43rd Edition: Starting September Strong š
What the French can teach us with their signature summer move
Welcome to August: the hottest yet most chill month of the yearāat least for those of us in the Northern Hemisphere. Take Parisāmy former homeāfor example.
August 2019 was my first summer in Paris. Iād been living there since October 2018 but I had to work remotely from Montreal the following July while my new work visa was being processed. And while it was incredible to spend the first part of the summer at home with friends and family, I couldnāt wait to experience my first summer in France.
Long before I made the trip back from Montreal, my Parisian friends had warned me that āeveryone leaves Paris in August.ā But I assumed they were exaggerating in the same vein many French people describe the slightest inconvenience as āhorribleā or ādisgustingāāa trait I find endearingāyou have to admire their fire. But in this case, there was one hell of an exodus.
āItās estimated that 40% of Parisians take time off during the summer months leaving the city to those who canāt take a breakāand tourists. The majority of French people take their holiday in Franceāand why not, thereās a massive choice of destinations and you could spend a lifetime of holidays here and never see it all.ā
During my first few days back in the office, there were but a handful of people working on my floor compared to the usual hundred or so. And the city as a whole seemed to be moving in slow motion, with mostly tourists wandering along the Seine or sat outside the bistros that surround it.
It seemed crazy to have āFOMOā when I was living in Paris but with nearly everyone I knew there posting Instagram stories galavanting around beach resorts, dining on mouth-watering seafood, and texting me updates, I was dying to join them in the South of France.
šŗ Ticket to Montpellier
As luck would have it, one of the perks of my job at the time was doing site visits at chĆ¢teaus-turned-venues for our team offsites. And it just so happened that I was asked to visit a potential new venue in Montpellier.
āMontpellier is a Mediterranean crossroads, a charming and exceptional destination. A medieval city where the town centre, Place de la ComĆ©die, FacultĆ© de MĆ©decine and Place Royale du Peyrou attract visitors from around the world. Montpellier is also a modern metropolis, open to contemporary architecture, science, culture and recreation.ā
I decided that since I had a return train fare to the South of France, I may as well make a āholidayā out of it. You have to seize opportunities, right?
Fast forward a couple of days, and I was settling into a window seat headed South.
š§š»āāļø Getting into alignment
A few hours later, I was being toured around āMontpellierās very own Versaillesāāalso known as ChĆ¢teau de Flaugergues.
āConstruction began in 1696 [ā¦] and went on for 45 years. Outside the chĆ¢teau, you can see endless, immaculate gardens, much like those of Versailles, and beyond them, a private vineyard. ChĆ¢teau de Flaugergues was passed down from one wealthy family to another through the years. It was classified as a historical monument in 1986.ā
Now, ChĆ¢teau de Flaugergues is a popular venue for weddings and corporate events. The property boasts an orangery, a rose garden, a park, andāwait for itāa bamboo plantation. Needless to say, itās pretty spectacular.
After touring the chĆ¢teau, exploring Montpellier, and rounding out my trip by relaxing on the beach, I felt back in alignment with āParis life.ā And I learned that the signature summer move of heading to the South of France is so popular that thereās an expression for the monumental return of workers to the office in September.
āāĆ la rentrĆ©e!ā is a French expression used to mean, āSee you in September!ā or āSee you this fall!ā When translated literally, the phrase means, āat the returnā.ā
āThoughtCo
If youāre working in Paris in August, youāre guaranteed to have your emails met with out-of-office messages saying, āsee you in September.ā And in most cases, itās futile to try scheduling meetings or anticipating collaboration with other people. Parisians are unapologetically unavailable during their vacationsāunlike North America, where thereās often pressure to āalways be reachable.ā
Even many restaurants board up their windows and post handwritten notesāthe original out-of-officeāsaying āEnjoy your summer. Weāll see you in September.ā Itās miraculous to me considering you would never see that in Montreal, or other cities in North America. Restaurants stay open at all costsāespecially during the summer when tourist numbers skyrocket. Hell, thatās business 101 on this side of the Atlantic.
But then again, you have to seize opportunities, right? If a quieter local scene affords Parisian restaurant owners the chance to take a holiday of their own, why not be unapologetically unavailable in August and ride the momentum of āla rentrĆ©eā to put their best foot forward in September?
š Planning for āla rentrĆ©eā
Maybe youāre taking time off in August, maybe not. But regardless, September is a month away and whether your country has a momentum-building expression for it or not, thereās a big wave of energy coming to mark the start of āa new work year.ā
The question is, what are you doing for yourself in August to ensure youāre ready to sprint alongside the rest of the workforce come September? I mean this in terms of:
Planning time off
Leveraging evenings and weekends for downtime
Doing activities that relax or energize you
Spending time outside and cutting back on screen time
If you struggle with setting boundaries and being unapologetically unavailable, ask yourself why. Consider thought patterns that may prevent you from doing these things and how you can create new ones inspired by the French.
You owe it to yourself to start September feeling fresh and ready to rise to exciting new challenges.
Thatās a wrap for today. Thanks for being one of my first 217 subscribers.
For those of you new to this burgeoning community of course creators and writers, you can check out past editions here. Also, feel free to hit reply with feedback. I would love to hear from you.
Have a wonder-full August,
P.S. Iām taking my own advice and writing you from my familyās cottage on a lake in the Laurentiansāa couple of hours outside of Montreal. Standby for photos next week.
"unapologetically unavailable" Just what I needed to hear Alexandra!
"You owe it to yourself" truer words were never spoken. Especially in this always-on world. Thanks for a great edition and looking forward to the photos.