Jo Cowling, a mortgage broker for International Private Finance, a London-based firm specialising in mortgages for international properties, recently took a three-month sabbatical to help build schools and protect wildlife in Madagascar, a sizeable island off the southeast coast of Africa.
Ms Cowling, who said her employer was fully supportive of her plans to take three months of unpaid leave, said she was keen to go somewhere different with the aim of helping people. “To be honest, before leaving for my three-month sabbatical I was in a bit of a rut. I enjoyed my job, but it was starting to get repetitive and I felt I needed something.
“I just felt I needed a change. I wanted to do something different and give something back and thankfully the company I work for, despite being small, was keen to encourage it and see people return fresh and motivated.”
While living simply and doing manual labour in the blazing sun may not sound like everyone’s cup of tea, Ms Cowling said it was a fantastic experience that enhanced her outlook. Aside from making her more appreciative of what she had at home, she said the experience was also beneficial from a work perspective as it transformed her into a less judgemental person and a better team player.
She said: “Out there the general culture sees more people helping each other. There is much more of a community spirit – kind of like how it was here in the UK 100 years ago – and that definitely helped me in dealing with people. Now I am less judgemental, more relaxed, more extrovert and definitely better at working in a team and getting on with people.”
During her stay, Ms Cowling worked on a number of different projects for a UK-based charity, Azafady, which is dedicated to alleviating poverty in Madagascar by empowering the poor to establish sustainable lifestyles. As a Francophile, Ms Cowling said the appeal of going to a small French-speaking island in need of help appealed and that she was determined to work with a small charity to feel more involved.
