Happy Valentine's Day- 14th Feb'23

Your sabbatical is a break from your routine job/professional business and is suppose to help you enjoy your time out from work while you're attending to your personal commitments. A time to pursue your hobbies & talents, to upskill yourself in various ways, to spend quality time with your dear ones, travel & explore and so much more. To take a break from your mundane life and enable you to evolve into a much better person with a positive outlook to your future plans & growth both personally & professionally.?

Unfortunately most times, the outcome of a sabbatical is the opposite. Life is full of ups & downs, highs & lows, joy & grief and in most cases we find it difficult to deal with negative scenarios during our sabbatical, making us feel helpless & hopeless. This leads to self-doubt, loss of self-confidence, low self-esteem, fear of missing out (on the professional front), jealousy, insecurity & at times complete loss of identity in many of us.

I too went through these negative emotions and began to hate my sabbatical, one which I was once in love with and only looking forward to enjoying every bit of it.?The break that I had planned well & started on a positive note, kept failing until I realized that I was the only reason behind its failure. I realized, that if I wanted to fall in love with my sabbatical all over again, I needed to get out of my own way. And I'm glad that I did. It took time, and the process was slow, but yes, I changed my thought process.

Here's what I did & what helped me-

1. Acknowledge your break. Respect yourself for the reason that you had to or decided to take a break/sabbatical from work. It could be due to any personal or professional reasons which were to be prioritized at that time.

2. Know your priorities at all times during your sabbatical & expect positive results only from what you are working on & giving the most time. At times your priorities could be very personal like your family, home, hobbies, mental/physical fitness etc. rather than your professional/financial progress & achievements.

3. Focus & work on the reason for your break rather than the fear of missing out on your work progress. It will only bring in negativity & self-doubt, thus leading to failing on enjoying your sabbatical.

4. Spend time with your loved ones. Take short/long trips with your family/friends.

5. Unplan the plan. Highs & lows, ups & downs, joys and griefs, are all a part of our life. We will never be prepared for some unfortunate, unforeseen events in our life. Take some time to process it. Slow down & rework the plan once you are in the right frame of mind.

6. Have short time goals. Start journaling daily & appreciate yourself for your domestic achievements too!

7. Once again explore your strengths via your talents & hobbies while parallelly upskilling yourself with the current trends required for your next professional stint.

8. If you have to or need to, take up small work assignments or consultancy jobs to keep busy during your free time at home, ensure that you maintain an excellent work-life balance.

9. The definition of a successful life need not always be financial independence. It differs from individual to individual and is situation based. See what success means to you during your sabbatical & obtain it accordingly.

10. Listen to your inner voice & not to the outside voices.

11. Stop overthinking & live in the moment.

12. Be grateful for the break/sabbatical. Once you start work again, you never know whether you will get to experience another one!

I always knew what it felt like to be financially independent. But my sabbatical made me emotionally & mentally independent too! It helped me to prioritize my thoughts, my feelings & my mental well-being. It taught me to be content, happy & grateful for the little things that bring peace & joy every day. It taught me to love myself for who I was even though I was evolving into someone new every day. It helped me create an excellent work-life balance. Today I have created a personal as well as a professional identity for myself. I'm making the most of my sabbatical by regularly upskilling myself, learning from my experiences & showcasing my strengths. I love my sabbatical & my sabbatical loves me back!

To those on a sabbatical, love your break, gather the experiences, learn from it & enjoy it to your fullest. Happy Valentine’s Day!

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