The 5 reasons I quit banking to go in on a château with 60 women
I had been working in banking since 1996. In 2022, I quit and went in on a château in the south-west of France with 60 women. Why?
1. I was burned out.
Oh yes I know, we all are. But I was hiding from it with “I’m fine, I’ve got this, I can do this for a few more years, it’s not that bad”.
I was doing the work, doing my best to stay engaged and putting all my efforts into trying to bring about positive change around me. And then I was suddenly laid off last summer and I was surprised to find that I went through very different stages of grief than I expected. Yes, there was shock and anger, but I flew through those in a couple of days and before I got to the expected numbness and acceptance, I experienced absolute relief. I then quickly moved from relief to excitement.
It only took me about a week to realise I did not want to go find another high stress job in finance — ever again. I was done with this period of my career. I was ready for something boldly different. I was ready for joy.
Now I could do the bold thing that I had wanted to do, but dare not do. If I had not been laid off, I would have felt compelled by responsibility to do the safe thing. Now I was free to do the brave thing instead.
2. I had a dream.
From when I was a teenager, I have always dreamed of buying a run down little hamlet in France and turning it into a summer camp for children. I grew up in the United Kingdom and we often went to France for our summer holidays. I learned french in school from the age of 9 and felt comfortable and happy when ordering a croissant in a little village somewhere deep in the french countryside.
I thought that all children should experience this and I dreamed of a camp full of kids running and jumping and laughing under the hot Mediterranean sun.
I quietly watered that seed of a dream for years. Every Sunday morning for the last 10 years I have been looking at a weekly email from french-property.com — waiting for something to be too enticing to resist. It finally arrived in my inbox in May 2021 — a 12th century château set in 20 acres, with three pools, three extra buildings and a hillside that was begging to be turned into a vineyard.
3. I am a woman.
Thirty years in a patriarchal industry takes its toll on a woman, let me tell you. We are told to be less emotional, to be more forceful, to be less pushy, to listen more, to speak up, to be satisfied with our lane, to be more ambitious, to be more, to be less, to be other than who we are. Its exhausting.
In the last 10 years I have stopped giving women advice on how to be more like a man so that they can be successful, and instead have focused on how to model authenticity and vulnerability. These are traits women tend to be good at and that lead to really healthy leadership styles. I have become passionate about creating spaces where people can show up as their whole selves and be included, really included.
So the camp for kids dream has evolved into a camp for women dream. How amazing would it be for women to be able to come to a tranquil, beautiful place in France where they can just be themselves and have a chance to relax and rejuvenate? Come as you are. Do whatever you want. Eat great food, drink great wine. Dabble in watercolors or kayaking or jam making or whatever brings you joy.
As I walked around the grounds of Château de Beduer in September 2021, I imagined a camp full of women running and jumping and laughing under the hot Mediterranean sun. They deserved this too.
4. I wanted more sisterhood.
I was bored with being one of a couple of women in a room full of men. We are 50% of the world — where on Earth were all the women? I wanted to drown myself in women. I wanted to see what it would be like to work with many many many women.
My two co-founders are two amazing women in my life — my best friend and my eldest daughter. Its wonderful working with them.
We have formed a company that is designed for women and we have built it with women. We are funded by women and to date have 60 fabulous women founding members who have pooled their investments so that we can establish Camp Château together. We come from all walks of life and from multiple countries, we are multi-racial, of all ages and are drawn together by a common purpose — to be somewhere beautiful where we are fully accepted and can just be.
My co-founder Lynda is 54 years old, is quitting her job as an admin professional this Spring, and is moving to Paris to learn French before coming to the château for the summer camp season. My co-founder Leah is 34 years old and says, “I think when women join together, unpredictable and transformative things happen. That, on top of the inspiring nature and activities, has motivated me from the start.”
Diana is 58 and lived in Birmingham, England for decades where she was a dental assistant. I met her through my family last Spring and told her about Camp Château. By Christmas, she had sold her home and moved her husband and two dogs to live at the château as the property manager. She says, “we are so excited to be here and can’t wait to meet the Camp Château Founding Members this summer.”
Kanungnij is a flight service manager from Dubai. She’s a founding member because “women from around the world will get to celebrate their authentic selves.”
Wanda has advocated for affordable housing and economic opportunity for women and minority-owned businesses since the 80s and is ready to “invest in herself and embrace the freedom of retirement.”
Cathyann is a veterinarian from New Jersey and decided to join because “women need to support women in business and in life’s adventures.”
Louise is an adorer of the region and a civil servant from England who can’t wait to “share a glass of chilled white wine in the early evening with a group of new friends, watching the sun go down surrounded by laughter and positivity.”
Our first camp sessions are this summer. There will be running (or strolling) and jumping (or lazing) and there will definitely be laughing. There will be joy.
5. I have privilege, skills, courage and community
I have privilege. I had the opportunity to leave my job because I had saved enough. I had saved enough because over and over again I have been given opportunities that others have not. It’s my responsibility to acknowledge that and to keep listening to our BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ founding members and campers to hear and amplify their voices, all the time. I will keep looking for ways to use my privilege to create inclusive spaces and to provide access to those spaces.
I have skills. We get so stuck in our lane sometimes that we don’t even see all of the skills we have picked up along the way that absolutely could be used for something else entirely. Over the past 30 years I have become a bit of an expert in my field of risk management (wrote a textbook, got my PhD in the subject, taught at universities — became a total risk management nerd actually). I am trained as a lawyer too (what can I tell you — I love school).
It turns out that the skills you need to be an entrepreneur are risk management, authentic leadership, good math, strong communication and a sprinkling of legal knowledge. Check.
And yes, I have courage. I am braver than I feel. Braver than I look. Actually, you can skip all the skills-stuff and just have courage. You can learn the skills.
If you want to pivot from your lane, bring your friends, your family, your network with you. You are not trapped, you are skilled and courageous and you’re not alone. Be true to yourself, and who knows, 60 other people might want to go in on it with you.
Philippa Girling is CEO of Camp Château, a summer camp for women in SW France. She was Chief Risk Officer at several US banks, is an international speaker on diversity, equity and inclusion and on risk management and is author of Operational Risk Management: A Complete Guide for Banking and Fintech. Follow her on LinkedIn. Follow Camp Château on Instagram, Facebook, and join their mail list.
