This first-person narrative, derived from an in-depth conversation with Hayet Yasmine Chebbi—a 26-year-old content creator and podcaster living in Montreal—offers an expanded portrait of transformation, self-discovery, and recalibrated priorities. The essay has been refined for clarity and concision while maintaining the authenticity of her voice.
For the first twenty-four years of her life, Hayet’s entire world revolved around New York City. The skyline, the rhythm of the subway, and the perpetual motion of the city shaped her sense of identity. As a child, she could never imagine any future that did not unfold beneath the towering silhouettes of Manhattan. The city was not only a home but also an ecosystem that fueled her ambition and defined her sense of possibility.
However, the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 abruptly disrupted this familiar reality. Her college transitioned to remote instruction, dissolving the social and professional framework that once gave her life structure. At the same time, her contract position at Chanel—a highly sought-after role in the world of fashion—was unexpectedly terminated. She also found herself frustrated by what she perceived as an incoherent and inconsistent national response to the health crisis. The collective disarray of those months prompted a sharp inward reflection: while many people across the globe dreamt of beginning anew in New York City, she realized she longed to imagine a dream that bloomed elsewhere.
By 2023, that conviction solidified into action. She left a secure corporate position in marketing, relinquished the predictable climb of a conventional career trajectory, and relocated to Montreal to live with her husband while establishing her own business. Although financial uncertainty and occasional cultural adjustments have followed, the shift has brought an unexpected calm to her nervous system. The slower tempo of life, the reprioritization of well-being, and the natural rhythm of the city have collectively granted her a more sustainable peace of mind.
Initially, Dubai appeared to offer the perfect solution. After graduating in 2021, Hayet sought temporary escape from New York’s intensity by spending a month in Dubai. The experience swept her away—the gleaming infrastructure, the remarkable efficiency, the pristine urban design, and the mirrored sense of opportunity reminded her of New York’s dynamism, yet without its chaos. She envisioned herself building a career there, surrounded by innovation and ambition.
During that same trip, fate intervened: a friend introduced her to the man who would later become her husband, a Montreal-based resident. Their connection was immediate and meaningful, quickly developing into a long-distance relationship that saw her oscillating between New York and Montreal for two years. Despite her growing attachment to him, her career ambitions initially remained pointed toward Dubai, a city she continued to associate with professional promise. Her husband, fully supportive of her independence and drive, encouraged her to follow the path that would best serve her aspirations.
Concurrently, Hayet continued to navigate the demanding culture of corporate America. She secured a position at Christian Dior in New York as an e-commerce client advisor—a role that required precision, perseverance, and unrelenting energy. Later, she transitioned into a marketing role at a major media company, further embedding herself in a world defined by deadlines and prestige. Yet the deeper she climbed the corporate ladder, the more she felt its invisible weight. Her days became an exhausting cycle of long hours, restless nights, skipped lunches, and weekends hijacked by unfinished projects. The relentless hustle yielded professional recognition but eroded her well-being. Her mental health quietly frayed as her body signaled fatigue, and she began to question whether “success” had come at too steep a price.
Over time, the truth became unavoidable: she could no longer sacrifice her physical and emotional equilibrium to meet arbitrary measures of achievement. The hypercompetitive mindset that dominated her environment had led to burnout rather than satisfaction. In stepping back, she realized that while professional accomplishment had once defined her self-worth, genuine fulfillment required harmony and space for rest.
Her earlier vision of Dubai eventually faded under practical scrutiny. The city’s high cost of living and limited entry-level compensation rendered it financially unsustainable. What she truly sought was not mere prestige but rather an affordable, balanced, and creatively stimulating lifestyle. Montreal, with its multicultural energy and livable pace, presented itself as the ideal compromise.
By late 2023, she and her husband married, and she formally relocated to Montreal under a work permit connected to his residency. Determined to maintain her creative independence, she established her own limited liability company—technically registered in the United States—as the foundation for her work in content creation and podcasting. Though revenue has not yet reached consistency, she sustains financial stability through babysitting, a flexible side endeavor that allows her to nurture her business at her own pace. Her husband has shouldered the majority of household expenses, but she remains optimistic as she witnesses incremental growth and expanding opportunity in her creative ventures.
Montreal has proven to be a fertile environment for someone in the creative industry. The city’s deep appreciation for contemporary art, music, and culture nourishes her imagination. She has surrounded herself with a diverse network of artists and musicians—individuals whose passion reinvigorates her own. Through them, she has redefined success, not as relentless corporate progress but as the act of crafting meaning and expression.
Still, not all transitions have been effortless. The city’s linguistic and climatic differences have required adaptation. In Montreal, where French dominates daily interactions, she initially struggled to keep up in conversations among her husband’s friends. To bridge the gap, she enrolled in a remarkable three-month, government-funded language and cultural integration course. Thanks to that effort, she can now confidently navigate conversations in shops, offices, and community spaces.
The weather, too, demands fortitude. For roughly half the year, the city lies buried in snow. Coming from New York, where snowfall often meant celebratory school closures and a sense of communal play, she has had to acclimate to the reality that in Montreal, it takes a blizzard of exceptional scale to merit cancellation. The novelty of winter transformed from wonder to endurance, reshaping her relationship with the seasons.
Yet even these challenges have contributed to a newfound sense of equilibrium. Life in Montreal imbues her days with the relaxed rhythm often associated with European culture. Long lunches, hours spent lingering at cafés, and an unhurried approach to daily living coexist with the entrepreneurial spark reminiscent of New York. The city encourages presence and mindfulness. Something as simple as observing that Montrealers stand still on escalators—rather than rushing upward as New Yorkers instinctively do—highlighted this shift in collective pace.
One small but telling incident crystallized this difference: while jogging down the street to make a hair appointment, she noticed passersby glaring with quiet confusion. In that moment, she understood that urgency no longer governed her surroundings. For the first time, she felt permitted to slow down—to arrive, rather than perpetually chase arrival.
Although she misses New York’s electrifying pulse—the creativity that seems to surge through its streets and the unending supply of inspiration—the city’s absence has allowed her to construct a more intentional life. Still, change remains a constant. She and her husband plan to relocate to Toronto in 2026, aiming for a smoother immigration process and future opportunities. New York, however, continues to occupy a sacred corner of her identity. It remains her formative landscape, a place she might one day return to should career and family circumstances align.
Looking back, she acknowledges that she once surrendered her well-being on the altar of corporate success, enriching her bank account while impoverishing her spirit. Today, she measures prosperity differently. Her life in Montreal has taught her that ambition does not have to manifest as exhaustion and that success, too, can be nurtured through gentleness, patience, and rest. In choosing stillness over speed, she has not abandoned progress—she has simply redefined it.
Sourse: https://www.businessinsider.com/left-corporate-job-moved-from-nyc-to-montreal-culture-shocks-2025-10
