Leap Like Me

Sherry Ott planned to take a 12-18 month career break from her corporate IT job in New York City. She was 36 years old and felt like she needed a break. Then, once on the road, she realized she didn't want to stop traveling. She loved having so many new experiences every day. The next step then was to figure out how to keep traveling and make money. Eventually, she decided to totally let go of her possessions and apartment in NYC to become a full-time travel nomad. Today, 11 years later, Sherry makes her living as a freelance writer and photographer, public speaker and social media marketing consultant. In this interview with host Lisa Hoashi, Sherry talks about how the break allowed her to discover what other strengths and skills she had to offer in her work; how her own creative career evolved with the global changes in technology and online businesses; what she enjoyed most about her nomadic lifestyle; and what made her decide to semi-settle down in Denver, Colorado. She gives candid advice on how to overcome the fears that are involved in taking big life leaps, how to try out a digital nomad career, and how to plan a career break that will only enhance your career prospects on your return. Today's show is the last for Season 1 - Sabbaticals of Leap Like Me. We'll be back for a new season, and new focus in the new year. Thanks for all your support as we got the show underway this fall, and keep sharing the show with others you think you'll enjoy it! Show notes at www.lisahoashi.com. Follow us! Lisa Hoashi: @lisahoashi. Join the Leap Like Me Community on Facebook. Theme music by Far Pines Music.

At age 30, Kim Dinan gave up everything she'd worked for to chase a dream. She convinced her husband to uproot their comfortable life in Portland, Oregon, to go after something she really wanted deep down inside: to travel the world, and to write. They sold their house, got rid of most of their possessions, and set off on a journey that ended up lasting several years. All along the way, she wrote, starting with a blog called So Many Places, that began to gain a large, loyal following. In April 2017, Kim then realized another of her greatest dreams, which was to see her own book on the shelves of her favorite bookstores. Her memoir, The Yellow Envelope, chronicles her and her husband's sabbatical journey and also how they ended up giving small charitable gifts to people they met along the way. In this interview, Kim shares with host Lisa Hoashi what went into her decision to take her sabbatical leap, how she and her husband made it happen, and how she used her break to become a professional writer.

Dan Grec's first big adventure was to quit his engineering job in Calgary, Canada, to drive his Jeep from Alaska to Argentina on a budget of just $10,000. In this interview, host Lisa Hoashi catches up with Dan on his second big overland adventure to circumnavigate Africa solo, a trip that he planned to take about two years and cover 80,000 miles. Dan talks about growing up as a middle class kid in Victoria, Australia, he never expected to lead such a fun, adventurous life, how he had saved and planned for his overland trips, how he has set up his "house on wheels", what his experiences in Africa have taught him, and what he's learned about how he wants to balance working, money and having time to enjoy life. Show notes at www.lisahoashi.com. Follow us! Lisa Hoashi: @lisahoashi. Join the Leap Like Me Community on Facebook. Theme music by Far Pines Music.

While many people would dream of taking their sabbatical in Barcelona, Laura Tobaruela left that city because she felt that if she stayed put, living this typical urban life, with a comfortable office job and apartment, she would regret it later. So Laura planned and set off on a sabbatical trip, even though it wasn't a common thing to do within her culture. And even though the financial crisis that had gripped Spain made many people around her even more risk averse. Laura initially intended to travel for a year, yet continues her journey even now three and a half years later. Along the way she's made many personal discoveries that have changed everything about how she views her future. In this interview, Laura talks about the deeper, more spiritual change that can come from stepping out of your known world and into a "parallel universe." How a leap like this builds self confidence. Opens up new possibility. Unlocks your creativity. And reveals what you most value and how you want to live your life – and where. Show notes at www.lisahoashi.com. Follow us! Lisa Hoashi: @lisahoashi. Join the Leap Like Me Community on Facebook. Theme music by Far Pines Music.

Originally from India, Sumitha Bhandarkar was a software engineer in her mid-30s. She was living the American Dream in Austin, Texas, with her husband and young daughter, when a family health crisis served a wake-up call. Sumitha realized how unhappy she'd become, and how much it was damaging her relationship with her husband and her daughter, the two most important people in her life. Determined to change, she traced the her discontent back to her career. Yet there were two big barriers to making a big career change. One was that she'd invested so much time, money and effort into her work and her education. Plus, this well-paid career was what was expected of her and had won the approval of her middle-class Indian family. In our conversation, hear how Sumitha used a sabbatical break to make her career transition gradually, and in the process discovered a hobby that she was able to turn into a profitable business. Today Sumitha is the mastermind behind the parenting website, www.AFineParent.com, which was viewed more than 4 million times in the past year. She also hosts the free annual online Positive Parenting Conference, attended by 33,000 parents this year. Show notes at www.lisahoashi.com. Follow us! Lisa Hoashi: @lisahoashi. Join the Leap Like Me Community on Facebook. Theme music by Far Pines Music.

