Thoughts on career break

Usually, when year-end approaches, I reflect on what the year has been like and what I want to achieve next year but never publish. Since this year is special, I would like to share some thoughts openly, and hopefully, this can be helpful for anyone who wants to take a career break.

Earlier in 2024, I said Goodbye to Singapore after a great 12 years there in Zalora, Skyscanner, and Shopee and moved to the USA. I decided to take a break before exploring new opportunities.

Generally, people think taking a break is a great choice which is true. There are a lot of benefits like spending more time on personal hobbies, more time with kids, taking care of myself, slowing down to think, etc. It is all true. But some things are not so beautiful that you may have known beforehand.

1. Finance pressure

Though before I decided to take a career break, I looked into our financial situation and was sure things would be manageable. But when the real "no salary" flowed in, I started to stop buying things I probably didn't need immediately unconsciously. To some extent, this may not be a bad thing but I do feel emotionally that's because of the financial pressure, not because I didn't like high heels, new clothes, etc. anymore. This sometimes can be an annoying feeling I lost my financial independence though I do have access to every bank account of the family.

If you have elderly family members, things can change quickly. You may not know what can be found after a normal health check even though they are active and healthy. If unexpected situations happen, it can create significant pressure on you.

2. All kinds of emotions

I generally feel I am a bit "slow" when it comes to feeling but I have tons of different feelings this year. (Whoever said I can't feel shall know I am different now. Kidding.)

Yea, in my 37 years of life, I first had so mixed, complex feelings that I was not expecting.

In the first 2 months, I loved the slow down but soon I felt so bored. I tried to pick things up, writing my blog, then got bored again, then I started to bake more, try new things, design our garden, plant trees to keep myself busy, etc but I still feel bored. I in one way felt so relaxed and happily found my sleep quality was much better, in another way, felt so bored. Eventually, I felt that was because of the value component missing there. I did all different things but I did not feel there was value behind or I intentionally did not feel it was the same valuable as what I put on the table in a working space.

I loved the four seasons in the new city and happily met new friends, and built new connections. Meanwhile, I missed my old friends in China and Singapore. I'd love to hear from them, wanna catch up with the new gossip there, wanna see their new posts, etc. That made me feel so lonely time by time.

I felt defeated when things were not going as expected like I failed twice in the driving license test in the US though I had a Singapore driving license, and a manual car license many years back. It was very normal since I had not touched car for quite a while but I still felt defeated.

3. Re-Entry Anxiety

I was always sure I would eventually go back to the workspace. Re-entry into a new market made me anxious time by time. I was not an expert in interviews though I interviewed others a lot but presenting myself was not something I was strong. Entering a new market was not easy for me and re-introducing myself sometimes made me feel tired and not sure whether I would get a job here. Sometimes I would feel, this shall be easy if I am still in Singapore, lol.

Last but not least, there are always two sides to many things, hardly all good or all bad. And sometimes we will share good things in public, and try not to be negative. However, the unexpected can be helpful for anyone who may want to take a career break, especially together with other changes like relocation in my case.

I hope my sharing can help you make a more informed decision. I am not suggesting you shall not take a career break. I am not regretting taking a break but I did not expect the three points above to the extent.

However, if you decide to take a career break, my advice to you is never to drop into the emotional trap. If things do not go as expected, there may be many reasons. Don't simply attribute it to the break.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all friends who spent time reading my writing.

(PS: I tried to use AI tools to polish my post but found the outcome was not from me so I keep them as they are. Maybe I need to write more to train the model to be more "me".)

#careerbreak #reentry #relocation #tech #marketing