My story

I know one thing for certain: leaping into the unknown in search of meaning takes courage. I walked that path myself—moving from medical studies, where I completed the theoretical portion of a medical doctorate, to following my intuition and existential questions. Those questions led me to deeply explore spirituality—through meditation retreats, Indigenous communities, and wellness and spiritual communities—to travel all around the world, then to rebuild a career in the business world and rise to the consulting firm McKinsey… before ultimately leaving to live in the forest and work for myself, in search of greater freedom 😜

I feel like I spent the last 10 years exploring and testing, while gradually carving a life that truly suits me and honours my deepest talents and passions.Today, it is with great joy that I put this entire journey at the service of collective well-being, whether through my social media, talks, or work with organizations.

A bit more about my path:

🩺 The beginning: medicine

Maybe because people hadn’t believed in me before, or maybe because I sensed it would serve me later on, I chose the path of academic performance. Honestly, it came a bit out of nowhere—before the end of high school, I wasn’t particularly studious. Yet just before CEGEP (for our French friends, CEGEP is roughly equivalent to the final years of high school/pre-university), I decided to give it everything I had.

It paid off—I earned excellent grades. Always driven by a desire to help others, I told myself I would go into medicine. Positive social pressure certainly played a role as well.

“You should totally go into medicine—you have the grades for it!”

I was accepted into every medical faculty I applied to and began my doctorate at 18 years old. Yes—18.

Despite my academic success, the reality of the medical field was not what I had hoped for. From the very first day in class, imagining the rest of my life in medicine triggered a deep sense of anxiety—a kind of vertigo. I didn’t recognize myself in that world. I remember doubting my choice and imagining myself as a teacher—or honestly, almost anything else. After completing the theoretical portion of the doctorate, persistent questions began to arise… and not just a few.

• Am I truly happy?

• Do I really want to become a doctor?

• There is something else. There has to be something else for me.

If these doubts were occasional at first, they quickly became constant. At the same time, I was introduced to spirituality. Eckhart Tolle’s The Power of Now was the gateway—and it quite literally turned my life upside down: my perceptions, my way of understanding the world around me, what I was doing, and who I was.

🪷 The search for meaning

My professional questions gradually expanded into existential ones.

• What is the purpose of life?

• Why am I here?

It was the beginning of what I believe can rightly be called an existential crisis. Driven by this search for meaning, I decided to take a gap year. After a year spent mostly traveling alone—working on farms in France, being hosted through the generosity of Indigenous communities in Québec, walking the Camino de Santiago, attending a Vipassana meditation retreat, staying with a Muslim family in Morocco—in short, exploring both the world and myself—some of these questions began to find answers.

And the answer was not medicine.

It became clear that becoming a doctor was not my dream. That it never truly had been. That I had boarded a train without really knowing whether it would deeply suit me.

At 21, I left it all behind and officially walked away. Was it easy? Nope. Especially since I did it without support (I do not recommend this approach!) and because a bachelor’s degree in medicine does not, on its own, grant access to a profession. Concretely, it allows you to practice nothing—not even a related role such as a patient care attendant, for example. I had everything to discover and understand about the job market, and I felt very alone facing this vast jungle of infinite potential career paths.

💼 Professional exploration

Knowing what you don’t want in life is one thing. I quickly realized that knowing what you do want is another. I had a lot of exploring to do.

I told myself that trying everything that attracted me—or had attracted me in the past—would be a good way to help carve my own path. There were no excuses, and I dared. I dared to learn how to code, to take entrepreneurship courses, to explore all kinds of things—even quirky ones, like Brazilian samba (I was really good at it!!).

But it wasn’t easy. I felt like I was facing a lot of judgment for taking this less conventional path of exploration (even though it’s so valuable). It’s also worth noting that ten years ago, spirituality and meditation were NOT cool—certainly not mainstream the way they somewhat are today. I honestly looked strange being so devoted to answering my existential questions just as much as my professional ones.

Still, I am (very) happy I did it. It is the foundation of my life today—of the confidence I have (at times), and of the few certainties I hold deeply. What’s fascinating is that when you allow yourself to explore, to try, and sometimes to quit, you always move forward. You evolve. You learn—even when it feels like you’re moving backward. Learning how to hold your body in dance can help you learn how to speak in public. Learning to code can help you solve business problems.

After exploring the business world through a few courses, and guided by a strong intuition that this field would suit me, I decided to fully commit to it.

I returned to school and eventually rose to the most prestigious consulting firm in the world—McKinsey—which came with its fair share of challenges (🥵).

🌲 The desire for freedom

Quite quickly, despite landing what many would call a dream job, a deep desire for freedom emerged.

• What if I became a freelancer, to have more control over my time?

There was also a strong pull toward nature.

• I already own land—technically, couldn’t I just put a tiny home on it?

So in 2023, I started my own business and decided to go live in nature, on my land, in a tiny house.

This major shift attracted media attention: Journal de Montréal, Newsweek, TVA Nouvelles, and even a few radio stations covered the story.

🤝🏻 Today

The desire to help and be useful has never left me.
It certainly won't be with a lab coat and prescriptions, but today it's through sharing—reflections, experiences, and tools—that I contribute in my own way.

My years in healthcare, business, and coaching (I am also a certified coach!) have given me a deep understanding of both the professional and human worlds, which I share with simplicity and authenticity.

If what I share resonates with you or your organization, feel free to reach out. I would be delighted to explore how we might work together :)

With kindness,
Marie