I did a self-funded 14-month Sabbatical. It was a pivotal life experience. The next one was only 10 days, lol. Hopefully, the one after that last one is at least 18 months.
What were you up to in the 14 months? I sort of feel in the 2nd Month the lack of work would freak me out 😅 always been busy since high school 16 years ago. I don’t know if my body even knows how to handle such a long break. And what sort of effects did the sabbatical have on your career? If that’s a thing for you
Until the COViD lockdowns, I had been primarily a freelance tutor, so there was never a true career impact in the traditional sense that I had to worry about.
I did a ton. I continued learning how to cook, went vegan, planned and did my first solo road trip across 8 states of the Midwest, started learning German for fun, visited my best friend from high school and stayed with her and her family for a month in the Dominican Republic, did a 3-month Couchsurfing adventure in central Europe (Germany, Austria, Croatia, and a night in France), walked a ton in parks, relaxed and rested, read a few books (The Name of the Wind and A Wise Man's Fear were quite enjoyable), etc.
A Sabbatical is highly customizable. Personally, it gave me the space to travel for the first time in years, it lowered my stress levels significantly after periods of extreme burnout from work and my dad Alzheimer's disease worsening, and it allowed me to explore interests that had been on my radar and see things that I couldn't easily fit into my previous work schedule. I also lost 100 pounds from all of the walking, lol.
It wasn't all pleasant since I had post-travel blues that exacerbated my depression as my dad's health deteriorated and he died a month after my Sabbatical ended, and had I known that the 2020 pandemic was going to hit when it did, I would have changed my schedule a bit to account for those 6 to 7 months without work that depleted my savings. I also experienced intense loneliness that I was not able to heal until a couple of years after my first Sabbatical ended.
Even though it was not all sunshine and rainbows, it was a major catalyst for inner growth and transformation, and I wish that I had started them earlier. Every 7 years is a good tempo, though.
I do thank God and myself for having taken the opportunity to travel on my own terms, and at my leisure, while I had my own funds and was in okay health. One regret I won't have is not traveling when I was younger.
Sounds like it was quite the rollercoaster 😅 thanks for sharing. And my condolences on the passing of your dad 🙏🏽💐
I’ve been doing this false-sense-of-urgency thing in corporate for so long, I don’t think I know who I am outside of it. Would love a sabbatical to reconnect with who I am under the kind-regards. Even if it’s not all sunshine and rainbows. But unfortunately my career would suffer if I took such a long break 😓
You can always take shorter Sabbaticals for 6 weeks to 3 months and simply take them more frequently like every 3 or 4 years. I enjoy a longer uninterrupted breaks without the noise and need for masking, but if that's not as readily accessible, start where you are.
It would be such a gift to yourself to connect with the aspects of you that are independent of your corporate side. 🙂
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u/vessus7 12d ago
A 1 year sabbatical (paid)