchy means recognizing that we all have roles to play and that none of us is inherently ‘better’ than another.

§

I call my philosophy ‘Authoritarian Anarchy’ because it sounds like a contradiction, and it is. But so is life. In my 25 years as a boatbuilder, I’ve learned that the freest, most creative work happens when there’s order. Not the order of a dictator, but the order of a well-organized toolbox: every tool has its place, every person has their role, and no one wastes time searching for what they need. My kind of anarchy isn’t about smashing hierarchies. It’s about building systems where hierarchy isn’t needed, because everyone knows their job, trusts the process, and respects the rules we’ve agreed on. The authority in my world isn’t about power. It’s about making sure the boat doesn’t sink.

§

In my workshop, I’m the authoritarian. I make the final call on technical decisions because I have the experience to back them up. But I’m also the anarchist: I don’t believe in bosses, and I don’t think my role makes me better than anyone else. I’m just the one who’s been doing this the longest, and that means I have a responsibility to make sure we do it right.

§

Norwegian work culture gave me the freedom to organize my day. Dutch work culture gave me the structure to do it well. My ‘Authoritarian Anarchy’ is what happens when you combine the two: the freedom to work as you want, within the boundaries that make the work possible.