Life, as they say, is a rollercoaster. This week has been no exception. It’s been a whirlwind of emotions – blend of excitement and stress -, of professional growth and personal challenges. As I am navigating change, with the complexities of moving to a different country, balancing career aspirations, and being fully present with my loved ones, join me as I share my experiences, insights, and lessons learned from this eventful week.

Personal

Following on previous week, this week has seen good progress again with our relocation to France!

It’s actually a two steps process, somehow overlapping: to bring back to France (some of) our possessions from the UK but also, and even before, to sale the house I own in the Loire Valley (Perrusson), moving the belongings I wish/ need to keep to our new place in the South West of France. So what happened on this topic?

First thing: “Dragonfly” the green MGB GT has been collected on Tuesday and delivered to our new place on Thursday 😄 Thanks to Ralph from Advatec UK for this, and to Ian for receiving the car and dry storing it.

I have also progressed on the moving company. After a few calls and quotes received, a company has been booked.

Also booked a rental car in Tours, ready to rock!

Aside from my upcoming week in Perrusson, we have started to use a local sharing app called OLIO. Its main goal is to encourage reducing waste (“Share More, Waste Less“), helping people finding what they need and sharing what they don’t.

For example, a big part of the app activity is about volunteers collecting unsold food from shops and posting it for free on the app. Users then reserve and pick up.

We tried and got a few things, including meat, fruits, bakery products,…

Another side of the app consists in giving/ selling unwanted items (clothes, furniture, etc.). As we are downsizing prior to our move, we have used OLIO to offer a scanner-printer, a small coffee table,… So far, the printer has been collected, and a gentleman is interested in the coffee table. Those items would have likely gone to the recycling center. Glad they found a new home 🙂

OLIO is available in 51 different countries to date, including France. We will need to give it a try once there.

I would encourage you to start using the app and support the amazing people behind it. That’s good for your wallet, good for your local community and for our planet! 🌍 👍🏻

Professional

I am learning a lot from Dan Martell those days. I really appreciate the way Dan provides guidance, straight to the point. For a newbie in entrepreneurship and still a seasoned professional, it’s priceless. The transformational leadership has resonated a lot with me; this is the way I have been leading my team and supporting the persons I have the chance to work with in their development. It’s great to see I am on a good track and reinforce motivation and self-confidence!

To me, I can say I am succeeding in my role and as a leader when my team grows up.

Another passage from one of the latest video (8 Life Hacks That I Know at 44 That I Wish I Knew in My 20s) is about stopping comparing oneself (your “level 1”) to someone much further and higher (“level 17”). Most of the time, this is demoralising. However, comparing yourself to your yesterday self: “Am I a better version of me today compared to yesterday?” allows to take actions to improve, to progress towards your goals.

In turns, this means you should have goals and those should be broken down into smaller chunks (quarterly, monthly, weekly and even daily). And you should set indicators to effectively measure. Then tracking consistent progress will change the game. Your game.

Inner

I have not done my weekly planning and I can fill things are more floating, a bit more “on-the-go”.

I also fell short on my daily routine for a part of the week. Our daughter has been sick and was sleeping in our bed this week. Her comfort and wellbeing is paramount so I turned off the alarm and kept the phone out of the bedroom… and then overslept (I am feeling refreshed so cannot really complain!).

Our daughter is much better now 😌 so will resume my morning routine from Monday!

What is on the plate for next week?

Again, the agenda for next week is not fully defined, yet there are some important topics to cover:

Personal: to finalise a few details with the move from the Loire Valley to South of France, first big chunk of our relocation to France, and write the plan for the 7 days I will be there. There will be lots of things to do and the sequence of events will be crucial.

Professional: again and as expected, I will continue to update my profile. I will also add a dedicated section on this website (not done yet!)

Inner: I am thinking of introducing a debrief at the end of the day, capturing open topics, and already bringing them back to focus to start the following day more efficiently. Still need to walk more!

The last words

In a nutshell, this week I’m left with a mix feeling of accomplishment and I-could-have-done-more. Also anticipation for the week to come.

The journey of moving to a different country (even a known one), while exciting, is undoubtedly challenging. Yet l think I am succeeding in keeping the chaos-to-be under control. I’ve found solace in personal growth and professional development, and of course made all the time necessary for my family (that’s non-negotiable, my family comes first).

Stay tuned for more updates on my adventures in France, my professional endeavours, and my ongoing journey of self-discovery.👋🏻