S ’ inspirer
One disease , several remedies
Expatriation is not the only option for those who , dissatisfied , decide to change their lives . The many stories of retraining , career changes and escapism that flood the web and our networks bear this out . From advertising manager to painter , from accountant to pastry chef ... Or , like Julie , from marketing manager to interior decorator : “ I was feeling like my job had lost its meaning . Then one day , something clicked ; my career change plan slowly took shape , even if the path wasn ’ t always easy . Today , I ’ ve been making a living from this new career for five years and I ’ m much happier !”
Leaving it all behind - to give yourself a second chance , to ( re ) discover yourself , or to turn things around . Once seen as an eccentric choice , this need to follow a new path now makes perfect sense , but what ’ s the raisond ’ être ?
In search of yourself
We put the question to author Anaïs Vanel . Her first book , “ Tout quitter ”, was inspired by her own experience : she too decided one day to leave behind a daily life that was no longer fulfilling her , and embark on a new chapter . “ What motivates these big changes ,” Anaïs says , “ is above all a search for balance . So you have to be aware of imbalances and listen to yourself .” In “ Tout quitter ”, Anaïs Vanel recounts , in the style of a rambling diary , how , faced with the astonishing simplicity of nature , the ease of encounters , and the beauty of living in the moment , she came to terms with herself . Looking back , she says : “ Today , I see it as letting go of things that no longer nourish us , to make room for other experiences . It ’ s simply agreeing to move towards the unknown by stripping ourselves bare .”
But in the end , isn ’ t leaving everything behind an act of escapism ? This wish is often expressed as the need to change something that will , we tell ourselves , drag the rest along in its train . According to Anaïs Vanel , such an escape strategy rarely works in the long term : “ No matter how big the change , it doesn ’ t erase the past , the pain , certain traumas . On the contrary , on this blank page , they will be all the more visible ”. The answer may lie elsewhere , but for the author , one thing is certain : “ We focus far too much on a fantasy goal rather than appreciating the path and what it has to show us .”
So , as for Elizabeth Gilbert who , in her autobiographical novel “ Eat , Pray , Love ”, takes a sabbatical to refocus on her own happiness , change can simply take the form of a break ... Time to yourself is the ultimate indulgence !
34