A year after quitting my job, I predictably started a Substack

An experiment in finding alternative ways to live and work and bringing these together.

An art exhibition in the woods

As I type these first few words, I wonder whether there is such a thing as free will? Since I came across Substack a few months ago, it’s been calling my name… After a bit of hesitation and a lot of procrastination, it’s happening.

For what the act lacks in originality, I hope it makes up for in content. Here’s what I’ll be writing about.

I quit my job exactly a year ago. It’s wild how time flies – the cliché is true. But this is also the year in which I’ve grown the most. I’ve tried a bunch of new things: charity work, freelancing, podcasting, writing, running an art exhibition. These things have shaped my thoughts and convictions on how I want to live, and work.

“Do you work to live or live to work?”. In other words, am I a workaholic or do I lack ambition? Neither sounds very good to me. There’s an inherent assumption in that question that ‘work’ is mutually exclusive to ‘life’. But why can’t our work lives and our life lives coexist? Paid work, volunteering work, main projects, side projects, experiments and adventures are all part of what makes me excited to get out of bed every day.

This last year I’ve been less shy about my ‘extra-curricular’ projects. I used to play down my love for art and the mountains thinking it would impact my professional credibility. But a) it’s who I am and I’ve realised being authentic makes me happier, and b) these experiences actually makes me better at my job. They give me an edge –anyone can read Simon Sinek or Clayton Christensen, but the lessons I’ve learnt up there are real, lived experiences no book will teach.

This ‘thing’ I’m writing is also a pitch for multi- and interdisciplinarity. It’s not catchy but I think it’s going to be important. (Cue obligatory point about AI.) To back up my point, I googled the “impact of artificial intelligence on the job market” which unsurprisingly yielded some alarming / alarmist statistics. Of course, it’s more nuanced than a couple of figures pulled from a random ‘study’, but the ground beneath our feet is not as solid as it seems. In this brave new world, there is a case to be made for versatility.

And so, as I put words to the page, I’m thinking about who this newsletter will be for. Writing cristallises my thoughts. This might be for you if you:

• are trying to figure out a way to bring work and life together – in a way that is sustainable and purposeful

• want to find a new way but are a bit stuck

• want to have an impact, at any scale

• dream that another way is possible when the world around you tells you to be pragmatic

• are not looking for a ‘playbook’ 

Disclaimer: I don’t actually have any answers or a ‘blueprint’ but maybe together we can come up with one. I’ll be sharing stories of people doing cool things and – because the road is circuitous – a collection of musings on topics that inspire me, and hopefully spark thoughts in you too. A few things coming up:

• The high life – speaking to mountain hut keepers (gardiens de refuge) about their relationship to community, nature, purpose, and work. Investigating how life ‘up high’ can inspire us to live ‘down here’. (For the French speakers, I’ve been working on a art project and podcast on this topic)

• Decision-making in the mountains – interviewing paragliders and mountain athletes on decision-making in high-stake environments. Can it actually help our decision-making in the office?

• Optimising for resilience – the photosynthetic efficiency of plants is around 1%, compared to about 10% for solar panels. Biologist Olivier Hamant claims this is necessary for plants to be robust and resilient. Does this apply to humans too?

• Landscape connection – what is our link to the elemental world around us? In a nod to my literature degree days, I’ll discuss this line from MacFarlane’s Underland, "We are part mineral beings. We are part of the underland, and the underland part of us. Our lives are formed from the substance of the planet itself, in all its ancient and recalcitrant glory."

Hit subscribe if you’re interested too :)

And because we all need more feedback in life, I’d love to hear your thoughts.