When you finally open yourself up to life's possibility, amazing things can happen. This week, host Lisa Hoashi shares the full story of what happened on her own sabbatical -- what unfolded after her last day of work. She's given up everything: her career, her apartment and most of her possessions, and her life and community in Portland, Oregon. Her solo journey tests her physical and emotional limits, and is guided by an array of surprising characters along the way. A retired Microsoft executive gives her invaluable advice in a Washington old growth forest. A persuasive friend compels her to ditch her well-laid plans and board a plane to Provence. A Catalan farmer invites her to visit his farm north of Barcelona and she falls in love, both with the place and the man. Lisa's journey might have ended here, if it wasn't for an expiring Schengen visa. Forced to continue her journey, she finds herself alone again (and miserable) in Buenos Aires. Then, a 23-year-old German girl invites her on a crazy adventure to hitchhike all the way to Tierra del Fuego. It's the adventure of a lifetime, but will it take her too far from her new love? This is a story of navigating one series of unknowns to another and listening to your heart at every crossroads, until the way reveals itself at last. Today, Lisa lives on the farm with her Catalan farmer and their daughter, where she runs her own coaching business for others on similar journeys. Show notes at www.lisahoashi.com. Follow us! Lisa Hoashi: @lisahoashi. Join the Leap Like Me Community on Facebook. Theme music by Far Pines Music.

"Every good sabbatical story can be divided into two parts: Everything that happens before your last day of work, and everything that happens after." In this episode, Leap Like Me host Lisa Hoashi shares the first half of her sabbatical story. She candidly speaks about why she took her one-year sabbatical at age 34 – which included her lifelong dream for adventure and travel, a realization that her life wasn't on the right track and the need to recover from work stress and burnout. She also recalls the big fears that she had to face before she could move forward, about her future career prospects, running out of money, not living up to others' expectations, and even, missing the chance at finding a life partner and starting a family. Lisa shares the practical ways she dealt with these fears, designed her year off, and got through all the logistics, budgeting and tough conversations. Her sabbatical transformed her life: Pre-sabbatical, she lived in Portland, Oregon and worked in humanitarian aid and international development communications. Her typical U.S. singles urban life included long hours at the office, weekend fun with friends, and attempts to find love in the dating scene. By the end of her 12-month sabbatical, she'd found love, moved to a farm north of Barcelona to enjoy a simpler life close to nature, and started her own business – and had the adventure of a lifetime. She'll tell that story on next week's show. Show notes at www.lisahoashi.com. Follow us! Lisa Hoashi: @lisahoashi. Join the Leap Like Me Community on Facebook. Theme music by Far Pines Music.

By all appearances, Judy Lin's life and career were going just fine. A business-school graduate, she was quickly building a successful career in strategic planning at Turner Broadcasting in Atlanta. Yet she couldn't shake the sense that she was on a corporate conveyor belt, and needed to be re-inspired. One night, watching television after a stressful day at work, she was captivated by the image of a boat sailing off into the sunset. She wanted that too. Despite having no sailing experience, she made a plan to leave her career to join a sailboat in the Caribbean. Her adventure eventually lasted 12 months, taking her all the way to the South Pacific. Lisa's interview with Judy, whose sabbatical was 15 years ago, offers perspective into the way that an adventurous break to learn a whole new set of skills can enhance all aspects of your life and career, far into the future. Today, Judy lives in the Bay Area with her husband and two young sons, and is the Chief Operating Officer of NatureBridge. Show notes at www.lisahoashi.com. Follow us! Lisa Hoashi: @lisahoashi. Join the Leap Like Me Community on Facebook. Theme music by Far Pines Music.

Sitinee Sheffert and her husband are on a very unique family sabbatical, with a very clear goal. They recently sold their house in a Chicago suburb to spend 15 months testing out three cities: Park City, Utah; Austin, TX, and Denver, Colorado. Afterward, they'll sit down as a family and decide where to live. Also – it's important to note: They have 5 kids, ranging in age from 11 to 8 months. In this interview we talk about the logistics involved in an experiment like this, including how the Shefferts decided to downsize and to homeschool. We talk about the reasons why they decided to take this leap – including their desire for a less hectic pace of life and a stronger family bond. Sitinee also shares how her background as a Thai-American made the decision to move away from Chicago especially tough. Show notes at www.lisahoashi.com. Follow us! Lisa Hoashi: @lisahoashi. Join the Leap Like Me Community on Facebook. Theme music by Far Pines Music.

In Sarah William's case, a sabbatical led to the discovery of her true calling -- and a new mission-driven business venture. After eight years working in banking in London, Sarah realized that she didn't want to spend the rest of her life in that career. Though initially hounded by feelings of failure, she quit her job to take a year off to travel. Her adventures included climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro and backpacking South America. That time and space helped her uncover her greatest passions: a life of adventure, and the desire to motivate women and girls to pursue their own big challenges. She started the Tough Girl podcast, which features interviews with inspirational women of all ages who have overcome great challenges. It is now listened to in 174 countries around the world and surpassed 600,000 downloads. Hear Sarah's candid account of how she used a sabbatical to discover her mission in life, and what she then did to turn that into a business. Show notes at www.lisahoashi.com. Follow us! Lisa Hoashi: @lisahoashi. Join the Leap Like Me Community on Facebook. Theme music by Far Pines Music.