Adventures in Opting Out

A Field Guide to Leading an Intentional Life

By: Cait Flanders

Narrated by: Christine Lakin

Length: 6 hrs and 18 mins

Publisher's summary

Opt out of expectations and live a more intentional life with this refreshing guide from the national best-selling author of The Year of Less.

We all follow our own path in life. At least, that's what we're told. In reality, many of us either do what is expected of us, or follow the invisible but well-worn paths that lead to what is culturally acceptable. For some, those paths are fine - even great. But they leave some of us feeling disconnected from ourselves and what we really want. When that discomfort finally outweighs the fear of trying something new, we're ready to opt out.

After going through this process many times, Cait Flanders found there is an incredible parallel between taking a different path in life and the psychological work it takes to summit a mountain - especially when you decide to go solo. In Adventures in Opting Out, she offers a trail map to help you with both. As you'll see, reaching the first viewpoint can be easy - and it offers a glimpse of what you're walking toward. Climbing to the summit for the full view is worth it. But in the space between those two peaks you will enter a world completely unknown to you, and that is the most difficult part of the path to navigate.

With Flanders's guidance and advice, drawn from her own journey and stories of others, you'll have all the encouragement and insight you'll need to take the path less traveled and create the life you want. Just step up to the trailhead and expect it to be an adventure.

©2020 Cait Flanders (P)2020 Hachette Audio

Critic reviews

“I emerged from Adventures in Opting Out feeling courageous. In these pages, Cait Flanders does more than simply inspire us to live with more depth and authenticity. She gives us rare, practical guidance on reaching beyond outworn cultural norms to discover - and to follow - the adventure that is ours alone to create.” (Lyanda Lynn Haupt, author of Mozart's Starling)

Lovely, peaceful, kind.

Firstly, although the reading was well done I miss Cait’s voice. I listened to her first book, year of less, in her own voice and was a bit sad this one was narrated by someone else, however she did do an excellent job.
Her first book was extremely motivating and I have both listened to and read it. This one is a more gentle approach. I got a lot out of it, but I didn’t love it as much because it felt like there were some redundancies and I would have appreciated less overview and more actual narrative. This is a picky thing, and I don’t intend it to undermine the content, which is good.

Love Cait Flanders!

She is so relatable. I am so happy she came out with another book and I am looking forward to the next (if that is part of her next adventure). Thank you, Cait!

I wish my rating were higher

I really enjoyed The Year of Less, and so I guess my expectations for this book were high. Sadly, I don’t think this book gave any radically new insight or surprising information that wasn’t either covered in the previous book or just obvious. I didn’t love the hiking metaphors and the overall giving me advice. I wish it had been more of a personal account where the reader can choose what to take for their own lives, instead of being told what to do. I’m sorry :(

Enjoyed Reading this!

I really liked to hear about Cait's adventures. I have been opting out of things too and it has made me happier. It's great to hear others stories and I love that she reminds you that everyone will have their own unique to them opt out. Also a great reminder that failure is ok and you might hate the opt out you are trying and there's no reason to keep up with something that doesn't suit you.

Perfect Timing

When the Stident is ready, the teacher appears.
I’ll be retiring from the military at the end of this year and this book has helped to open my mind to possibilities focused on my true desires. So I bought a Lamborghini last week and wonder where and with whom the next chapter will be written 😊

It's all an adventure...

I am a very outdoorsy girl and this book was a wonderful easy read. What a creative way to sharing a self help book with opening up the mind to adventure to choose, create our own pathway to follow.

Unique Literal and Metaphorical Outlook

Cait offers a Unique Literal and Metaphorical Outlook on how she discovered how to live her life, and how she continues to live her life

Perfect companion

As I’m thinking more about what to do next, and what do I want my life to look like… this book has been a perfect companion. Like having a friend as a sounding board, in a way. Because the author is so grounded, honest, insightful. Not a ‘self help’ book in tone or content - more real (and helpful) than that. I’m sure I’ll keep coming back to this book again through my life. Also the narration is excellent. I’ve heard the author speak on podcasts and at first thought she was narrating. It’s professionally and very well narrated - but what’s really unusual is how well the narrator seems to channel the essence of the way the author probably would speak these words. That’s a rare find - and makes listening to this book even better.

Excellent

Loved the book and message presented. Great listen after "The Year of Opting Out".

Story of a pretty ordinary life

There are a few good points in the book and the performance is actually very good, that's why I'm still giving it 3 stars.
However, this book is mainly helpful if you're emotionally pretty damaged and insecure. A big part of the book and major concern of the author is how to deal with what other people think of her plans. Who cares? Maybe I'm just too old and that's the main concern for today's social media generation, but why should this matter? In addition, the author is so crazily self-absorbed, it's amazing how her really pretty ordinary life (some vegan, single girl who decides to travel to Europe for a few months) is made into a book. As the author notices herself in one of the last chapters, once she actually looks up at other people and doesn't only see "me, me", she sees that essentially her whole family had more interesting and extraordinary lives than her, and if she would actually look around a bit further, so do most other people in the world.
I few good points and comments, otherwise just some self-absorbed Northamerican girl ranting about her pretty normal life, trying to make herself feel like she's special.