Do it now.
Several years ago Emily Nancolas was working long hours as a primary school teacher. She was leaving the house at 6am and often not returning until after 8 in the evening. It was a job she was passionate about, but one that was all-consuming and exhausting. Emily never saw her partner, Adam, who was commuting to London each day. “We would pass out in front of the television each evening. Then we would spend weekends catching up with work, or house chores, or travelling to see family. It felt like a never-ending loop”.
They had toyed with the idea of taking a sabbatical to travel. But Emily was working towards a promotion and they decided it wasn’t the right time. One day she called Adam in tears, that she didn’t get the job. “I returned that evening to a bottle of champagne and a giddy boyfriend. This was it, he said, the sign we had been waiting for. It was time to chase our dreams of sailing the world”.
Time to Escape the 9 to 5
In just a few months’ time, Emily and Adam both handed in their notice. They bought an old, cheap sailboat in Sicily, knowing nothing at all about sailing. They slowly but surely started figuring it all out. “We sailed the 38ft cutter, Hot Chocolate, over to Greece. It was our first multi-day passage, watching shooting stars in the middle of the ocean and dolphins dancing in our bow waves.”
They read ‘Get Real, Get Gone’ which helped push them to make the move onto a sailboat. It’s also the reason they decided to produce their own guidebook. They found the content useful but a little outdated. “We wanted to help others take the leap as we had been encouraged to do. It’s always so exciting to get emails from buyers who have just moved aboard and are starting out because of our book or website!”
Emily and Adam worked hard on their sailing website. It is now their full-time income and a job they can do remotely from the sailboat on their own timeline. They quickly realized there were others out there wanting to escape in the same way, with no idea how. Sso after several years they put together a guide on ‘How to run away to sea’. They detailing how to make the move sooner rather than later, how to find your dream boat, learn to sail and how to make the lifestyle work.
Weathering Stormy Sea
It hasn’t always been smooth sailing for Emily and Adam. They’ve weathered huge storms, had engine failures at sea, and nearly sunk the boat (twice!) But they’ve also learned to move their home using the power of the wind, use the sun for power, make their own water from the sea, and catch fish from their backyard. “We have seen every magical sunset and waves as tall as buildings. We’ve been terrified and awe-struck and everything in between. And we are finally living the life we always dreamed.”
Luckily Covid actually forced them to focus full time on our business. It is probably the reason they have managed to make it successful. Emily and Adam were stuck in a boatyard when the first lockdown hit. This meant they had a lot of time to focus on business! Although the numbers of readers took a hit initially as no one was travelling, they were able to focus on producing better content and their readership increased as the world started to open up again.
Life Comes Together
“The biggest lesson I have learnt through our ‘great escape’ is that things do fall into place. I used to think that was just what lucky people said (and trust me, I’m not one of the lucky ones!) but it really is true. I used to focus on the big picture, worrying about every tiny thing not being perfectly aligned. But since we left and started afresh I have learnt to just keep putting one foot in front of the other and things just seem to happen. Sometimes not in the way you want, but there is always a solution. I went from not even owning my own laptop, to creating a website and all its content from scratch. You just have to keep going.”
One of the best things about having this freedom is the effect it has had on their mental health. While teaching, Emily’s anxiety was through the roof. She was constantly worrying about work. “I can only see now, having taken a step back, just how exhausted I was all the time. Don’t get me wrong, we have our fair share of down days on board. But without the constant low lying stress they are so much easier to manage.”
There are still plenty of adventures ahead for Emily and Adam. They just upgraded boats and bought a catamaran. It needs A LOT of work so it’s a big project. They hope that when it’s finished it will be ready to cross some oceans. Additionally, they are working with some fantastic brands who have already taught them a lot about improving technology available for sailors. Emily and Adam are excited to start sharing reviews and the things they’ve learning with their readers.
Catch up with Emily and Adam and progress on the new boat at https://www.twogetlost.com
