My August Sabbatical

For the last three years, I've taken a sabbatical for the month of August. And I love it.

Now, granted, I am in a position where I can do that. I am the owner/founder/CEO but more than that - I work with a great team that enable me to do this. And for that, I am grateful every day.

Today is my first day back.

A gazzillion emails (guess who forgot to set the Out of Office notification!).

A stack of messages on LinkedIn.

A bunch of messages from the WhatsApp groups...which I am not going to ever read.

NONE of which are life or death. Most of which have no bearing on life whatsoever.

The good news is that the business not only survived but thrived. The team solved all the problems. The world didn't end because I didn't respond to email. I may need to question what my actual value is :-)

But seriously, August is a great reset for me. 4-6 weeks seems doable for everyone: the team, clients, me and my amazing family. So here's a few things that I have learned doing this:

1. When I come back - don't download all my new, big, great and amazing ideas to the team on day one. That's not helpful to them in anyway!
2. Have a plan for your time. For me, I would spend the morning doing creative writing (nothing to do with work). In the afternoon, we would do something as a family (often the beach).
3. Have an ice cream everyday!
4. Get the team and the family involved in the planning process.
5. Be flexible!
6. Get away. For us, we went to Jersey (Channel Islands Jersey, not New Jersey).
7. Exercise. I would walk to Coleens Café in the morning, a 20 minute walk. I'd sit down and write whilst enjoying the most stunning views over Greve De Lecq. Then I would walk back. Walking is a great exercise when doing Sabbatical. First day back in the gym today - yup, it hurts, but I am OK with that.
8. Go on adventures. This might be going down to 'hidden beach' (Plemont Bay in Jersey is divine), doing a day trip to St Malo in France, or walking with your daughter for an hour just to get a burrito.
9. Journal. But do it with a pen and paper and enjoy going analogue for a season.
10. Think about work, just don't do work.
11. Do the work ahead of time that enables you to go away. For me that it recording more podcasts and videos that cover me not just for August but also enough to make sure that the first week back is not bonkers.
12. Plan for not having a bonkers first week back!
13. Be with people you love.
14. Be spiritual. For me, that means digging into my Christian faith. Prayer walks are great for me and my spiritual health. I also worked on being grateful. What a difference that makes.
15. Avoid posting on social media. It always amazes me how easy it is for me to try and take the perfect photo of a moment that I don't stop and enjoy the moment.
16. Learn something new.
17. Read books. Especially novels. Avoid business books.
18. Write a book. Not a business book, but something different like a novel or short story. It doesn't matter if no one reads it, just write the darn thing.
19. Practice generosity. Not just with money, but with time and energy.
20. Don't be unrealistic. You are not going to learn a new hobby, figure out how to water ski, write the book, get that beachbody and so on. I've found my list is often bigger than my reality.
21. But do something you wouldn't ordinarily do. For me - it was writing a short story.
22. When you get back write a post on LinkedIn about your Sabbatical.

If you have the chance, put a Sabbatical in your diary for next year.

I am looking at Mid July to End of August 2025.

And I've started to plan it already.

You?