Sabbatical – to take or not to take?

The ancient had wisdom when they prophesied, “For six years you shall sow your land and gather in its yield, but the seventh year you shall let it rest and lie fallow, that the poor of your people may eat; and what they leave the beasts of the field may eat. You shall do likewise with your vineyard, and with your olive orchard.” The modern farmers understand this wisdom and for their field’s sake allow a section to lie fallow for a season. These are often sown with clover and other plants that re-enrich the soil for subsequent years’ fruitful sowing.

But why am I mentioning this here? Well, because from this has come the concept of ‘Sabbatical’ which literally means rest from work or a break. Aforementioned is one of the commandment to desist from working the fields in the seventh year. In the strict sense, a sabbatical lasts a year. In recent times, "sabbatical" has come to mean any extended absence in the career of an individual in order to achieve something. In the modern sense, one takes sabbatical typically to fulfill some goal, e.g., writing a book or travelling extensively for research. Sabbatical, career break and gap year are typical terms used to define period of time out from employment. Interestingly in some traditional societies with modern garb it is still believed this is for mothers to raise their children.

My article deals with a dilemma which all of us hitting 30s or mid-30s generally face: Sabbatical – to take or not to take?

The decision to take a sabbatical is never easy, not at all if you are the only earning member of your family. The situation gets further complicated if you have debts to pay-off. Thus deciding on a career break depends a lot on your personal life – the present and the future. We go on and on with our career until we burn out (literally meaning we reach retirement age). This is when we realize we missed on many opportunities in life. It hurts even more when we turn back to see a life lived so mechanically without pursuing the dream we wished we could.

My belief is just like the earth we all need a break – if not once in seven years perhaps once in ten years. I cannot comment on the frequency but I can definitely speak in support of taking a break. You would point out – then take a vacation? Ever felt like working after a 15-days’ vacation or even a month? No. We all hate going back to work after a short vacation, in fact we all wish to prolong it. However, a sabbatical makes you appreciate work. It not only refreshes your mind but also makes you like the nosy colleagues, bossy managers and a typical work day. It revives your energies and gives you a chance to focus on your personal development or even pursue a hobby.

It is not common for men to have a gap year in their resume. However, it is considered okay for women to have career breaks in their CVs. I believe this privilege of taking time-off from work should be extended to our male brethren as well. A sabbatical gives you an opportunity to focus on your individual development. You have enough time to analyse yourself.

1. What tasks do I really enjoy?
2. Where am I now and where do I see myself in the future?
3. What experience, skills and knowledge am I still lacking?
4. What are my strengths and where do I want to develop further?
5. How can I deepen my expert knowledge?
6. How can I broaden my leadership skills?
7. Which management development programs should I attend?

You may say – We can do this even with job? I question back – How many of us have done this with job? A job come with its own set of duties and responsibilities which we cannot shrug off. There are deadlines to meet and targets to achieve. All this becomes so mechanical even the weekends are sold out in preparation of the coming hectic weeks. To add to this the personal situations which all of us face at some or every stage in life. The peace to carve out a plan and rejuvenate energy – this is what a sabbatical offers. It also gives you the required time to spend with your family. In fact this is the time when you can reconnect with your family in a completely different way. You will be surprised by the results and the impact it has on your mental health. This will make your more cheerful, happy and after a long time stress free.

Sabbatical is also about yourself. You might not do any of the training's or seminars, you might not even carve out a career plan for yourself but still you might end up discovering a hobby or a hidden talent which you always nurtured in your sub-conscious mind. This will help you in setting up an alternate career plan and perhaps a little bit of hard work in this direction might end up giving sweet fruits in the long run.

Unlike the current mind-set where a career break generally means a diploma or a degree program, I see this gap in career as a way to rejuvenate energy and come back sharper than ever. Some of the companies these days understand the necessity of sabbatical and grant one to their loyal employees, who says loyalty doesn't pay! However even if your organization doesn't give you a break, you can still plan one for yourself with meticulous strategy and solid financial planning.

Aristotle once said, “The unexamined life is not worth living.” Every once in a while, it’s a pretty good idea to stand back and look at ourselves, who we are, what we are doing, where we are going. Living is a lot like painting a mural. You have to stand back once in a while to make sure the picture is coming out the way you want it to. Sabbatical in a way helps you in painting this mural right.