Slowing down, new adventures, and goodbye for now
The search for simplicity
The year has started at breakneck speed.
It’s somewhat unsurprising given everything that happened in 2024:
Organised Wild Lives, an art exhibition in the woods
Helped run a fundraising event in Paris for the charity, 82-4000
Started coaching for SYSTM
Experimented with podcasting and writing as part of an art project on high mountain refuges
Started this Substack :)
Launched Oxonix, a consultancy focused on deep-tech climate startups
Acted as Treasurer for a local association, La Petite Université
Got a full-time job!
Exploration was the intention. After almost a decade in the same bubble, the idea was to just try a bunch of things and see what happens if you pursue your interests. And aside from learning a lot, I feel like it’s the year that I’ve grown the most, in a very long time. I’ve reconnected with the things I love, and learnt to be more authentic. I got out of bed, most days, excited for what was next – and that’s something I’m super grateful for.
I also got quite good at getting stuff done, which isn’t something that always came very easily to me. When I look back at my old journal entries, a consistent thread is the fear of not being able to get out of ‘thinking’ mode. It’s cool to see that so many of our fears are in our heads and less immutable than we lead ourselves to believe; the ‘doing’ self is a muscle and it just needs a bit of workout.
The flip-side is that when you do so many things, it’s hard to dedicate yourself to any. And without going deeper, it’s hard to get things to stick. By the end of the year, I was also getting quite tired of always hustling, always selling, always persuading.
And then, just like that, in December I found myself with a job offer – an opportunity to run Strategy and Communication at CREA Mont-Blanc, a research centre for alpine ecosystems. Based in Chamonix, they specialise in the study of natural mountain environments and how they’re affected by climate change. It seemed like the perfect conclusion to my year of exploration, uniting all the things I had (re)discovered a love for in the last year: creativity, local community and a strong connection with the physical landscape.
I plunged straight in.
So now, almost a month into 2025, I’m finding myself pretty overwhelmed. I feel like I’m always playing catch up and as much as I like to keep busy, this is probably too much. I know I’ve crossed the line when I feel myself getting less patient, less open-minded, less light-hearted.
So all that to say that this year, I’m scaling back, and going for simplicity. I want to do fewer things but do them more fully. Immerse myself in a super fulfilling job. Spend more quality time with family. Live some great adventures in the mountains. I’ll continue, very selectively, with a few side projects and freelance work. Nothing, of course, needs to be definitive, and that’s the beauty of it.
And for now, Blueprinting too is going on pause. I’ve loved getting back into writing and I hope you’ve enjoyed reading. I will certainly be back when the headspace returns, but for now, a little break calls.